Exclusive: Guiseley director Parkin to step up his bid to buy Bradford with increased offer

The chief executive of Brighouse-based Clipper Group wants to take charge of the Bantams and made a firm bid earlier this month to joint chairmen Mark Lawn and Julian Rhodes.

That initial offer, which would have seen the pair receive a guaranteed £750,000 for their shares, was rejected.

As part of the bid that was turned down, a £1m loan owed to Lawn by the club would have been repaid over an 18-month period.

Both chairmen would also have retained a 25 per cent share in the football club – a stake that, depending on City’s performance in subsequent years, could have earned the pair an additional £750,000.

Having been initially rebuffed and told by Lawn and Rhodes that his offer “under-valued the club”, Parkin, who is currently a director of Conference North side Guiseley, is now ready to return with an improved bid.

Sources close to the businessman last night told this newspaper that the revised offer is expected to see Lawn and Rhodes receive a guaranteed £2.5m under the terms of the deal.

Another bonus could then come their way depending on how the club fares in the years to come.

It is understood Rhodes and Lawn would, if the offer is accepted, also retain a significant shareholding in the Bantams.

Parkin, who in 2004 tried to buy Leeds United, could not be contacted last night but a member of his business team said: “Steve really wants to make this deal happen.

“The new offer is imminent, probably in the next couple of days. The proposal is for the existing shareholders to receive a guaranteed £2.5m with further possible money being paid to them in the future, depending on how the club performs.”

Parkin’s master plan for running City would see a hand-picked management team brought in to run the club’s off-field business. Funds would also be provided for team strengthening.

Speaking in last Tuesday’s Yorkshire Post when exclusively revealing the news of his interest, Parkin said: “What attracted me to Bradford City is that they can easily sustain Championship football, providing the right management structure is in place.

“Bradford is a big city and its football club has a long history.”

Rhodes has been on the board at Valley Parade since the late Nineties along with his father, Professor David Rhodes.

Both have played an integral role in keeping City alive through two spells in administration.

Lawn joined the Bradford board in the summer of 2007.

The three men are believed to have an investment of around £5.5m tied up in the club, while they also recently bought the office blocks that stands next to Valley Parade from investment firm Prupim to ease what was, at the time, a crippling rent bill.

Until agreement was reached over the sale last month, City had been in danger of being forced to decamp to Odsal, the home of Bradford Bulls Super League rugby league club.

As revealed last week, Parkin’s grand plan involves buying both City and the Bulls to form a Bradford Sporting Club.

The two clubs would then, in the short term, be installed in the same stadium with the eventual plan being for a purpose-built stadium in the city for the two to share.

That vision remains very much alive, though Parkin’s priority at the moment is to try to strike a deal for the football club.