WE'RE ON THE MARCH WITH FERGIE'S ARMY

Hard evidence that Manchester United supporters are planning a major protest against John Magnier and J P McManus at the Cheltenham Festival emerged on Tuesday.

The Racing Post has learned that the club’s protestors have already acquired 88 tickets in the Tattersalls enclosure on Gold Cup day, a number they hope will swell to 250 by March 18.

Cheltenham managing director Edward Gillespie acknowledged a request to stage a demonstration at the racecourse had been received from United 4 Action, and said his executive is considering its response.

If permission for the protest is not granted, the group, with 110 paid-up members since its formation six weeks ago, is threatening to cause “huge embarrassment” during racing.

Tuesday’s fixture at Market Rasen, despite the appearance of two McManus-owned runners, passed without incident, a few days after the ‘Manchester Education Committee’, another group of protestors, organised a demonstration at Hereford on Friday.

United 4 Action’s founder, Sean Murphy, a former stable groom in Ireland currently working in Britain, revealed that with around 250 fans having volunteered to join the protest, efforts have been stepped up to find more Gold Cup tickets on the black market.

He also claims to have had pledges of support from a further 103 supporters who had previously made arrangements to be at Prestbury Park for the blue riband of steeplechasing.

Murphy, who has attended the last 14 Gold Cups, said: “We don’t want to cause any disruption, but we want to get the message across to John Magnier and J P McManus that we want them to sell their shares in Manchester United and give the club back to the fans because we don’t want them.

“We have been in touch with the authorities at Cheltenham asking for permission to be able to hold a peaceful, vocal protest, at a place they designate, and I am still waiting to hear back from them.

“I would like it to be in the winner’s enclosure between races, but I wouldn’t mind if it is in one of the car parks. We just want Magnier and McManus, on one of the biggest days of the racing year, to know how strongly we feel.

“If the racecourse doesn’t give us permission, we will revert to Plan B which is to protest at a time andplace at the track that has already been arranged. I am not going to say where or when that will be, but it will cause huge embarrassment.”

Murphy, an Old Trafford season-ticket holder for 15 years, went on: “We have already got 88 tickets for the Tattersalls enclosure and, with around 250 volunteers already, we have got touts in Liverpool and Manchester trying to get us more.”

On Tuesday Cheltenham boss Gillespie said the course was considering its course of action.

He said: “I am aware that contact has been made with us and we are now considering how to respond to it.

“We do respect anybody’s right to express themselves and their opinions, and we certainly don’t want to in any way allow what is effectively a private disagreement between a small number of individuals to negatively affect the thousands of peoples’ enjoyment of our race meeting. That is very important, so what we are doing at moment is considering our response to the contact.”

On Tuesday night a spokesperson for Manchester United refused to comment on United 4 Action’s plan to demonstrate at Cheltenham, but said the club was standing by last week’s call for supporters to abandon racecourse protests against Magnier and McManus.

The McManus camp on Tuesday offered no comment on the situation.

It is believed that the MEC are to target Kroll’s Manchester office before the game tonight. Kroll are the private investigators responsible for digging up dirt on Fergie and have an office just off Oxford Road. Some MEC members are believed to be meeting in the Paramount pub on the corner of Oxford Road and Portland Street at 4:30pm.

Meanwhile from the Irish Independent:

John Magnier and JP McManus are today poised to swoop for an eight-million block of Manchester United shares in a move that will put them on the brink of a 30pc holding in the club.

Such a swoop - at a cost of more than £20m - would send tremors through the market and Old Trafford.

And it would significantly increase pressure on manager Alex Ferguson.

The latest buy-up brings Cubic Expression - owned by the Irish multi-millionaires - close to the level of ownership where they would have to make an offer for the rest of the shares, under UK rules.

Despite a series of warnings to the Irish pair, this decision by Cubic to substantially increase their stake will be interpreted as a clear signal that they will not be intimidated in this battle.

Sources say that the group has been quietly acquiring up to 900,000 shares over the past fortnight.

However, today's block-buy represents the biggest single swoop since the £62m paid out for Sky shares last October.

And following several weeks of public fighting between the Magnier and Ferguson camps, it is believed the two sides are taking a renewed look at the situation.

It is understood, however, that despite spurning the offer of Goldmans Sachs banker Jim O'Neill to broker a deal, a calmer approach is now being adopted.

It might boil down to how one side can make an approach to the other through official channels without being seen to lose face.