Hardy to buy Notts County – and pay off HMRC debt

The long-running saga over the future of Notts County Football Club looks to have ended this morning after it was revealed that a prominent local businessman is set to buy the Club.

Alan Hardy, who owns Nottingham-based fit-out firm Paragon Interiors, will buy the Magpies from current owner Ray Trew.

Hardy will buy 100% of the shares in Notts County and has also promised to settle the Club’s outstanding bill with HMRC.

Trew said: “It has been one of the hardest tasks of my time at Meadow Lane to find a successor to my tenure of the club, but I feel that in Alan Hardy the Notts County fans will have found someone who they can get behind and believe in to usher in a new era that I hope will bring success and happiness for all involved.

“In handing over the reins of this great club, I am comfortable in saying that I have always given my all to the betterment of the World’s Oldest Football League Club and whilst things haven’t always gone as I would have liked, I have enjoyed some incredibly memorable moments during my time at Meadow Lane and leave the club feeling incredibly proud of the fact that the fans still have a club that they can believe in and support on to bigger and better things in the future,” he added.

“I would like to thank everyone who has played any part in the running of Notts County during my time at the club, there are far too many to name, but I hope that they know how much I appreciate the hard work and commitment that they put in to ensure that Notts battled through thick and thin over the years that I was at the helm.

“Football is an industry like no other and I have learned some valuable lessons along the way, but I wish Alan and everyone associated with Notts County all the very best for the future and hope that they bring the success that we all crave for the club over the coming years.”

Hardy said: “I am delighted to confirm that I have reached an agreement with Ray Trew to purchase Notts County Football Club.

“This follows a series of discussions over the weekend. As part of the agreement, I will be ensuring the club is able to settle a High Court hearing scheduled for Monday.

“There is still a considerable amount of work to be undertaken in the coming days and together with my team, we will be working around the clock to conclude our agreement and make a more formal announcement in the near future.

“I wish to emphasise my passion, desire and commitment to all Notts County supporters to drive this club forward.”

He has a big job on his hands – County have lost their last six matches and are just one point above the Football League trapdoor, lying 20th in League Two after a 2-1 reverse at Colchester United on Saturday.

Trew has been trying to sell the Club since February, when he stood down as chairman saying that abuse from “keyboard warriors” towards to his family was behind his decision.

Then, in March, he said that he had agreed a deal “in principle” to sell the club to a anonymous US consortium. It was around this time that it is thought Hardy made his bids for the club.

Earlier this year Hardy told local press: “I would love to own Notts County and I would love the opportunity to take them on an amazing journey to, realistically, the Championship within the next five to six years.

“Thereafter we would need to review the business plan and business model to see if we could make the Premier League. I think the Championship is a realistic target.

“I still have a burning ambition to be involved in the club and I am hoping that it will be realised.

“One thing is for sure that the Notts County brand and the Notts County club has got enormous potential.

“They (the fans) are so passionate and so hungry for success. I think they are a sleeping giant and I think I can help deliver them to a place which is far more exciting than what they are seeing at the moment.”

County said it won’t be commenting further on the sale of the club until the deal is finalised and ratified.