Deal could secure Roughyeds’ future

SHAKE on it: council leader Jim McMahon (left) seals the deal with Roughyeds chairman Chris Hamilton

THE long-term future of Oldham Roughyeds looks set to be secured thanks to a deal with the council.

Rugby club chiefs have been in talks with council leader Jim McMahon in a bid to seal their future at Whitebank Stadium.

Now a deal has been struck with Oldham Council after a series of complex negotiations with landowners.

The news comes after Roughyeds chairman Chris Hamilton revealed in the Chronicle this week how rumours of another potential groundshare with Oldham Athletic were way off the mark.

It follows years of uncertainty for the Co-operative Championship One play-off chasers, who moved to Limeside in May, last year.

Oldham Council have now acquired the Freehold interest in 4.85 acres of land owned by Molson Coors Brewery Company (UK) Limited and sealed an agreement to lease the adjacent 2.28 acres of land owned by Enville Estate.

Council leader Jim McMahon said: “This deal not only gives the Roughyeds security of tenure — and ensures they stay within the borough — but also enables them to look ahead with renewed optimism.

“It was vital for us to be able to find a solution to what has been a long-running problem that has held back this club’s development for around 14 years.”

Fans will breathe a sigh of relief that the club has a permanent home, something it has not lay claim to since the demise of Watersheddings in the 1990s.

A long-term lease agreement will now be signed by the council and club in the coming days.

This will mean the club can now seek out grants to enable the development of the stadium in the future.

Roughyeds chairman Chris Hamilton said: “The problems the club has endured have been documented on many occasions, so to have secured the long-term future of the club in the town is an achievement of which I am personally very proud.

“It is also one which will give the club renewed vigour to take forward into the future.

“The fans who have remained loyal to the club since 1997 have played their part by demonstrating that they were not prepared to allow the club to wither and die, and I thank them for that.”