ladywoodskyblue
Well-Known Member
I apologise as this post is not Coventry City orientated, but due to the issues us Coventry fans have had to go through in the past I'm sure most of you will have empathy for the current situation a good traditional non league team Dulwich Hamlet are going through. Our young goalkeeper Corey Addai is currently on loan there. Dulwich Hamlet are one of the country’s oldest and most popular non-league teams. Attendances at Champion Hill often exceed 2,000 - a number that would not look out of place in a lot of the shite holes we have to go and visit.
I don't know if any of you are aware of the situation that has occurred at Dulwich Hamlet, but I have been reading about it this morning and I am absolutely disgusted. Earlier this week, the club had their licence to play at home ground Champion Hill Stadium terminated. Shortly after the club was handed legal papers saying they could no longer use the names “Dulwich Hamlet”, “The Hamlet” or the initials “DHFC”.
For some context, there is a history of calamitous behaviour in relation to the ownership of The Champion Hill Stadium, but to avoid boring you all, the main problems began in March 2016, when Hadley (owners of the ground) revealed plans for an £80m housing development at Champion Hill. As part of the bid it proposed to build a brand new stadium on the adjacent Green Dale Fields, buy the club from McCormack and hand it to the Dulwich Hamlet Supporters’ Trust. In October that year the CEO of Hadley started a new firm, Meadow Residential, which took on the Champion Hill redevelopment project.
So far, so good. Members of the Dulwich Hamlet Supporters’ Trust voted 94 per cent in favour of this proposal, in fact. But the bid fell through. Southwark Council rejected it on the grounds that the proposed new ground would be built on protected Metropolitan Open Land at Green Dale, which had been leased by Dulwich Hamlet until last October.
Though ownership of the club was still with McCormack, Meadow had been supporting Dulwich Hamlet’s running costs for years - players’ wages and all - at an alleged loss of £170,000 per year. But after discussions with Southwark Council reached a stalemate, Meadow announced it would be terminating its financial support.
In response, the supporters’ trust, the Dulwich Hamlet board of directors and a grassroots fundraising group called The 12th Man joined forces to shake buckets, sell raffle tickets and manage the turnstiles at home games. (proper football fans)
A ray of hope beamed on Champion Hill in February this year, when it was announced that Rio Ferdinand, who grew up in nearby Peckham and is a friend of Dulwich Hamlet’s manager Gavin Rose, had recently made a £10m bid for Champion Hill Stadium through his affordable housing company Legacy. Alas, Meadow rejected the bid, reportedly asking for a minimum of £13m for the site.
Which brings us to this week, when Meadow handed Dulwich a bill of £121,000 for backdated rent. The agreement had always been that Meadow would financially support their tenants, so this came as an unwelcome surprise to the club. Meadow served notice that Dulwich Hamlet could no longer play at Champion Hill Stadium - effective immediately. Then, writing on behalf of Greendales IP LLC, an off-shoot of Meadow, the US-based solicitors Blake Morgan informed the club that their previously un-trademarked name and initials had been trademarked in October last year and that the club could not continue using them.
I hope that Dulwich Hamlet are able to solve this situation soon but once again we see a property development company trying to destroy a grass roots football club. Occupying the trademarks of the name of a historic football club formed in 1893 is absolutely shameful and an example of big business ruining football once again.
The one saving grace is that Corey was able to bag a goal for them mid week. Although our days of being homeless are in the past for now, it is possible they will come round again. I stand with solidarity with Dulwich Hamlet FC and their supporters.
I don't know if any of you are aware of the situation that has occurred at Dulwich Hamlet, but I have been reading about it this morning and I am absolutely disgusted. Earlier this week, the club had their licence to play at home ground Champion Hill Stadium terminated. Shortly after the club was handed legal papers saying they could no longer use the names “Dulwich Hamlet”, “The Hamlet” or the initials “DHFC”.
For some context, there is a history of calamitous behaviour in relation to the ownership of The Champion Hill Stadium, but to avoid boring you all, the main problems began in March 2016, when Hadley (owners of the ground) revealed plans for an £80m housing development at Champion Hill. As part of the bid it proposed to build a brand new stadium on the adjacent Green Dale Fields, buy the club from McCormack and hand it to the Dulwich Hamlet Supporters’ Trust. In October that year the CEO of Hadley started a new firm, Meadow Residential, which took on the Champion Hill redevelopment project.
So far, so good. Members of the Dulwich Hamlet Supporters’ Trust voted 94 per cent in favour of this proposal, in fact. But the bid fell through. Southwark Council rejected it on the grounds that the proposed new ground would be built on protected Metropolitan Open Land at Green Dale, which had been leased by Dulwich Hamlet until last October.
Though ownership of the club was still with McCormack, Meadow had been supporting Dulwich Hamlet’s running costs for years - players’ wages and all - at an alleged loss of £170,000 per year. But after discussions with Southwark Council reached a stalemate, Meadow announced it would be terminating its financial support.
In response, the supporters’ trust, the Dulwich Hamlet board of directors and a grassroots fundraising group called The 12th Man joined forces to shake buckets, sell raffle tickets and manage the turnstiles at home games. (proper football fans)
A ray of hope beamed on Champion Hill in February this year, when it was announced that Rio Ferdinand, who grew up in nearby Peckham and is a friend of Dulwich Hamlet’s manager Gavin Rose, had recently made a £10m bid for Champion Hill Stadium through his affordable housing company Legacy. Alas, Meadow rejected the bid, reportedly asking for a minimum of £13m for the site.
Which brings us to this week, when Meadow handed Dulwich a bill of £121,000 for backdated rent. The agreement had always been that Meadow would financially support their tenants, so this came as an unwelcome surprise to the club. Meadow served notice that Dulwich Hamlet could no longer play at Champion Hill Stadium - effective immediately. Then, writing on behalf of Greendales IP LLC, an off-shoot of Meadow, the US-based solicitors Blake Morgan informed the club that their previously un-trademarked name and initials had been trademarked in October last year and that the club could not continue using them.
I hope that Dulwich Hamlet are able to solve this situation soon but once again we see a property development company trying to destroy a grass roots football club. Occupying the trademarks of the name of a historic football club formed in 1893 is absolutely shameful and an example of big business ruining football once again.
The one saving grace is that Corey was able to bag a goal for them mid week. Although our days of being homeless are in the past for now, it is possible they will come round again. I stand with solidarity with Dulwich Hamlet FC and their supporters.
