New Ground

[Burnham Lad]

Even if we got a new ground signed this week, it will take several years to get the planning permissions and to build it. In eighteen months time, our rental period with Windsor and Eton ends, as does Mr Deaner's rent guarantee. There is no doubt what Slough Council are working for - the death of the club. Sadly, the club has said nothing about the future, so we have no idea where we stand.

 

Clearly for the 2006/7 season we could be homeless and unless Mr Deaner relents, cashless as well. If we, the fans, leave it until the summer of 2006 to do anything about it, it will be too late. We need to start raising the cash now to try and at least have some money in the kitty to try and extend the rental - where else could we go? It has to be Windsor if they will have us,(or possibly Burnham), no where else is practical to retain our broader fan base, but we need to be able to pay rent and player's wages.

 

I know the Trust are doing their best to raise funds, and the Trust is the only way that fans can band together and try to make a difference. So all you fans who haven't joined yet, please do - it may be a small contribution, but at least we are doing something to fend off disaster.

 

I am sure any and all other creative and positive suggestions will be welcome! <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/top.gif" alt="" />

[A Rebel and a Saint]

Im hoping to join the trust soon, noone wants to see local footy go down the pan!

How do i sign up?

[Guest]

write to the committee members on the link to the trust pages !!

 

HELP !!!! NOW !!!!!

[mats]

I am going to join the Trust this week.

[Don Juan DeMarcus]

Unfortunately I dont think we will ever raise on our own the amount of money needed, we need to raise awareness and try to get an investor.... Companies on ther trading estate perhaps? I'm out of ideas!

[Guest]

This of itself raises an interesting question--what is Deaners status/position/involvement at present as we havent seen him for ages-is he still for instance paying the wages etc

[Don Juan DeMarcus]

I have no idea but his recent absence worries me, it again leaves us in no-man land!

[Staines-upon-Thames Rebel]

With Andy playing for Henley is he there on Saturdays?

 

But he was not present for the FA Cup either as far as I know.

[Guest]

I am a member of the trust. I joined at the Walsall game, and my membership number is only in the 150's.

If the next available number is taken each time, that is not many members.

 

We need more numbers, for the money and for a voice.

 

Horsham Rebel (At work, therefore posted as ANON)

[Woody SUFC]

If the council said in 18 months time "Okay you can build here" would Deaner still fund the rent for Stag Meadow?

[Martin]

Nobody knows. Given what he said at the open meeting he called in the summer he would be very reluctant to trust the council. He indicated that his aim was to find a new site. Unfortunately, we have not seen Mr. Deaner for a while to know what is really going on.

[A Rebel and a Saint]

thing is nobody seems to trust anybody, we're not going to get anywhere like that!

[A Rebel and a Saint]

i've heard a rumour that we family that own the Park would sell or rent the ground back to the club for around £60,000, is this just rubbish or has anyone else heard this?

[SteveDelaney]

More people would join if they could see activity and plans being developed between the board and council showing their is a bright and secure future for the club, until they can see building work is taking place then they are not willing to give away there hard earned money.

I found it very hard to even get fans to pay for raffle tickets for the trusts christmas party and that was when we were getting big cup crowds.

While we have a council who are happy to wipe their hands of use now that we are out of the Town and who's only aim is for us to merge with another club then people are going to spend their money in another direction.

I am a very optimistic person but how far that will stretch with how the cards are laid out at present for the club is another thing.

[Guest]

There is more chance of Slough winning the premier league than the Thornes selling the land all the time there's a possibility they could get planning permission. They paid £300k, which was an independent valuation on the land, although if planning was granted for houses it's been reported it's worth up to £80 million. That could be some way off but they're obviously prepared to sit on their investment and if its legally owned by Mayfair they can depreciate it over a few years so it'll be worth zero on the balance sheet. Then even if they sell it for almost nothing in future years it will show as a profit.

 

As for a £60k rent, if that's true it's a vastly inflated sum which they know would never be paid so therefore never be taken up and probably takes account of monies they may be owed from the past. Allegedly!

 

All the time the freehold was up for grabs they had to allow us to play there as it was a deal they struck with the Council. Now they have purchased the freehold under that agreement there is absolutely no logical reason for them to allow us to play play there, especially if we want a long term lease which we require under the rules of the Ryman League. Why tie up what is potentially a multi million pound investment just for the sake of a local football club? Regrettably, I cannot possibly see what incentives there are for the owners of the freehold to allow us to play there.

[A Rebel and a Saint]

its just so completely stupid, this family obviously has no regard for the local culture, but unfortunately the money is what matters to a lot of people nowadays. if theyre not going to sell it for a while they might as well let the club use the stadium until they do?

[Don Juan DeMarcus]

I wish that 600k thing was true! However being as the land is prob worth well over 5 mil i cant see the money hungry thornes doing that!

[Ian]

Quote:

its just so completely stupid, this family obviously has no regard for the local culture, but unfortunately the money is what matters to a lot of people nowadays. if theyre not going to sell it for a while they might as well let the club use the stadium until they do?

To be fair, you cannot blame them for what is a very shrewd piece of business. They kept the club alive for a few years in exchange for the opportunity to purchase the freehold, obviously intending it to be a long term investment.

The problem with letting us play there is twofold. Firstly, they have no idea when, or even if, planning permission will ever be granted on it. Secondly, we require a lease with a minimum unexpired term of 7 years (10 if we want to play in Conference South). This means if we had such a lease and planning permission was granted tomorrow they'd have to wait for the lease to expire before they could capitalise on their investment.

It just does not make any business sense for them to let us play there unless they can evict us within 24 hours notice which we cannot accept because we couldn't play in our current league on such terms.

On that basis, Wexham Park is a total non starter and was the day the freehold was sold as now the owners have no obligation towards us. Unfortunately, moral arguments about history and tradition don't cut much ice where there's £80 million at stake.

[Burnham Lad]

So in reality there are five possibilities for STFC to survive:

 

1. Develop the Trust to the point where it has enough financial clout to be able to sort out a new ground, or a long term share deal. (I accept the point that without some extra-ordinary investment by members, or somebody leaving a lot of money, or a lottery winner) that will be difficult, but it could make the difference how long we survive. So still keep supporting the Trust!

 

2. Mr Deaner or some other investor comes up with a lot of cash and bluntly, the only time (and to be fair, apart from Mr Deaner!) that a wealthy individual puts up cash is to rip off the assets of the club, usually the ground - Quod erat demonstrandum - Wexham Park. The minute there are no assets, no takers. Mr Deaner's remedy of a new ground with facilities to earn money and fund the club is the most elegant, but finding the land round Slough is going to be a very difficult job. However there is an advertising board outside the ground at Farnham Rugby Club indicating the ground is available........but that is in South Bucks again, I think.

 

3. Merge with another club and generally that has to be a lower level club with a ground, which wants to see higher level football, or a club which needs the extra clout that a merger with Slough would give, such as the Hillingdon Borough / Burnham merger, when Hillingdon lost their ground and look how long Burnham Hillingdon lasted. Burnham got into a higher level of the Southern League, but look at where the reformed Hillingdon play....

 

4. Get the Council to fund a sports facility which the Club can share with the community - probably the best option, but boy are you prey to the latest political whim that comes along - you only have to look at the Clubs in Crisis Website to see what can happen there. However, in some places it works, you just need the right council elected, so maybe some different campaigning is needed...

 

5. Go back to park football and try and work up from there.

 

or 6. - Alright, one extra- I just thought of the final solution - just die, the preferred option of Mr Stokes and his cronies.

 

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[Guest]

surely not die we need to be more posertive on here. put it this way up until now sombody or someone has allways stepped in to help us maybe its time the council did somthing

 

cheers

 

dave programes