Bridgend Members To Be Sued By The WRU

BRIDGEND rugby fans have reacted angrily to claims that hundreds could be forced to cough up more than £200,000 if the Welsh Rugby Union carries out a threat to sue the Brewery Field club.

The union has announced in a letter to former club chairman Derrick King that it intends to recover £230,000 it gave Bridgend during the 1990s.

King said the letter stated the union would seek to recoup the money if former Warriors chief executive Leighton Samuel succeeds in a separate legal action against the WRU over how the Celtic Warriors regional side was wound up last year.

King is acting as a witness in that trial, which is expected to begin next March.

Samuel sold his 50 per cent Warriors share to the WRU in May 2004, a month before it was liquidated.

Because of the way Bridgend RFC was constituted, Samuel's lawyers say that any money the WRU seeks in its new claim will be passed onto individual members from 1997.

King said Bridgend were given money by the WRU in the 1996-97 season, to ease the transition from amateur to professional rugby.

More than 200 members could be liable and would be "up in arms" if they have to pay out, said King.

"It's a huge worry and a massive upset at the moment," he added.

"Here we are 10 years later and the union is coming back saying 'you owe money' when I'm certain other clubs were given money."

King said he was unable to allow the Western Mail to see the letter, but added the correspondence made it clear the WRU would move to recoup the money if it lost its legal battle with Samuel.

The WRU declined the opportunity to confirm or deny whether a letter had been sent.

David Thompson, Samuel's solicitor, said, "This sudden threat of court action has come as a shock to the former members of the club, many of whom are pensioners and some of whom are in poor health.

"Some of the members have now passed away and it is unclear whether the WRU will attempt to recover any money from their widows or other relatives.

"The members were, and still are, lovers of rugby who became members to show support for their club and did not anticipate that the WRU would one day threaten to sue them over money allegedly paid over 13 years ago."

The solicitor said that other Welsh clubs also received cash.

"It is unclear whether the WRU proposes to sue the individuals formerly associated with these clubs," he added.

Samuel, 54, is a South Wales businessman who took ownership of Bridgend RFC in 1999.

A police investigation into him was dropped last week after no evidence was found to support claims he had made death threats against a WRU solicitor.

Bridgend Ravens RFC Ltd, has been formed to try to keep the tradition of playing on the Brewery field alive.

The club has been formed as a limited company to protect members from future liability.

Simon Green, secretary of the Ravens Supporters Club, said, "The letter has made people very angry.

"I've received dozens of phone calls over the last couple of days. It has made people worried and upset."

King added, "If we had been a limited club in the 1990s, this would never have happened.

"Clubs found it very difficult and money was granted to certain clubs to help them through - for wages and to sort things out."

How low, petty and childish can Moffet and the Worst Run Union get, this proposed action smells so bad and who thought it would be a good idea to do this against some of the most disenfranchised supporters in the whole of Wales? I can see the paper stories of dying OAPs with tens of thousands of pounds of debt hanging over them, this is perhaps the lowest act of the WRU, they should be ashamed of themselves for the mere suggestion of this.