Story by Toby Hasleham
Following David and Vicky’s completion of the takeover of Burgess Hill Town FC earlier this year, I caught up with David to hear about his journey into ownership, what led him to Burgess Hill, their time at the club so far and their plans looking ahead.
Sport for David was a constant presence in his upbringingthanks to his father, a former professional footballer, who introduced him to the game at a very young age. While David jokes he didn’t inherit any of his father’s footballing ability, he did develop a deep passion for the sport, and owning a football club became a lifelong ambition for him. While at university, he met Vicky, who also shared a love for sport and fittingly, their first date was a trip to Leeds’ Elland Road. From that point on, the idea of owning a football club became a shared dream.
The couple got their first taste of running an organisation when they took on leadership roles at their local cricket members’ club, which David now says shares similar elements with operating football club, just on a much smaller scale. Despite thoroughly enjoying the experience, they stepped away from the club just before COVID-19 butremained determined to own a football club further down the line.
This takes us to 2023, when someone David knew contacted him about a potential investment in a Mid-Sussex based club -Burgess Hill Town FC. They were tentative, with the original plan to focus on building up their business and preparing it for sale in the future, but David thought: “what the hell, let’s go and meet them”. Upon meeting previous owner Vince, and hearing the club’s ideas and vision, the pair were instantly gripped.
Despite investing time and money, David admitted that they were both initially worried about how they might be received by the club and its loyal fans, but quickly found out how welcoming everyone was. He said: “They were really keen for us to get involved. Very, very supportive.”
“There is a large amount of people where the club is the most important thing in their life, they live it and breathe it. They are there every day doing something to help because it’s a really key part of their lives, and for them to welcome us into their lives was really quite nice
“What surprised me was how much people are actually prepared to give their time for free for the club. Not just people who are retired and have time on their hands but working people too who basically give up their evenings, weekends and do jobs for the club. It’s what makes this club and it’s taken me aback. It’s a really nice thing”.
“It’s strange, it’s as if they are now part of our extended family.” He added.
David, who has vast experience owning and running a business with Vicky, highlighted that owning a football club has felt like a “mini-business”, but expressed that this is notthe approach they want to take. He said: “This is a voluntary thing that actually costs me money, I don’t want to spend any time arguing with people, I want it to be fun”.
“We hope to be involved in the club for about 10 years and that’s our thing, how can we leave the club in a better state than when we found it.”, He emphasised.
[Speaking before the club confirmed promotion to the Isthmian Premier League after beating Sittingbourne in the Play-off Final]
On the future, David said: “It is about getting those foundations and not just on the pitch but everywhere. A 3Gpitch is important, and if it comes soon, great, but if it doesn’t, it’s just building and preparing”
“Jay and Gary have almost completed a full year as joint managers and they have done a fabulous job of that, and the plan is they will stay next year and go again”
“We are determined to keep it pushing along and we will learn from what we did last year”.
