This morning should have seen Gloucester City fans recovering from a hangover, after celebrating the good news that the council were happy for our long proposed new stadium to go ahead.

Alas, the wait goes on.

The council have not said no, but have not said yes and as a result the club's future is very much in limbo. They have asked for more time (they have had years to consider the plans!) and in doing so have caused fans to worry that the future of the club could be in serious doubt or that they may have to retrench back to the Western/Hellenic Leagues and ground-share with Slimbridge.

As somebody who has supported and backed the club since moving to the city over three years ago, I am deeply gutted by this news and I know how hurt chairman Nigel Hughes and Director Colin Peake are by the council's (non)decision. The club have, so far, spent £250,000 on getting the new stadium - that same amount could have got them a League 2 type squad.

Nigel's tone in an interview for BBC Radio Gloucestershire was downbeat, and he has hinted that further work towards getting the stadium built will cost an extra £100,000 (including consultants fees - bet them b*stards are rubbing their mits in glee!) I think that he thinks it is not going to be worth it with a council that would have nosebleeds over deciding whether to have custard creams or ginger nuts in the biscuit tin.

Had it been Gloucester RFC in need of help, and had Kingsholm flooded instead, the council would have bent over backwards to help them - but because it's little (well not that little, it's the biggest club in the biggest UK city never to have been represented in the Football League) Gloucester City then f**k them they don't matter.

Ranting aside, what does the future hold for the club?

A YES in the future = problem solved

A NO would mean (in no order)...

* Eamonn McGurk would walk away from the club, leaving it in financial peril.

* Unless land could be acquired at either The Railway Triangle or Waterwells/Naas Lane, and the council agree to build and own the stadium (as in the cases of Swansea City FC and Manchester City FC), or Gloucester RFC agree that Gloucester City can play their games there on a ground-sharing agreement, then Gloucester City will have nowhere in the city to play in the future.

* Gloucester City would have to resign from the Blue Square North and reform in the Western/Hellenic League next season

* We would have to find an investor pretty sharpish!

Gloucester City cannot keep spending money on this scheme if the council will defer at every meeting. There has to be a clear YES or NO, because either way this has to be sorted. A yes means the club moves forward and can hopefully become a league club at last, whilst a no means that the club has to start from scratch again. Either way, keeping the club in suspense is not going to do the playing staff, club management nor fans any good at all.

I usually slate Gloucester's players after poor results (and we've slumped down the table after only one win so far!), but even after Brackley beat them 4-1 at Whaddon Road last night I can forgive them putting in a crap performance when they are worried that soon they might not have a club to play for.

Here are two excellent threads from Tigerroar which echo what most Gloucester fans feel:

http://cof.tigerroar...tterly-dejected

http://cof.tigerroar...re-do-we-go-now

Also, here is what local newspaper The Citizen thought of the outcome:

http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/Setback-Gloucester-City-Meadow-Park-redevelopment/story-16828427-detail/story.html

A very worrying time to be a Tigers fan...