Bonney can bring stability to entire club

Nov 29 2007 by Dave Bettley, Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News

VIKINGS chairman Steve O’Connor is confident that the club’s new chief executive Alex Bonney will be a valuable recruit for the club.

He has appointed the man who was his finance director at O’Connor Group before the business became part of Stobart Group earlier this year.

Mr Bonney, 48, will continue working for Stobart alongside his position at the Vikings.

Mr O’Connor said: “Alex Bonney, who has worked with me for over six years, is immensely experienced and is the ideal person to bring stability to the entire operation.

“He will put the vital professional structures in place to ensure we can rebuild this club on solid business foundations.

“I am particularly grateful that Stobart Group has agreed to allow Alex to take on this new role in conjunction with his existing duties.”

He has replaced Pete Barrow, who stood down from the position that he held on a part-time basis since December 2005.

Mr Barrow said: “I had the opportunity to work with Alex but felt it would be in the best interests of the club if I moved aside for him to implement the new business plans which will take the club forward and secure Vikings’ long-term future.”

He was thanked for his work by the new chairman.

Mr O’Connor said: “Pete had to steer the club through some very difficult circumstances and I would like to thank him for the efforts he has made on behalf of Vikings and wish him all the best.”

A self-confessed football fan, Mr O’Connor has been seeking advice from within the sport but was unsuccessful in attracting a former chief executive of a Super League club to join the club in a consultancy role.

It is not just the management team that is being restructured at Halton Stadium as a two-phase improvement programme is being carried out on the ground.

The players’ gym, fitness centre, treatment room, offices, showers and toilet facilities beneath the North Stand are being refurbished and should be completed in January.

The second phase will concentrate on improvements to Vikings’ administration centre in the South Stand.