Raith and a riches to rags story Euro joy to cash crisis in five years

The dream never did become reality, as Bayern hit back through Jurgen Klinsmann and Markus Babbel, and while it nevertheless provided a glorious chapter in the club's history, there was to be no happy ending.

''I remember watching Ronnie Coyle racing for the ball hotly pursued by Jurgen Klinsmann and Jean-Pierre Papin,'' recalled Rovers' company secretary Eric Drysdale, a shareholder at the club since 1984 and a man who has witnessed the demise from close quarters. ''Ronnie won the ball and I said to myself 'it can only be downhill from here'. I didn't realise then just how bad it would become.''

Years of mismanagement have left the club just six months away from liquidation and despite building an SPL compliant stadium with a capacity in excess of 10,000 - and staying within touching distance of the leaders in fourth place in the first division - Rovers' home gates have been consistently less than 2000.

Manager Peter Hetherston has lost his best players to stem the tide of cash leaking out of the club and the remaining squad members have had to accept a 25 per cent wages and bonus cut. The Inland Revenue are seeking the final #35,000 of #100,000 worth of unpaid tax by February, while their commercial debt stands at #1m.

The winter of 1995 marks a significant point in the dramatic decline of a club now fighting for their very existence. Their glamour tie against Munich yielded a financial windfall, with television royalties of more than #500,000 helping towards the construction of two new, all-seated stands in compliance with the criteria laid down by the embryonic Scottish Premier League. The final #2.5m bill was offset by a Football Trust grant and loan totalling #1.5m, the television revenue, plus the sale of Stevie McAnespie to Bolton for ''a ridiculous amount of #900,000 - 10 times what he was worth''.

The subsequent sales of Colin Cameron and Stevie Crawford brought in further finance, but weakened the squad to such an extent that they were relegated two years after coming up from the first division. A 6-0 defeat by Rangers followed by a midweek loss to Motherwell signalled the end for manager Iain Munro, who had taken over from Nicholl when the Irishman left for Millwall.

Chairman Alex Penman allegedly sacked him outside the Lanarkshire club's stadium - which resulted in the manager winning #45,000 compensation and leaving Rovers to pick up a sizeable legal bill - and resigned himself after an alleged assault on a tabloid photographer.

The club, however, were in a stable financial position, reporting a profit of #466,000, with ''manageable'' borrowings. Although they were back in the first division, Nicholl had returned to the manager's office, and the arrival of millionaire Allan Kelly in June 97, with a promise of a #1.5m squad investment, seemed like a godsend.

However, the reality of the situation was that the new regime succeeded only in plunging the club into the red, exceeding the bank's loan limit of #1m by #100,000 during season 1998-99, while the Inland Revenue demanded #100,000 in tax that had not been paid for six months, and 92 creditors had been owed in the region of #600,000.

''In the summer of 97, the squad increased from 16 to 27 - mainly with overpaid players - but with the commercial side struggling and gate receipts falling, it was a gamble that backfired because we could no longer sustain the players' wages, which rose to #1.3m,'' said Drysdale. ''By November 98, there was no money left and the creditors were screaming for theirs back, along with the Inland Revenue, Rock Steady Security, and several other companies who had not been paid for their services. Kelly brought in an accountant to sort out the mess, but that incurred a bill of #60,000 that he did not settle.''

In an attempt to find a quick fix to alleviate the mounting debts, Kelly instigated the infamous 'fan for life' scheme, which, for #1000, guaranteed supporters a season ticket for the rest of their days. ''It did not matter what age you were and mercifully only 82 people took up the offer because most fans wanted to help the club out and knew this could spell disaster, but that is still 82 seats we cannot sell,'' said Drysdale. ''I shudder to think what would have happened if more people bought the seats, but it was an act of sheer stupidity and desperation.''

It was also to be one of Kelly's last acts at the helm. He resigned as chairman in December 98, with the club reporting huge losses, but he remained the majority shareholder as prospective buyers were put off by the club's escalating financial problems. Drysdale, along with the only remaining member on the board, local businessman Willie Gray, set up a community board to look after the club's interests until a buyer was found.

Douglas Cromb, who had earlier intimated that he would be interested in buying the club only to withdraw his interest after consultation with his advisers, was invited to take over as chairman - an appointment that would also to end in disaster.

''He was a respected figure from his time with Hibs, but his attitude caused a split in the board. He made decisions without consultation, like selling Paul Hartley to his old club 11 days after being appointed, and that was followed by Jason Dair joining Dunfermline for a ridiculous fee of #20,000. He upset a lot of people, and by the time he was asked to leave, we were in the situation of having to raise as much money as we could because our condition was worsening at a rapid rate.''

So bad, in fact that the rattle of collecting tins for Save the Rovers could be heard all along the High Street, while schemes such as 'buy a tile' had limited success. ''You could only go to the fans so often, and by April last year we had exhausted the purses of the Kirkcaldy people, which is not a wealthy area. By then, time had run out. There was no way we could even pay our players' wages.''

In their hour of need, Kelly announced, to the delight of Rovers' increasingly disillusioned supporters, that he had sold his shares to Glasgow-based businessman Danny Smith, who immediately ploughed #300,000 into the club as a director's loan, returnable only when they are financially sound, while the coaching staff of Jimmy Nicholl and Alex Smith made way for John McVeigh and Peter Hetherston.

There was now a battle on two fronts: to relieve the club's debts, which involved settling bills with all but 23 of the 92 creditors, and appeasing the Inland Revenue, while at the same time trying to secure a place in the increased top division. To do that they had to make modifications to the main stand, the cost of which was met by a director, while money was made available to the management team to allow them to bring in the likes of Didier Agathe and Sasha Opinel.

The gamble did not pay off, however, with Rovers finishing fifth and that led to Smith having to trim the squad significantly, while other drastic measures have been taken to cut costs, from cutting back administrative staff to restricting pitch lining. The wage bill has almost halved in the space of two years, to #745,000, but the club is now facing a make or break three-month period that has necessitated the recent wage cuts and unpopular sell-offs.

Marvin Andrews, Steve Tosh, and Alex Burns were transferred to Livingston for a combined fee of #100,000 and at least two more are expected to follow as the club bid to get on an even keel by the end of next season.

The squad were informed on Monday last week that earnings and bonuses would have to be reduced by 25 per cent to allow the club to complete the payments due to the Inland Revenue. Over the next six months, they must find #250,000 to pay off the last remaining creditors, and only then will their future be secured.

''We are always on the lookout for new investors, and, thankfully, we have been helped by some local businessmen and companies,'' said Drysdale. ''Despite what has been written recently, the players knew about and agreed to the wage cuts, but of course they are not going to be happy. Nobody would if you told them they would have to work just as hard for less money.

''We are now in a situation where we are struggling for survival, but we simply have to find this money from somewhere if we are to avoid becoming another Airdrie.

''We have received a tremendous amount of support from the Clydesdale Bank, who are sympathetic to our position, but it is only down to the efforts of Danny and his associates that we are even at this point, because without them we would not be six months away from being in control of our own destiny again and quite frankly I hate to think where we'd be.''

At last, there is a chink of light at the end of a long, dark tunnel, and while Kelly remains an unpopular figure at Stark's Park, the deep-rooted resentment has cleared with time. ''I have met him since he sold the club and he is not an unreasonable man, he just took on something he could not control,'' said Drysdale. ''He had no experience and was too generous to Jimmy Nicholl. The club has suffered greatly, but I realise it was not deliberate and the hatred has diminished.''

Bayern may be but a distant memory, but those involved in trying to save the stricken club will have to display the kind of loyalty and determination that took Rovers' Class of 95 to the brink of history in the Olympic Stadium.