THE decision to sack Terry Butcher and his backroom staff will cost Newport County AFC £75,000 over the next 12 months.

Details of the termination agreement for Butcher and his assistants Russell Osman and Steve Marsella were revealed last night at an open meeting of County's Supporters' Trust, which now owns the club.

Members of the club's interim board told the meeting agreement between County and the League Managers' Association, the union representing the former management team, was reached on Thursday.

The deal will cost County around £75,000, with one member of the former management team receiving his severance pay over 12 months, and the other two over six months. 

The meeting was told Butcher, Osman and Marsella initially refused to budge on the terms of their contracts. This led to the LMA issuing statutory demands against the club, and could have seen County required to pay off the trio in one fell swoop.

Board members told the meeting this could have put the club out of business.

Trust members were told the former management trio's contracts were weighted 'massively in their favour'. As a result, County have had to include holiday and bonus  payments (thought to relate to every league point gained under the Butcher regime) in the pay-off deal.

The termination agreement is expected to be signed on Monday, with the former management team receiving their first payments on the same day.

Sacking Butcher and replacing him with John Sheridan was the first decision taken by the interim board once supporters had raised more than £250,000 to buy the club via a community shares offer.

Board members told the meeting they stood by the decision, and the current eight-match unbeaten run under Sheridan proved their case.

The meeting was also told the club made an estimated loss of £750,000 last season, but was forecast to break even this season.

It was also revealed that County are still raking cash from the transfer of striker Conor Washington to Peterborough United, with payments being received for every 10 appearances he makes for Posh.