Widnes Vikings saved after consortium deal announced

Widnes Vikings announced tonight that it has been taken over by a consortium.

The deal is subject to RFL approval and the club said it will update supporters once details are officially confirmed tomorrow (Friday, March 1).

The Championship club was placed into administration last Friday, February 22, and since then, helped by supporters, has been fighting to raise enough cash to guarantee its survival.

Earlier tonight the club issued a statement saying: “On Thursday, a consortium came together with the administrators and in principle, agreed a deal to take the club forward.

“The takeover involving the proposed consortium is subject to contracts and RFL approval, which the club is extremely hopeful will be granted on Friday.

“At that point, the sporting sanctions, such as the 12-point penalty for Widnes Vikings in the 2019 Betfred Championship season, will then be applied.

“The club can confirm that the members of the consortium are Chris Price, Jason Shaw, Roger Harrison MBE, Stuart Murphy, David Dean, Tracey Glendinning, and Rod Steele.

“With Jason Shaw taking a place within this group, this allows Vikings Quids In (VIQI), who have been instrumental in the previous days, to have a presence within the consortium.

“At this stage, Sunday’s home game against Featherstone Rovers remains scheduled to go ahead.

“The club will verify this to supporters when final confirmation is given on Friday.”

The statement added: “The club would like to thank Halton Borough Council, including David Parr and MP for Halton Derek Twigg, for their co-operation and support over the previous days.

“Lastly, Widnes Vikings would like to go on record and thank supporters, the town of Widnes, club sponsors and the rugby league community for their incredible support in the last week. Without that backing, this solution would not have been possible.”

It is reported that a new holding company, Widnes Rugby League Club Limited, has already been registered with Companies House.

Administrator, Peter O’Hara, confirmed a deal has been struck, saying: “We have concluded an agreement which will be ratified tomorrow when the legal work is completed.”