The Hull Stingrays will enter the 12/13 Elite Ice Hockey League campaign with their third set of owners in nine seasons after it was tonight revealed that their current Coventry based ownership group have pulled out of the city ahead of next season.
16 days after joint owner Andy Buxton promised the club's future ownership would become 'clearer' within seven days, a 1040 word statement was tonight released confirming their decision to leave Hull two years after saving the club, with the release also explaining the reasons for the lengthy delay and lack of communication since.
Accepting that, though their commitment to the club's future was unwavering throughout their two years in charge, the 'continued growth of the Stingrays was dependent upon local ownership and operational control', the statement also officially confirmed that discussions have been ongoing with potential new owners since the end of the 11/12 EIHL campaign, something openly discussed in the media.
The owners singled out that the reason for the delay was down to interested parties expressed their interest in ice-time directly to Hull City Council (HCC), who own the Hull Arena. This then forced the council to put the ice-time contract, yet to be agreed for the 12/13 campaign, up for tender for potential Stingrays owners.
Though the current owners confirmed they will not compete for the ice-time tender - although they will be in attendance at the meeting on Friday - they did also state that any new bidder will have to pay an upfront cost, one way or another, for the right to return the Stingrays to the EIHL next season.
It has become clear through the press release that there remain two stages and then two options open to any bidders - including the heavily favoured joint bid of local businessman Nic Gough and last season's bench coach Bobby McEwan.
First, any potential owner must win the tender with HCC for ice-time at the Hull Arena next season before either setting up the club afresh by paying EIHL a fee as 'new operator' or by buying the existing club from the current owners.
Although there are other bids mentioned, Gough and McEwan, inparticular, have so far refused to meet the current owners valuation of the club - which would include equipment, cars, storage facilities, a mascots costume and intellectual property rights, which is presumably the club's name and logo amongst other things.
The valuation placed on the club according to the statement is 'a long way' from the £40k figure quoted in a recent Hull Daily Mail article and also way below the cost of the 'new operator' cost imposed by the EIHL. Either way they must agree with the fee requested by the current owners or pay the fee requested by the EIHL.
Despite this, the bid of Gough and McEwan seems likely to be the club's future with the statement reading:
With the current owners now walking away from the club, the ice-time contract would potentially be the first stage in a new era of ice hockey in the city, setting the club up for it's third owners in nine years.
The statement closed by stating:
A tremendous amount of hard work - from all of the players, staff and volunteers - has gone into improving the club to a point where it is in as good a condition as it ever has been, both on and off the ice, so despite the criticisms - be it lack of communication to fans or alleged late payments to players - the current owners (now previous?) deserve huge credit, if not for improving the club, then for saving it!
16 days after joint owner Andy Buxton promised the club's future ownership would become 'clearer' within seven days, a 1040 word statement was tonight released confirming their decision to leave Hull two years after saving the club, with the release also explaining the reasons for the lengthy delay and lack of communication since.
Accepting that, though their commitment to the club's future was unwavering throughout their two years in charge, the 'continued growth of the Stingrays was dependent upon local ownership and operational control', the statement also officially confirmed that discussions have been ongoing with potential new owners since the end of the 11/12 EIHL campaign, something openly discussed in the media.
The owners singled out that the reason for the delay was down to interested parties expressed their interest in ice-time directly to Hull City Council (HCC), who own the Hull Arena. This then forced the council to put the ice-time contract, yet to be agreed for the 12/13 campaign, up for tender for potential Stingrays owners.
Though the current owners confirmed they will not compete for the ice-time tender - although they will be in attendance at the meeting on Friday - they did also state that any new bidder will have to pay an upfront cost, one way or another, for the right to return the Stingrays to the EIHL next season.
It has become clear through the press release that there remain two stages and then two options open to any bidders - including the heavily favoured joint bid of local businessman Nic Gough and last season's bench coach Bobby McEwan.
First, any potential owner must win the tender with HCC for ice-time at the Hull Arena next season before either setting up the club afresh by paying EIHL a fee as 'new operator' or by buying the existing club from the current owners.
Although there are other bids mentioned, Gough and McEwan, inparticular, have so far refused to meet the current owners valuation of the club - which would include equipment, cars, storage facilities, a mascots costume and intellectual property rights, which is presumably the club's name and logo amongst other things.
The valuation placed on the club according to the statement is 'a long way' from the £40k figure quoted in a recent Hull Daily Mail article and also way below the cost of the 'new operator' cost imposed by the EIHL. Either way they must agree with the fee requested by the current owners or pay the fee requested by the EIHL.
Despite this, the bid of Gough and McEwan seems likely to be the club's future with the statement reading:
"We would like to make it clear that we are very supportive of their [Gough and McEwan's] desire to become the new Stingrays operators. We believe that they have the interests of the Stingrays at heart and will continue to operate the team in the Elite League. They are well connected in the local area and have the ability to take the Stingrays further forward."Nevertheless, whoever it is that decides to take the club on and how ever they do it, they will have to move quickly and decisively - starting on Friday at the meeting with Hull City Council. A failure to secure the ice-time contract by allowing it to fall into a rival bidders hands or failing to agree terms could be both costly and time consuming.
With the current owners now walking away from the club, the ice-time contract would potentially be the first stage in a new era of ice hockey in the city, setting the club up for it's third owners in nine years.
The statement closed by stating:
"With our involvement in the Hull Stingrays coming to an end, we would like to take the chance to thank the supporter, sponsors, helpers, players and coaching staff for everything they have contributed during the last two years. It has been very challengeing operating two clubs and there have undoubtedly been ups and downs along the way. What we have done is keep the sport alive at the top level in Hull for two seasons at a time when that looked to be virtually impossible and we would particularly like to thank the players for their contributions to this."Poignantly it ended with:
"Hull now has a club that people want to take forward which is a real positive for the sport."In response to that and on a final note, it is true the current ownership have taken a lot of stick during the two years they have run top flight ice hockey in the city - some deserved, some harsh - but they undoubtedly deserve great credit and a massive thank you for saving the club from the abyss, keeping the dream alive and leaving the club in a much, much better state than they inherited it.
A tremendous amount of hard work - from all of the players, staff and volunteers - has gone into improving the club to a point where it is in as good a condition as it ever has been, both on and off the ice, so despite the criticisms - be it lack of communication to fans or alleged late payments to players - the current owners (now previous?) deserve huge credit, if not for improving the club, then for saving it!
