Professor David Rhodes today revealed he almost walked away from Bradford City as the club plunged into its biggest ever financial crisis.

And he said Bradford City's survival was in question until minutes before yesterday's meeting of creditors at Valley Parade.

David and his son Julian made up two-thirds of the team which led the dramatic survival bid, along with chairman Geoffrey Richmond.

But he admitted his family had struggled to raise the enormous sums required to save City after the dramatic slump in share price suffered by his firm Filtronic.

The deal was only secured when Professor Rhodes gave up the deeds to his Menston home to pay for an additional one-off payment of £1 million to unsecured creditors in 37 months' time.

"The effect on our family has been quite traumatic and it has come very close to all being over on several occasions over the past few days and weeks," he said.

"I've been through this sort of thing before. I have always succeeded in the past and I am not about to succumb this time. The family have always given me total support."

And he said he was determined to do all he could - because there was no other saviour willing to put up the cash.

"I just believe that this city needs such a football club and in terms of the financial commitment involved, there is no other family that has been committed to it," he said.

"It disappoints me that across the city as a whole there has not been any meaningful financial support to save the club."

Professor Rhodes ruled himself out of the running for the post of chairman on the new board, despite Geoffrey Richmond's admission that he may stand down from the job.

But he said he would be calling for "tighter control" of the club's finances in the wake of the crisis.

"I still don't want a high profile role, my main work role in Bradford has always been as executive chairman of Filtronic," he said. "However, I think the club has got to be controlled financially and part of that is to be achieved through the administrators."

Under the terms of the deal passed yesterday, administrators Kroll Buchler Phillips will retain a "hands-on" role throughout the period of the Company Voluntary Arrangement.

Joint administrator Neil Brackenbury confirmed meetings would be taking place with the club's board every three months to ensure costs are being kept in check.

That condition was called for by major creditor Gerling Insurance, without whose backing the CVA would have failed to gain sufficient support.

Meanwhile, Professor Rhodes said the club still faced another hurdle - ensuring the club is admitted back into the Football League at a meeting of chairmen on Tuesday.

He said he was confident the club would be re-admitted to the League, but added the next few years would be a struggle for City.

"I think this club does have a bright future but we must not underestimate the difficulties we are going to face," he said. "It is not as if everything is behind us at all."