HORWICH pensioner Beau is just like thousands of other ordinary Bury Football Club supporters -- or is he?

The 71-year-old church organist has been going to Gigg Lane since 1937 and always has a pot of stew and dumplings after every match.

Some fans may sit down and watch the pools forecast after each game, hoping a bit of luck to save the club from financial ruin.

But could Beau, who lives in a sheltered housing complex, provide the perfect score for the team's directors? He says he is a member of a group of Leeds-based investors called Nearly-Red Management, who hope to buy the club.

The consortium is said to include eight millionaires -- one of them a three-time Lottery winner -- who are hoping they will get the chance to rescue their beloved team. The group is reported to have lodged three cheques totalling £15 million with the High Court as a show of faith.

And Beau, who is a season ticket holder at Gigg Lane, is now waiting to see if they will be given a chance to put the Shakers on firm ground.

He said: "I have been going to watch Bury since I was a boy. My father first took me to see them when I was seven and I have been going to home games ever since.

"I don't like the idea of my club dying. Nearly-Red Management wants to invest £15 million to give Bury some stability and I hope they have some success." But even if the investors were given a chance to buy Bury, Beau insists he would not personally take on the trappings of millionaire's row.

He said: "Sitting in a director's box would be all right for some people, but all that frivolity is not everybody's cup of tea.

"I'd rather watch games from my usual spot in the South Stand. Seat G107 is good enough for me."