TWO WEEKS after it was impressively launched at the Jaffa Restaurant, the merger to form the Queen's Park Football Club is no more.
As a resullt, St Ann's Rangers will go it alone in the 2011–2012 Digicel Pro League football competition, which kicks off on August 29.
"The final decision was only made last night. We sat down and told them that Queen's Park football Club could not work," Rangers owner Richard Fakoory declared, in response to Express enquiries.
"Maybe it was a partnership that was not meant to be. At the time it looked a perfect fit, and would have seen our players and team progressing. But, they never came up with the money they promised."
Recently, a deal was struck when former England defender Terry Fenwick and partner Mike Smith approached Fakoory with the idea of merging the struggling Pro League team with the football club of the Queen's Park Cricket Club, which had been relegated from the National Super League.
The merger would have brought together the Rangers player resources and facilities at the Oval. On August 5, Fenwick unveiled a logo for the new club, and major plans were announced, including the formation of the Queen's Park Football Club Youth Academy, the first professional standard football academy in Trinidad and Tobago. QPFC would have played their matches mainly at the Queen's Park Oval.
"Now this has nothing to do with QPCC (Queen's Park Cricket Club) or Bruce Aanensen," Fakoory insisted. "Our deal was with Terry Fenwick to form QPFC. Under our agreement, they were supposed to come up with a certain amount of money, but they kept putting it off. It came to a point where just nine days before the start of the Pro League they still do not have the money."
The collapse of the merger has left Fakoory with the burden of bringing out Rangers, who have one of the best youth programmes in the country, consisting of 165 players. Fakoory said for years he has been begging for a sponsor to help with the club, whose youth programme alone costs $300,000.
Fakoory said the collapse of the merger could affect the composition of the Rangers team, since he does not know how many of the players training with QPFC will remain with Rangers. By Monday, he will determine his final squad.
"I am not in this to make money. But, I would at some point like to win a few trophies. But, how can I do that when my best young players are constantly moving on to the richer clubs. But my self and Richard (Piper) will continue to struggle, and Rangers will have a team in the Pro League."