Northwich Sport
Deloitte reveals that Northwich Victoria's owner first exchanged contracts to buy ground in 2009
8:30am Thursday 2nd February 2012
FINANCE experts hired to sell Northwich Victoria’s ground have revealed that the club came closest to owning its home again more than two years ago.
Deloitte confirmed last night, Wednesday, that it had accepted an offer from Vics’ owner Jim Rushe – via Northwich Victoria Developments (NVD) Ltd – to buy land on which the Victoria Stadium is built as long ago as 2009.
The two parties exchanged contracts, but the deal collapsed.
“Northwich Victoria Developments Ltd paid a non-refundable deposit to our solicitors,” read a statement.
“This was not a six-figures sum as has been previously reported, and completion did not occur on the date agreed because NVD did not have the money to do so.
“Since then the firm has been trying to raise funds to purchase the stadium and – to our knowledge – approached numerous funders who, for reasons unknown to us, either declined or withdrew their interest.”
Last month, at the request of prospective new owners Thor Specialities (UK) Ltd, Deloitte ordered the club to leave the ground it has called home since 2005.
It activated a clause in a licence agreement with Northwich Victoria Developments Ltd that gave the firm, and in turn Vics’ team, three days to move out.
Thor, a chemicals manufacturer based on the same street, completed a deal to buy the nine-acres site on Monday.
“Thor expressed an interest last summer after discovering that Northwich Victoria had a ground share agreement in place [with Witton Albion] prior to the beginning of this season,” added Deloitte.
“Initial negotiations were held but – in September – NVD advised us that it would have the funds available to buy the stadium.
“At that point, Thor agreed to withdraw and wait for further developments.”
Confident of completion, Deloitte predicted Rushe would have the keys a month later.
But the deal fell collapsed, according Vics’ owner, when a lender with which he had agreed a mortgage pulled out.
The Guardian has asked Thor managing director David Hewitt twice to confirm how he knew of the existence of an accord between Vics and their neighbours, but to date has not had a reply.
Meanwhile Rushe has maintained that he knew nothing at all of a third party’s desire to buy the ground until bailiffs turned up there on January 16.
Deloitte, despite repeated requests to do so, has not corroborated his version of events.
“Other than a call to us in October, no further communication took place with NVD and it was felt then that another potential investor had gone away,” adds the statement.
“Discussions recommenced with Thor, which resulted in a sale of the stadium this week. We acknowledge that the outcome is a disappointing one for Northwich Victoria’s fans.”
It is not known how much Thor has paid.
Deloitte was asked by Scottish lender Clydesdale Bank in October 2008 to recover money lent to the club’s previous landlord Beaconet Ltd, a firm set up by Vics’ former chairman Mike Connett to run the site with the club as a tenant.
He bought the Wincham site for £225,000 in 2004.
Less than four years later, it was taken off him again with his firm owing more than £1m borrowed from three different lenders using the land as surety.
Beaconet was wound up soon afterwards.
“Every case is different,” said Jason Clarke, Clydesdale’s senior media relations manager.
“This property has been for sale for a number of years and – as Deloitte pointed out [in a statement on January 17] – it reached a point where there had been a number of opportunities for the preferred bidder to complete.”