Hayes thanked for 'keeping his word'

Jul 3 2012 By Greg Burns

Steve Hayes

FORMER Blues owner Steve Hayes has 'kept his word' by handing the club back to the fans according to the Wycombe Wanderers Trust.

Hayes walked away after three years of sole ownership and after offering supporters first refusal if he ever decided to walk away.

Wanderers refused to reveal details of debt owed to Hayes with new joint-chairman Don Woodward, an accountant by trade, saying: “It's too complicated to go into the deal. Everyone is happy with the deal and it wouldn't be right and proper to analyse it in depth.

“All I can say that the accounts of the club show a positive balance sheet and our job is to maintain that by controlling and managing the club in a sensible and well-balance way.

“Steve Hayes always said he wanted to leave the club in a position where the fans could run the club and it could be quite easy for him to walk away which he did,” added Trust chairman Trevor Stroud.

“We thank him for that because he kept his word on that and that is important.”

Negotiations between Hayes and the Trust began back in November last year but wranglings with his sale of London Wasps held up the complex deal.

“There was a will to move things quite quickly but the two clubs were really entwined," added Mr Stroud. "The analogy I use is that they were like Siamese twins and if you separate them you have to make sure they both survive.

“That is what took the time because the Wycombe deal couldn't go through until there was an end-game with Wasps. We were very keen to get everything confirmed before the players came back and before the end of the financial year on June 30 so that made things very clean.

“Even as late as last Monday I wasn't certain that the deal was going to go through so we are relieved. Our motto now is 'no strutting'. We haven't taken over the club we have got the club back for the fans.”

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