MIKE Newton has given the Port Vale board more time to mull over his offer to invest £400,000 in the club.

The New York-based hedge fund trader issued a seven-day deadline for agreement on a deal after meeting the club's eight directors a week ago yesterday.

However, with Vale chairman Bill Bratt insisting the board needed more time to consider the proposals, Newton has relented.

Instead, he has invited fans to the Leopard pub in Burlsem tomorrow to hear about the proposals for themselves.

The Vale board met for several hours on Thursday night to discuss Newton's proposals, but Bratt said yesterday that no decision was imminent.

The board, he said, needed more time to sift through the details of the proposal, and also had supplementary questions for which they needed answers.

Newton said: "Port Vale's directors have requested additional clarification from me about the extra material I supplied to them following our face-to-face meeting on July 23.

"I will work through these and respond in due course. But because they have yet to send me their supplementary questions, and because I'm on holiday next week, I do not anticipate being able to respond until the new season has started on August 7."

For the time being, Newton has resisted laying down another deadline, but it is understood he is keen for a decision to be made before he hosts a formal public meeting at Stoke's Jubilee Hall on Thursday, August 12.

Before then, he is also hoping to meet fans at 8pm tomorrow at the Leopard.

He said: "I think it's critical fans feel part of this process and, to that end, I plan to be in the Leopard on Sunday to chat informally to supporters about their vision for the Vale.

"As negotiations are ongoing, I'll not be able to say too much about the process myself and the board are engaged in, but I hope to use this as an opportunity to clarify any misperceptions. I also want the fans to have an input into my thinking."

Newton wants to invest £400,000 over an unspecified period of time. In return, he is also seeking a place on the Vale board.

The Staffordshire-born former Oldham Athletic director, who grew up supporting Stoke City, begins his holiday on Monday.

But he plans to sit the with Vale's travelling fans during next Saturday's League Two opener at Bury.

He may also be present at Vale Park for the club's first home clash of the season, against Chesterfield on August 14.

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