THE Burnley board are locked in detailed talks with tycoon Ray Ingleby's right hand man, David Parry.

But any decision on a Turf Moor takeover is still on ice.

The board of directors held a meeting on Monday night and the buy-out was top of the agenda.

Ingleby, although a clear favourite, still faces a tough battle with the secretive third party bidding for control.

I understand the board is split because of the mystery person's links with the town.

The other set of bidders, a consortium of Manchester investors represented by Apax Partners, are still waiting for a reply to their renewed efforts to open a dialogue with chairman Frank Teasdale.

The Clarets board were annoyed by recent television reports stating that a cash sum in the region of £5 million was now available to manager Chris Waddle to spend on new players.

And Mr Parry confirmed: "That has not come from a reliable source.

"That sort of figure has come out of the blue."

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