Cork City's chairman on club's ownership, Colin Healy's budget and patient approach in top flight
Cork City chairman Declan Carey celebrates the club's First Division title with Damien Sreenan. Picture: Colm Lougheed
Three years ago, Cork City were staring into the abyss.
Boom and bust was the cycle of Cork soccer long before City was established in 1984, but the allure of daring to dream had again brought the name to the precipice of disaster.
With bankruptcy looming, an unlikely donor came to the rescue. Lancashire billionaire Trevor Hemmings had deep links to Cork from his childhood and, as owner of Preston North End, agreed to buy out the sell-on clauses of Alan Browne and Sean Maguire. But a €150,000 segment of the €650,000 paid over was ringfenced for an option to buy out the fan-owned club in its entirety for €1.
Cork City have since been relegated and promoted back to the Premier Division with the saga of ownership lurking in the background.
Only last week came confirmation that Grovemoor, the holding company of Preston NE, declined the takeover but retained the call option.
The death of Trevor Hemmings last year contributed to the decision but the Cork City board remain steadfast in their belief that they are well-placed to reestablish themselves as a top-flight staple.
Only external investment can elevate the Rebels into the reckoning for silverware but Grovemoor remain an ally, not an enemy, in sourcing that assistance.
Declan Carey, Chairman of City since 2019, outlines the reasons for his confidence behind that position in an extensive interview with John Fallon that covers various topics including Colin Healy’s budget for next season, sponsorship opportunities and the club’s women’s section.
: When I joined the board in 2018, we were in Europe, off the back of the double and had players on long-term contracts of up to three years.
2019 on the pitch wasn’t to the standards of previous years and the fans responded.
Crowds dropped off and we got into a situation where players on huge contracts still had to be paid.
At the start of 2020, the revenue had changed the goalposts regarding a payment plan agreed and in place. As a result of another club in the league going to the wall, the Revenue reacted and called in a debt at extremely short notice.
We needed a tax clearance cert to get a license from the FAI and face Shelbourne in our league opener.
We went to local companies who had an association with the club, entrepreneurs and philanthropists but hit a brick wall.
It got to the stage that we didn’t know if the game against Shelbourne would take place.
I felt for the manager Neale Fenn because his playing budget was extremely tight. We exhausted all options but had those sell-on clauses.
Unfortunately, that still wasn’t enough and the Revenue felt we needed to pay more. It eventually escalated beyond Preston to their holding company Grovemoor, owned by the late Trevor Hemmings.
He had a strong affinity with Cork, from horses to Trabolgan and Preston using Fota Island for training camps. It got to the stage where he said he’ll buy the whole thing.
We, as a board, couldn’t sign off on that within the rules of our trust, the Friends Of The Rebel Army Society (FORAS).
Mr Hemmings offered us money to pitch to the members for the right to buy the club. That offer, covering the Revenue bill, seemed generous and so began what’s become known as the call option.
That involved Grovemoor paying us a sum for the right to pitch to members in a legally binding vote.
They transferred that money to the Revenue immediately with days ticking down to the first game. That cash kept us going. Had we not received it, we’d have been in big trouble.
Then in September of 2020, Grovemoor pitched to the members, receiving 70% support in a ballot. Unfortunately, with the effects of Covid on sport and leisure, Grovemoor’s other businesses like Trabolgan went on a downturn.
Things just dragged on and unfortunately Mr Hemmings passed away suddenly.
He left his whole estate to three individuals and one of their assets is the call option for the purchase of Cork City. These three parties wouldn’t have been as privy to the club’s activities as Mr Hemmings but we gave them lots of info.
They’ve opted not to take the club over but still have that option and are willing to work with some other interested party. They have agreed to surrender that option if the right party is willing to invest.
In the meantime, the show goes on.
Grovemoor have not been involved with Cork City since the start of that 2020 season and we’ve still been able to get the club promoted. They don’t have a say in how the club is run, who the manager is, logos etc. They’re in the background.
: They had a major interest in enhancing facilities, both Turners Cross stadium and the training ground, as well as growing our Academy, women’s section.
They were owned by a billionaire and would have had the financial power to propel us into a safer position.
If Covid hadn’t happened, personally I feel the takeover would have been completed for the 2021 licensing application.
: Unfortunately, not. A visit had been arranged in March 2020 whereby he’d come in his helicopter from Cheltenham, land at Fota and we’d given him a tour.
He wasn’t able to travel due to Covid and the storms and then the lockdown got deeper. We’ve had a number of conversations with their financial controller and Trevor’s son, Craig.
I wanted to shake his hand and personally thank him for saving Cork City. He gave us the platform to take more calculated risks about investing in the squad.
I think Cork City fans should remember his generosity.
That disappointed Grovemoor and frustrated us but I don’t think it was a deal-breaker because they still expressed a willingness to work with the MFA to figure out a long-term agreement. MFA have a hold on the ground and it’s their prerogative.
We signed a 20-year licensing agreement, the first long-term stadium agreement since the club’s establishment in 1984. That sounds funny but we only had one-year rolling agreements.
All the other parts of their plan were in place but not getting this chunk put a sour taste in their mouth. We’ve a good relationship with the MFA and plan to apply for investment through state grants.
There’s definitely an appetite to invest in a club of our size. I see investment in clubs that I would deem smaller such as Shelbourne and Waterford and think Cork City presents a bigger opportunity. We’ll sit only down with any serious parties, not tyre-kickers.
We’re not looking for a flash in the pan investor who just wants Champions League qualification within two years. Long-term growth and community presence are our goals.
Yes, according to the original agreement. There were reasons behind that at the time. The deal was signed at an extremely fast pace and we were under a certain degree of duress to get something sorted.
We never felt the call option would go beyond a couple of months. The spirit of the agreement was they wanted to get this done within a year.
If I had my time back and with hindsight, I still would have signed that deal.
It was a huge amount of money, nothing else was on the table so what could we do?
I see criticisms from Cork City fans for that but time was of the essence. Our own time limit back then was the few days till our first game.
Trevor Hemmings is a reputable businessman across the UK, Ireland and Cork. We had no doubts of the trustworthiness and a relationship to build upon.
Unfortunately, it is indefinite but I hope it will be resolved in the not-too-distant future. There is an interested party and to be honest if somebody is not willing to speak with Grovemoor for relatively small money, after all they’ve given to the club, I don’t think they’re worth our time.
They deserve that and would still be in favour of their involvement. They put their money where their mouth was for even the right to have a vote of members. That vote could have been rejected and Trevor Hemmings would have got nothing from it.
In my eyes, Cork City is a highly valuable entity, up there with the likes of Shamrock Rovers, Derry City and Dundalk who have private investors.
: No. It’s up to the Grovemoor. We have an estimate of that and it’s not huge by any means. If you’re taking over a LOI club tomorrow, money would be needed anyway.
: That’s their prerogative but they’ve told us they won’t hold Cork City back. They’re not looking to make a quick buck.
They feel they deserve acknowledgement for saving our club and I feel they do. They’ve had tyre-kickers come along over the years and had told us each time. So too have we. I don’t think they’ll look to profit but I can’t speak on their behalf.
: No because that was agreed already. FORAS set the playing budget – an increase on 2022 - but that’s not to say someone can’t come in and invest.
We’ve backed Colin with a competitive budget. It’s always difficult for the promoted club but we’re eager to compete with the others.
I think Colin is a fantastic motivator and will squeeze more out of the players because we won the First Division despite having the third of fourth highest budget in the division.
Some clubs that crashed out of the playoffs had much bigger budgets, paying players more wages, giving accommodation and different opportunities.
We punched above our weight.
: Louis Britton was signed because the resources were generated. We weren’t flashing the cash. A short-term deal was available which strengthened Cork City and weakened our rivals.
We’ve created a structural plan with the budget for the last two years, whereby there’s a larger portion for certain positions such as a striker.
His main signings were the spine - Ally Gilchrist at the back, Aaron Bolger and Barry Coffey in midfield, with Ruairi Keating up front. Behind them was David Harrington in goal, who has big interest from the UK. That’s football 101 and you add where finances allow.
: All we can do is be conservative. We’ve got historical data on the commercial aspects and going on TV this season will help. My mother couldn’t even find the First Division scores of a Friday night.
We have other streams, such as the Junior Academy that play in Musgrave Park on Sunday mornings and FORAS membership.
Attendances are unpredictable because it can be determined by what happens on the pitch but getting the larger crowds, over the 5000 marks, allow us to allocate money into our rainy-day fund.
That’s the fan ownership model but even they are at risk of getting excited, as happened to us a few years ago.
Our board member Conor Hallahan is one of the best volunteers to ever come to the club. He’s a senior accountant and gives us a different perspective on calculated risks or ones that potentially bankrupt the club. We’re in safe hands there.
: We’ll be fine. There will be no problem whatsoever.
: That helps but it’s not in our budget. If the worst was to happen, Grovemoor has committed to providing a sum – not an insignificant one – which is why I have so much time for them.
They’re the only show in town. Local businesses are great and we have revenue from fans but Grovemoor has made us even more secure.
It’s nice to be able to include it in our licensing application. The FAI like clubs to have an absolute doomsday scenario and this is an underwriting that other clubs with benefactors supply.
It’s been there for the last two years but never had to use. I don’t foresee it being needed in 2023 but you never know. There could be another virus outbreak and lockdown.
: No, it’s not a loan. They’ll make a donation to the club.
It’s not a pot or an escrow account to dip into to pay wages, offer a better contract or settle an invoice. That’s bad business practice.
It’s for dire straits situations like Revenue bills or creditors calling in debts. We’re miles away from that but reinforces their support because it’s not a protection they have to do.
: You could say that but the other argument is that Trevor Hemmings donated to the club, passed away and his son is now involved in his estate. Do they want to carry on their father’s wishes of putting Cork City in the best possible shape? Is it somewhere in the middle? Maybe. I would definitely say that’s a part of it.
My father Frank passed away in 2014. I dedicated my life to Cork sport and the club because that's what he was passionate about. He was a Cork Hibs fan and was proud of my volunteering, saying that one day I’d run the club. I tried my best and in 2019 became chairman. These things do have an effect.
I’ve nothing to back it up, other than words and conversations. Open up the Cork City match programme and you’ll see a Trabolgan advertisement. That’s completely separate from the Grovemoor deal. They don’t get it for free.
Given the goodwill from Grovemoor, and if I was a betting man which I’m not, I’d say Trevor Hemmings has a lot to do with that.
: Consolidation has to be the aim this year, staying away from the relegation positions.
We don’t want to go through the wars again, so we aren't going to try to shoot the team into the top three, qualifying for Europe.
City fans need to be patient with this. Silverware is great, and we’re proud of our First Division trophy, but maybe not as fast as fans expect.
We’re competing against clubs with a Premier Division presence for years, which will be difficult.
As the guardians of FORAS, we’re not mandated to go off to win the Premier Division and/or FAI Cup. It’s the board’s role to safeguard the club and we won’t be rushing it.
If investment comes from another party, we can look at expediting the process but believe me when I say there’s a lot of good players around the league want to join Cork City.
Not many clubs can offer the chance of playing in front of 5,000 or 6,000 every second Friday, instead of scraping 1200, and our social media exposure spreads the names of players abroad.
University College Cork were there since 2017 and are moving to a different type of sponsorship, on the sleeve of our men’s shirts and still onboard as our educational partnership.
They’ll be involved with scholarships, players coming through our own Academy and women’s players.
We knew the writing was on the wall from early summer, so put the wheels in motion. We were in such a strong position too, getting great crowds and publicity and had someone close to being signed up.
But their circumstances changed, nothing to do with us because we were still growing and becoming more of an attractive prospect as the season progressed.
We were top from the summer, 5,000-crowds at Turners Cross were regular and it was pretty clear that we were getting promoted.
Everything was going great but their circumstances changed.
We’re still in discussions with five companies, some of whom are frontrunners but there are still opportunities for someone to swoop in and take us off our feet. The offer has to be right and their ethos fits ours in terms of the community aspect.
Cork City are among the biggest two or three clubs in Ireland, arguably the biggest based on attendances.
Look at the crowds from the season just gone in the First Division and potentially what we’re looking at in the Premier Division.
I’d say Shamrock Rovers are a newer prospect in terms of interest but we’ve always been there. We’re a huge club.
We’ve the biggest social media presence on the island of Ireland with 155,000 followers, more than any other club north and south.
: Absolutely not. We don’t have subs anymore and ensure nobody is out of pocket.
We don’t have a regular payment policy at the moment, like a lot of clubs. I believe it’s cart before the horse, growing the attendances and commercial aspects.
I know people can call for allocating the men’s budget but sadly that’s the driver of the club. We could have 6,000 people at Turners Cross on a Friday paying €15 per ticket and then 200 the next day for the women’s game. That’s the same attendance as academy games, boys or girls, and they don’t get paid.
I’m all for equality but we have to be realistic. I think the Government and the FAI have to support the game to be maintainable but the risk clubs that are paying now may stop if their men’s side slip. When we start it, we want to ensure it's sustainable.
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