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Post by dave1883gas on Sept 8, 2018 21:11:45 GMT
Ok, I started this so here goes, I got wind of this towards the end of last season but like many thought it was just more talk. I can tell you that today from an impeccable source widely respected amongst the Gas family and far too dignified to utter an unsubstantiated rumour that the club has been sold with completion expected next month, he understands that the buyer owns a construction company in Southampton. Oh, the training ground won't happen at the colony its already built almost complete by the UWE alongside the M32 I am not ITK just passing this on
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Post by dave1883gas on Aug 3, 2017 12:24:32 GMT
I posted on here in the summer re a deal being done with UWE. Regrettably I was hoping to come back on here and say I told you so but that hasn't worked out as I thought it would! The reason being that whilst I'm not prepared to go public on how I get to hear some things I firmly believe that the info I get is correct (its up to you if you believe me or not). I was told that a deal was done with UWE and all that was required was return of signed contracts and transfer of monies (pretty much what Gasincider and UWE have also said today). As the summer has progressed the same person started to become more negative and comment more about the running of the club etc in both that persons dealings with the club and also how the general running of the club has progressed (or not as the case may be). That culminated in yesterday in the morning a conversation around the deal being dead for the stadium (on our side rather than UWE) and more worryingly a massive change of heart / approach by the owners. The narrative was that we were going to stay put and 'tart up the Mem' One owner is apparently passionate about the club but others are less interested now and are turning the screw somewhat in terms of day to day operations. I don't have any specific detail but general lack of funds for basic day to day running items, payment of outstanding debts very slow etc. I obviously cannot say 100% for sure whether anything I get told is correct but people on here who know me will know I wouldn't make things up and will also know that around mid day yesterday I told them to prepare for bad news on the stadium (before the FB post and also way before the club announcement). I didn't shout any of that from the roof tops or go public with any of that info as I don't feel and didn't feel that it was the right thing to do but I do respect and understand why the people that have (I think originally on facebook) did so. It feels me with dread to say that I have heard pretty much exactly what other have already said in terms of the stadium and also the potential for bad news. In May a charge was placed on the Mem for a £10m rolling facility (shows on companies house) which at the time I thought was positive news as I believed it would have something to do with the land acquisition or even a guarantee for the anticipated works at UWE. Now it appears that isn't going to happen I fear that rather than investment into the club we may be being funded by borrowings against the stadium. I have no idea if this is through the owners or through perhaps 3rd party investors as I don't think anyone will really be able to know how exactly we are funded. Many have said its not a problem and inter company lending is the norm which I agree with. I have worked in finance all my life and I have been involved with commercial lending extensively. In my experience there is only one reason that I can think of why anyone ever puts a charge on an asset....In other works whilst inter company lending is quite normal to put a charge on an asset is (in my experience) only there to allow someone to recover their borrowings in the event of non repayment. I have also heard people criticise others for coming out with what they did yesterday on the basis that they were leaking info when they shouldn't be. Its a fact of life that people talk and have friends and colleagues associated with the club (like all football clubs). If things aren't perceived to be going well people talk to each other as they do when things are going swimmingly! I am convinced that the only reason the club released a statement last night was because it went mad on face book and social media and they had too. That ties in with what others are saying and also what the UWE statement eluded too....I am not sure many within the club or outside (perhaps UWE included) realised that statement was coming which does look like a sharp change of approach has occurred by the club rapidly. I am not a regular poster on here but I do try and say so if I think something may / may not happen and also I like expressing my opinion which is all the above is! I really, really hope that what people are reporting is an over reaction / unfounded worrying etc but I have to say I feel sick at the prospect of the new ownership not being what most thought it was going to be. The stadium is a bitter blow given how long we have been waiting but I think most of us would accept it if we believed the spending on infrastructure and the training ground and playing budget was going to continue. With a lack of any kind of statement apart from the 11:30pm statement last night we are understandably left speculating. I would love to find out that all of this was a clever ploy by the owners to force UWE into better terms but somehow I feel that wont be the case.
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 20:03:28 GMT
I think everyone is in the same boat Dave. Who knows you on here then? Langford Gas and I believe Russ Gas also knows me!
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 19:55:50 GMT
I am a new poster but have been viewing this forum for years and decided to register and explain what I knew to take away some of the negativity. I have only commented on the stadium because that was the only real purpose for registering as explained above and that's the only aspect I have been given any info on (and training ground). I have probably said too much and will no longer post based on some of the comments on here already and the general tone in which people act with suspicion ( which I do understand). It's easier to just watch as a guest and not get involved in posting. I cannot guarantee any of the info I have shared as ultimately it has not come to me direct from the club. I do believe the info passed to me to be correct and I really hope the deal has been agreed and an announcement is made soon. I know some on here know me and know I would not make anything up and post it if I find my believe it to be correct. Time will tell if the deal is concluded and all this has a happy ending!
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 19:46:21 GMT
gasincider, the "time to tell us if UWE is going to happen" is when the parties see fit, NOT when you and your gossips want to know. absolutely right Based on what I am looking at 5 11v11 pitches (grass), two 11v11 pitches (3G), 4 7v7 pitches, 2 5v5 pitches, 12,000 sq ft club house, 112 space car park (6 disabled) and one of the 11v11 pitches has a 175 seater stand. I believe those have been tweaked slightly.
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 19:45:10 GMT
gasincider, the "time to tell us if UWE is going to happen" is when the parties see fit, NOT when you and your gossips want to know. absolutely right Based on what I am looking at 5 11v11 pitches (grass), two 11v11 pitches (3G), 4 7v7 pitches, 2 5v5 pitches, 12,000 sq ft club house, 112 space car park (6 disabled) and one of the 11v11 pitches has a 175 seater stand. I believe those have been tweaked slightly.
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 19:25:32 GMT
I was also told training ground plans are due to go in shortly but have been tweaked (I can say I have seen those with my own eyes and they look mighty impressive). How convenient! Odd HG's SGlos contact hasn't apparently heard anything as surely our architects would speak to the SGlos planners before they submitted any plans? I have seen the plans with my own eyes so I wouldn't say it was convenient unless someone has gone to the trouble of mocking up some plans for the purposes of showing me to put on this forum.
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 19:05:58 GMT
I was also told training ground plans are due to go in shortly but have been tweaked (I can say I have seen those with my own eyes and they look mighty impressive).
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Post by dave1883gas on May 23, 2017 19:03:09 GMT
I have posted previously to say that I understand that a deal was agreed for freehold of the land approx a month ago and this is was agreed at a meeting between UWE, SH, WA and the club solicitor on a Friday at UWE. This is from someone who I have known for a long time and who has a reason to know this rather than someone just picking up on gossip. This is also someone who has told me other things in the past which have been 100% spot on...I cannot say any more as I don't want to abuse this persons trust or stop receiving info in the future. I was told that all that is left to do is for money to change hands to acquire the land. There does seem to be a delay on an announcement but hoping that is more to do with paperwork being exchanged etc rather than a problem with funds! The club have recently paid around £1.5m for the training ground and will need to pay somewhere in the region of £4m to build it. The land at UWE could be circa £1m an acre and the build cost is more likely £55m to £60m not the £35m originally planned for. I really hope that it's not sudfennly hitting home how much money is required to get all these things off the ground as well as providing DC with a competitive budget.
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Post by dave1883gas on May 10, 2017 15:58:40 GMT
Wael said in September 2016 that the problems regarding UWE had been ironed-out, that stage 2 was the feasibility study which we are told has been now been completed, then it was to be stage 3 - the final negotiations. These negotiations seem to be proving harder than expected and are certainly taking their time. Every time Wael's father and brother visit I get hopeful that this is the final sign-off meeting but this never seems to be the case. If I was betting then I'd want better than evens to bet on a successful outcome. Someone must know that these final issues are and I'm surprised there no reliable leak as to the state of play. Does anyone know what the issues are even if they can't say publicly? 2 and a half months and 68 pages later??? I think you've answered your own question there westwindy. I have said earlier in this thread that I was told a meeting was held 3 weeks ago this coming Friday at UWE with Chairman, family members and club solicitor and the deal was agreed with UWE. This info was passed to me by a friend who is very reliable and has good reason to know this info rather than just picking it up i.e. I have also stated this has not come from the club to me but rather from the club to my friend and then to me. Even if a deal had been agreed at that meeting it is unlikely in my opinion that any announcement would be made until contracts were signed / exchanged as neither party will want to announce anything until the deal has been done. I don't know if this is for a leasehold or freehold arrangement. I am simply passing on what I have been told and others on here and on FB and twitter seem to also have wind of i.e. Its not just one person who seems to believe this to be the case. I have always been sceptical about info I have seen in the past and I doubt a lot of what you see on FB, twitter and on here sometimes but I do believe this. I also think its interesting that the club have moved to a 'no comment' situation whenever asked about. I cannot state that this is correct as ultimately its come to me from someone else rather than the club but I would be disappointed now if nothing comes to fruition. I guess there is always the chance that something could go wrong between deal agreement and deal conclusion and knowing our luck with stadiums it wouldn't be beyond the realms of possibility!
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Post by dave1883gas on May 8, 2017 12:57:19 GMT
I don't think we will be waiting until August unless there are unforeseen complications. My gut feel is that there will be an announcement way before then (subject to legalities and no contractual issues). The fact they used a line in the press release that said something like "irrespective of a whether we will be moving to a new stadium or not" suggest that they have gone out of their way to detach the two which I wouldn't have thought they would do if they knew UWE wasn't happening.
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Post by dave1883gas on May 8, 2017 12:26:34 GMT
I don't think this has any great bearing on UWE or not as e are going to be at The Mem for at least the next 2 seasons. I see it as a positive move given we have been lucky with the weather this year and also given DC pays a lot of attention to both our home pitch and away pitches we play on. I think new drainage and some re decorations of the stadium are short term fixes to keep us going for that couple of years min we spend at The Mem. Massively positive in my opinion that the new owners are wanting the best they can for the club and its supporters whilst we remain at The Mem. Don't forget that some of this could be grant money and any money spent can be written off against profits or to increase losses so its not a huge amount of money in the scheme of things!
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 29, 2017 11:00:29 GMT
Now the cat seems to be out of the bag I can elaborate. My understanding is that the deal was concluded last week with UWE at a meeting (Friday before last) and the price agreed for the freehold / leasehold of the land. The final piece of the jigsaw should now be the handover of the cheque / bank transfer for the said monies. I have no idea of length of time until an announcement is made but my source is a friend who I have known for quite a few years and I know would not pass on this info unless he / she was sure it to be correct. I don't think anyone knows if we have agreed to buy the freehold or agreed a long lease. Let's hope now that the funds are in situ to crack on. I wouldn't have though though that the club would agree a deal unless funds were in situ. There are also some exciting news / plans for the training ground coming. To be clear I would not post on here if I didn't believe the info to be correct although obviously it is only 3rd party info. I think it's finally happening people! Nah. I've ran out of trust. It was a long time ago that these sort of promises took their toll on me. No offense of course! I am not promising anything I am just passing on what I have been told. I hope of course it does turn out to be correct.
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 29, 2017 9:44:37 GMT
Now the cat seems to be out of the bag I can elaborate. My understanding is that the deal was concluded last week with UWE at a meeting (Friday before last) and the price agreed for the freehold / leasehold of the land. The final piece of the jigsaw should now be the handover of the cheque / bank transfer for the said monies. I have no idea of length of time until an announcement is made but my source is a friend who I have known for quite a few years and I know would not pass on this info unless he / she was sure it to be correct. I don't think anyone knows if we have agreed to buy the freehold or agreed a long lease. Let's hope now that the funds are in situ to crack on. I wouldn't have though though that the club would agree a deal unless funds were in situ. There are also some exciting news / plans for the training ground coming. To be clear I would not post on here if I didn't believe the info to be correct although obviously it is only 3rd party info. I think it's finally happening people!
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 23, 2017 18:19:57 GMT
I can understand the impatience as I am 41 and have never seen us play in a stadium that is fit for purpose. I am not in the know but my opinion is that we are in good hands. I too was at the meeting of 30 or so businesses and SH came across as a knowledgable, well connected, decent gent who knew pretty much any one who was anyone in the footballing world. I believe he will be an excellent chairman and I also believe the Alqadi family will prove to be good owners. I know the banking world well and I know that anyone who takes over HSBC's middle eastern operations are very wealthy and also very switched on. HSBC are the one of the worlds biggest banks! I keep hearing 17 years that we have been below the giants acriss town (most of my mates are city fans) but let's not forget we have only had any resource for the last 12-15 months. Let's review the situation in 17 years! I believe if we do get the new stadium it will be a massive leveller and will allow us to compete on a level playing field for the first time in our recent history. I have been to AG abdvthere is no denying it is a good facility but it's location is a nightmare, there is little parking and it current has no competition. I hope that will change shortly and suddenly our new stadium will be the place to hold meetings, seminars, dances, balls etc. They are still trading off the ''new stadium / venue' factor. As soon as we are in business with a new stadium they will be old news and we will be the new venue of choice. AG is impressive but it will always be a revamp job. Our new stadium will be purpose built. That will bring a massive marketing opportunity which I hope the club will maximise.
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 23, 2017 16:46:44 GMT
I reckon he gets some info but that seems unreliable. Do we honestly think a legal team would be employed to stop someone posting things on twitter? I would imagine it would be an impossible task given it's just someone's opinion. He got the first news on Taylor but followed it up with £10m transfer fee and then said he was going to Cardiff etc.
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 23, 2017 16:23:05 GMT
I too have felt down in the dumps re the stadium over the last few months as personally I believe the biggest signing this club can make is the signing of a contract to build the stadium! This is a more important signing than any new player or re signing of any current player. In the medium to long term it's the most important piece of business the club can conclude. I was disappointed yesterday for about 3 minutes when I realised listening on the radio that our season was over and then thoughts returned again to the stadium. It's disappointing we didn't make the play offs, it's disappointing the giants across town slid out of the relegation places, it was disappointing to lose Taylor in Jan but all that disappointment will evaporate if the club announce a stadium deal. I think that's why supporters get so up and down about the slightest announcement from fans who are supposedly in the know.... purely because it's such a massive deal for the club and us supporters. I am not in the know but I do know a few people who generally get things right when it comes to Rovers and as I said previously I believe a meeting did take place last week based on what I have been told. In my opinion if meetings are still going on then the deal cannot be dead unless that meeting was the decider one way or another. Another poster has also mentioned he saw with his own eyes the relevant parties at UWE and I posted what I posted to add credence to what he / she said and to add some balance to the view that no news means bad news!
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 23, 2017 14:26:03 GMT
Thanks
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 23, 2017 14:25:36 GMT
I am new here but wanted to confirm that a friend of mine also confirmed that a meeting took place on Friday between several members of the Alqadi family, SH and UWE. Based on what I was told it was a very positive meeting. I cannot go into any more detail than that but I can assure you that I am not making this up. The chap who told me I have known for many years. I wouldn't write off a deal being done just yet. I have only created an account and posted this as I can see so many comments on here writing off the possibility of the new stadium at UWE. Obviously a meeting is only a meeting and not a guarantee that a stadium will follow but it is wrong to dismiss a positive outcome based on no word from the club. I can also confirm that the chap who mentioned a meeting took place on Fri is as I understand it correct and therefore if meetings are still happening it cannot be correct that the deal is dead. Unless of course the meeting was to conclude matters one way or the other! Keep the faith Gasheads and fingers crossed. I have been a visitor to the forum for years without actually ever posting but thought it was worth creating an account and commenting based on what I understand to be the situation. Welcome fella. Please keep posting.
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Post by dave1883gas on Apr 23, 2017 14:11:37 GMT
I am new here but wanted to confirm that a friend of mine also confirmed that a meeting took place on Friday between several members of the Alqadi family, SH and UWE. Based on what I was told it was a very positive meeting. I cannot go into any more detail than that but I can assure you that I am not making this up. The chap who told me I have known for many years. I wouldn't write off a deal being done just yet. I have only created an account and posted this as I can see so many comments on here writing off the possibility of the new stadium at UWE. Obviously a meeting is only a meeting and not a guarantee that a stadium will follow but it is wrong to dismiss a positive outcome based on no word from the club. I can also confirm that the chap who mentioned a meeting took place on Fri is as I understand it correct and therefore if meetings are still happening it cannot be correct that the deal is dead. Unless of course the meeting was to conclude matters one way or the other! Keep the faith Gasheads and fingers crossed. I have been a visitor to the forum for years without actually ever posting but thought it was worth creating an account and commenting based on what I understand to be the situation.
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