Fight for the Vikings club

[Gronk]

Fight for the Vikings club

• LOCAL NEWS

16 MAY 12 @ 05:13AM BY DI BARTOK​

Michael Lilley, Simon Ferguson, Kevin Hession, Peter Ayoub, Jeff Ferguson and Cr Pierre Esber are angry over Parramatta Council's plans to sell the Vikings Club in Dundas Valley​

THE battlers of Dundas Valley are fighting the might of Parramatta Leagues Club, with all the tenacity of true Vikings.
Vikings Sports Club supporters are upset the leagues club plans to sell their community landmark, which has served them for more than 40 years.
At its annual general meeting last Tuesday, the leagues club voted to market the Vikings, which had incurred a total of $2.7 million in losses. The club has a market value of more than $5 million.
The vote to sell the club was a close 88 to 84.
Vikings supporters have complained to the Department of Liquor Gaming and Racing over the validity of the vote.
Telopea businessman Michael Maughan said the vote was taken twice “for the desired result”.
At stake are junior and senior rugby teams and recreation for residents in the club, which opened in 1966 in the then public housing suburb.
Supporters say the leagues club had deliberately run down Vikings, gradually closing down the associated sporting and craft clubs, and making it less family-orientated.
Senior rugby coach Michael Lilley said the club was vital to the rugby teams, from garnering sponsorship through to having a recreation club for presentations and events.
“We didn’t think the club was going that bad, and it could have been better if it had been more family friendly,” Mr Lilley said.
“Kids used to have more space here, in the auditorium, but that has been taken over by pool tables, and they could have food better suited to families.”
Junior rugby vice-president Jeff Ferguson said he was uncertain if Parramatta Leagues would continue to support the junior teams.
“When the leagues club took over our club, we thought it was the right thing at the time,” he said.
“Now we think it was part of their original agenda to run it down so they could sell it.”
Parramatta Leagues CEO Bob Bentley said the leagues club could ``no longer sustain the losses’’ of the Vikings club since the amalgamation in 2004.
``No business would run at a loss of $2.7 million,’’ he said, and described claims that the leagues club had deliberately run down the Vikings as ``ridiculous’‘.
``We have put a total of $6 million into the Vikings, bringing in our own chef when people didn’t want Chinese and then bringing back Chinese when people asked for it,’’ Mr Bentley said. ``Visitations to the club have been dropping off.’‘
As for the vote on the night, Mr Bentley said the auditor called for a second count as ``there were people moving from the front to the back and it was difficult to see if people were voting twice’‘.

http://parramatta-advertiser.whereilive.com.au/news/story/vote-to-sell-vikings/

 

[Maroubra Eel]

The vote was definitely dodgy.

 

[Jake the snake]

The place is a hole. Bad investment from the start.

 

[Gronk]

The place is a hole. Bad investment from the start.

Clubs are not investments. Clubs are a focal point for many communities, providing a meeting place and facilitating the pursuit of interests such as sporting and community. They also play a vital role in sustaining local community activities by providing significant support to local schools and sporting groups.

Maybe they need to step back from the $ in their eyes and remind themselves why Parra Leagues and Vikings first opened and the role they play in the community.

This should not be seen as an opportunity to sell off the farm and gain pokie licenses.

Maybe they should heed the advice of the Clubs Code of Practice, when making decisions about the PLC & Vikings.

9 Examples of taking improper advantage of Club information may include, but are not limited to: benefiting (either themselves, a family member or an associate) improperly from the disposal of club assets such as equipment or land; the awarding of a contract for the provision of goods and services; or the awarding of a contract for major capital works.

http://www.cmaa.asn.au/ContentFiles/CMAA/Documents/CodeOfPractice/Code%20of%20Practice.pdf

 

[Delboy]

Gronk, it is an oprdinary club losing money

I have been there several times and it is not begging for another visit, to be honest when communities lose facilitiies it is a shame, but mate I dont want the Leagues Club forking out money on a consisitent basis to the Vikings. The Panthers are hurting big time for a similar reason and are cutting their losses, sentimentality wont help the Vikings club.

 

[Captain BF]

The vote was definitely dodgy.

The vote went 88 - 85 for the club to be sold. There were protests from some of the people supporting the Vikings club and so a re-count was done. The vote was 88 - 84 for the club to be sold. Two votes and they both said for the Vikings to be sold. What is dodgy about that? Also, there were 3 people counting each time.

 

[jimmy77au]

Clubs are not investments. Clubs are a focal point for many communities, providing a meeting place and facilitating the pursuit of interests such as sporting and community. They also play a vital role in sustaining local community activities by providing significant support to local schools and sporting groups.

Maybe they need to step back from the $ in their eyes and remind themselves why Parra Leagues and Vikings first opened and the role they play in the community.

This should not be seen as an opportunity to sell off the farm and gain pokie licenses.

Maybe they should heed the advice of the Clubs Code of Practice, when making decisions about the PLC & Vikings.

http://www.cmaa.asn.au/ContentFiles/CMAA/Documents/CodeOfPractice/Code of Practice.pdf

Like everything else - including the game of football - Clubs are no longer about "what they do for the Community" - they are a business just like everything else.

If the Club is making significant losses - and it is - then who can blame the Leagues club from wanting to offload it? After all, a non performing section of the business drags the rest of the business down.

 

[Gronk]

Gronk, it is an oprdinary club losing money

I have been there several times and it is not begging for another visit, to be honest when communities lose facilitiies it is a shame, but mate I dont want the Leagues Club forking out money on a consisitent basis to the Vikings. The Panthers are hurting big time for a similar reason and are cutting their losses, sentimentality wont help the Vikings club.

Not arguing with you about propping up a business that is bleeding. I guess I would like to know some history about the take over. The circumstances of the take over, cash paid by the club at the time, debts consolidated etc. My gut feeling is that the local community feel they have been shafted for good reason. That may be based on emotion of course and the Eels club may have no alternative. In all circumstances like this I feel that it's the PLC's duty to exhaust all avenues before it considers a fire sale.

Happy to see the facts of the merger/takeover and then I can make my own conclusions.

 

[jimmy77au]

Not arguing with you about propping up a business that is bleeding. I guess I would like to know some history about the take over. The circumstances of the take over, cash paid by the club at the time, debts consolidated etc. My gut feeling is that the local community feel they have been shafted for good reason. That may be based on emotion of course and the Eels club may have no alternative.

Happy to be proven wrong if someone has the facts of the merger/takeover.

I'm pretty certain I had read somewhere (Perhaps in the AGM Agenda?) that there was a period where the Leagues CLub had to guarantee it kept Vikings open for 5 years - and the club has kept it going beyond the guaranteed length?

 

[jimmy77au]

As per Page 6 - Note 4 - 2011 Annual Report

http://www.parraleagues.com.au/ContentFiles/ParraLeagues/Documents/parramatta%20leagues%20A4%20annual%20report%202011.pdf

Directors seek Members' approval in order to actively market the sale of Vikings Sports Club, situated at
35 Quarry Road, Dundas Valley. The property is defined under the Registered Clubs Act 1976 as a core
property of the Leagues Club and, as such, requires the approval of members in order to be sold.
The property was last valued on 15 December 2010 by LandMark White (NSW) Pty Ltd, independent
valuers, and LandMark White attributed to it a “market value as is for continuing use of real estate” of
$5,150,000 excluding GST.
With Members approval, the property would be openly marketed and placed for sale with an
independent real estate agent.
Dundas Rugby Union Football Club Limited went into voluntary administration on 18 May 2004 and
subsequently amalgamated with Parramatta Leagues Club Limited by way of a Deed of Amalgamation
pursuant to Section 17A of the Registered Clubs Act, 1976. The company known as Dundas Rugby Union
Football Club Limited was wound up and the premises renamed (for identification purposes only) as
Vikings Sports Club.
The terms and conditions of the Deed of Agreement required the Parramatta Leagues Club to trade at 35
Quarry Road, Dundas for a minimum of five (5) years with a commitment to continue operations
thereafter for a further minimum five (5) years subject to the premises of Dundas remaining financially
viable (trading on a “cash flow positive basis&#8221.
The initial minimum period of five (5) years expired on 3 November 2009. Viking Sports Club has
aggregated trading losses of some $2.7million since the amalgamation with the Leagues Club. Each year
it trades at a loss; in recent years the yearly trading losses range from $248,000 to $429,000. Parramatta
Leagues Club can no longer afford to sustain these losses/expenditure. Directors consider that, should
the property sell, the proceeds of the sale be utilised to retire debt against the current St George Bank
loan facility.
The Board proposes to Members that Vikings Sports Club at 35 Quarry Road, Dundas Valley be actively​

marketed for sale.

 

[Maroubra Eel]

The vote went 88 - 85 for the club to be sold. There were protests from some of the people supporting the Vikings club and so a re-count was done. The vote was 88 - 84 for the club to be sold. Two votes and they both said for the Vikings to be sold. What is dodgy about that? Also, there were 3 people counting each time.

Sorry. Just having a joke with Stagger.
I don't care if they sell it. I don't care about facilities in the western suburbs.

 

[Gronk]

Yeah I read that Jimmy. I guess I didn't trust Fitzy and I have the same mis-trust for the current mob.

A loss of $250k is not a good look however I am unsure if the "loss" is actual based on each years raw P & Ls or creative accounting including depreciation of assets, write downs etc.

Based on my mis-trust, I would like to hear the Vikings side of things.

 

[jimmy77au]

Always so Sceptical

 

[Gronk]

Always so Sceptical

Perhaps I'm too cynical, but I see it quite often. It's called asset stripping. You arrest debt and be the local hero. Trade for the required period to comply with and Deed of Assignment of Debt and Securities. Then shut it down and sell the assets. Nice little earner.

Happy to be shown the facts, but it's a sad outcome for the Valley community nonetheless.

 

[Delboy]

I spoke to the previous Pres and he said from the beginning of the relationship it had lost money, they have tried several intitiatives and have not been able to get the club over the line despite improvements to the club in general

This decision to sell would have in my opinion been made by the previous admin, but obviously it suits the current agenda to criticise etc from those very same people

 

[emjaycee]

As I understand it the PLC paid nothing for Vikings under the amalgamation however have spentapproximately $3m in renovations since.

Personally I believe that not all attempts to successfully market theclub have been exhausted and that there is potential to arrest the losses with a change in direction of how the club is markets and operates.

 

[born an eel]

the time to rally the troups would have been before the vote.

With numbers so low at the AGM, a large enough group of members could have turned up just to vote on this particular motion if the desire was there.

I wonder of the 84 how many are actually regular patrons. I don't know if it was possible but even tabling a partition with a lot of votes at the AGM may also have been enough to convince people to vote in their favour.

 

[jimmy77au]

the time to rally the troups would have been before the vote.

With numbers so low at the AGM, a large enough group of members could have turned up just to vote on this particular motion if the desire was there.

I wonder of the 84 how many are actually regular patrons. I don't know if it was possible but even tabling a partition with a lot of votes at the AGM may also have been enough to convince people to vote in their favour.

Agreed with this - to be fair, the notice did appear in the Financial Year Report - sent in accordance with the rules to all members - sent in March - with the meeting being held in May.

I for one don't have a problem offloading a loss making part of the business, to pay down debts.

 

[Gronk]

Just thinking out loud.

If we acquired the club for zip. Put $3M into the club but after the required holding period decide to flick it for $5M, are we morally obligated to release some of the profit to the old Dundas Valley Rugby Union Club who will end up with no club yet we are seemingly to make a profit on the venture ?

I'd like to hear what Pricey has to say about this. ;-)

 

[Ron Jeremy]

never heard of the place, is it like Ryans Bar or Greenwood? if not sell it.