On safe ground (16.12.05)

FOLLOWING the major upheavals of recent weeks, the dust finally seems to be settling at York Road.
However, confusion still reigns among the fans, while recriminations continue to dog some of the old guard.
As announced last week in the Advertiser, club vice chairman Bob Hussey has been elected to sit on the board of the newly formed Maidenhead United Limited, but he is also one of three people responsible for safeguarding the ground itself, which is held in trust.
Some have questioned if being both landlord and tenant might cause a conflict of interests, but Hussey did not believe having a foot in both camps would present any problems, as it would mean he would be fully aware of any developments affecting the club.
He also moved to calm fears over the future of the ground, as some have voiced concerns the new company might squander the riches it’s sale might provide.
He said: “The trust is a totally separate thing to the company. The plan is that the trustees will give the new club a lease on the ground, but the trustees will continued to hold the ground in trust.
“To sell the ground would need all the trustees’ permission, and they would insist that the new ground would also be held in trust to protect the football club.”
As far as the change from a members club to a limited company was concerned, Hussey said it had long been the club’s intention to move in that direction, as they could not rely of private individuals to fund its activities indefinitely.
He said: “It was always going to happen at some stage. It was always in our minds and the members had already given their permission for that to happen.
“A members club at our level relies on someone putting their hand in their pocket consistently to keep it going.
“We’ve been fortunate in the past to have chairmen with deep pockets, but Jon (Swan) couldn’t go on funding the club forever.”
Hussey also believed the new structure will be little different to the old one, adding: “The members can always buy shares in the new company and still attend games, the same way they did before. And as shareholders they can still have their say. It doesn’t change very much.
“The main difference is the club is rid of the financial burden which was crippling it. I believe it’s good news all round
“We were fighting a losing battle to keep the club on its present course. The only alternative was to cut the budget and play at a lower level. We would have been forced into it.”
Hussey also spoke up in defence of the outgoing club chairman Jon Swan.
He said: “A lot of people have been critical of Jon. People forget very quickly how many years of effort he has put in.
He’s been a stalwart.
“It will be a real shame if Jon isn’t involved in some way. More than anything I would miss his friendship at the club.
“And Jon hasn’t been alone in being criticised. I have had criticisms aimed at me.
“Fifteen years of slog, then you have one bad year and it’s all forgotten.
“The officers don’t get paid. In fact it costs us money to be involved. But that all goes by the wayside. Some people have very short memories.”