Garforth Town chairman Brian Close says his club have a lot of hard ahead of them
The hard work starts now for Garforth Town after a change of ownership at the Toolstation NCEL Premier Division club.
That’s the message from chairman Brian Close, whose consortium of himself, his wife and treasurer Jane and local accountant Craig Bannister took complete control of Wheatley Park this week.
The deal ended former Southampton chairman and Town’s saviour Rupert Lowe’s two years as the distant owner of Garforth and leaves the club debt-free.
It is a fresh start for them, but Mr Close admits that the pressure is on to ensure Garforth remain on an even keel.
“People think that because we have been in the Evo Stik that we are a big club, but if people came down they would realise we’re not and that we have an expensive facility to run,” he said.
“But, lets be positive because it is back in the community and in the hands of supporters, people who care about the club.
“It is going to be tough though.
“We have already announced some new sponsors and we are going to announce some more.
“We do need more sponsors and we need everybody to pull together and support the club.
“Even if it is just buying a raffle ticket, a programme or a pint behind the bar, it all makes a difference.
“We also have the function room and the five-a-side courts which need to be used regularly.
“It is a long road ahead, but I’m sure if everyone comes together and pulls the same direction we can make the club a success.”
Lowe pulled Garforth back from the cliff-edge of oblivion in December 2012 after former Brazilian Soccer Schools supremo Simon Clifford’s reign came to a shuddering halt.
Clifford, who briefly worked for Lowe at Southampton in 2004, had approached him for assistance.
Lowe obliged, but soon gained control during their last season in the Evo Stik during which Garforth were a shambles off-the-field and at one point had an embargo placed on them by the league to stop them playing home games.
That’s when Lowe stepped in and he ensured the club survived and over two years he has been covering historical debts from the previous ownership with creditors such as Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.
Lowe was approached in the summer of 2013 by RIASA, who offered to enter into a partnership, and that opened the door for Mr Close’s management team to run the club on Lowe’s behalf.
The deal with RIASA finished in November and that brought forward talks between Lowe and the consortium.
Mr Close agrees that Lowe is the saviour of Garforth, but admits that his group had to step in when the time was right because there were no other interested parties.
“I don’t think he chose to do what he did as he inherited the club by default,” he said.
“He has been more than supportive because he could have shut it down there and there (in 2012).
“He has been the custodian of the club for the last two years and he has looked after the best interests of the club financially.
“If we hadn’t done all the negotiations, I don’t know what would have happened to the club.
“Nobody else was waiting in the wings. There are lots of stories of people waiting in the wings, but where are they and where have they been?
“They have had opportunities to come in over the last 18 months.”
Mr Close was general manager under Clifford for two seasons until 2012, while his wife Jane was the treasurer during the same period.
They both returned to the club after Clifford’s departure in the summer of 2013 to run the club on Lowe’s behalf.
Craig Bannister is a partner in JS White Accountants, the main sponsors of Garforth.
He, along with his wife Carol and son Sam, have been loyal supporters of the club for many years.
The family watch the team home and away and volunteer at the club.
Carol is regularly painting and doing odd jobs at the ground a couple of days a week, while Sam is a coach for the club’s Saturday morning soccer schools for local youngsters.
The change in ownership does not affect Graham Nicholas and his team.