Coleraine need a 'structured approach to get the right things in place' before adopting a full-time strategy, says chairman Colin McKendry

The Bannsiders are set for a £2 million investment after Friends of Coleraine members voted in favour of new ownership from two London-based businessmen.

Patrick Mitchell and Ranald McGregor Smith, who are both former pupils at Coleraine Academical Institution, have vowed to invest a seven-figure sum over the next five years at The Showgrounds.

The club plans to move into a full-time set-up by the start of next season with McKendry vowing that plans are set to get under way to ease the start of that process.

He said: "It wouldn't matter how much money you have in your coffers, this club's not ready to go full-time.

"There needs to be a structured approach to get the right things in place i.e. that you have the right people off the pitch ensuring the right things are done on it.

"There's massive off-field staff needed and we need to look at all the structures.

"Just because you're getting X-amount more on your budget it doesn't guarantee success.

"As a board we want to give Oran the tools, but that also puts pressure on him and he's the first to admit that.

"But there's pressure on us as a board too to get things right off the pitch so he can bring success.

"We can't just rely on volunteers all the time.

"This is still a volunteer-led football club, we can't get away from that, and we want the community heavily involved.

"For me we are probably looking at 12 to 18 months to get us into a more full-time set-up.

"Now we could have a cohort of young professionals at the club from January onwards.

"For me though we need a full-time General Manager or Chief Operating Officer as the board sets strategies and structures and rely on others to implement it.

"We have to go looking and headhunt that type of person."

The takeover is subject to legalities being finalised and McKendry acknowledged that more "meat on the bone" is needed before the keys are handed over.

"The fine detail now has to be ironed out, all we've done is the membership have agreed to sell the share," he added.

"We now have to sit down and get into the fine details of it and put meat on the bone.

"They are also relying on our expertise. They are providing the funds to do it so we now have to step up to the plate and put the right people in place to ensure we get there.

"My first thing once we do get this across the line in an agreement sense that it is signed off with legal people is that we now need to look at the professionalism of things off the pitch and build a foundation so we can work towards a full-time set-up on the pitch to allow us to compete at the highest level.

"We will now engage our lawyers to sit down with the investors."

The Club has been under the ownership of fan-led group Friends of Coleraine since 2006 and McKendry stressed the importance of still having representation from members on the board.

He further stated how the club needs to "grow as a whole" from the first-team right through to off-field revenue streams.

"It was a very emotional night because the football club here has been under fans' ownership since I got back involved," he continued.

"The fans have always had a say and it would be my intention going forward that they will still have a say.

"I believe the Friends of Coleraine will have the option and opportunity to invest in the club again.

"I would still like them to continue and feel part of the football club by having a seat or seats on the board and be involved in the decision making process at the club.

"There's the investment side of it which we have to embrace, but there's also the control side which Ranald is entrusting the board with.

"Now ultimately shareholders will look for a return on their investment somewhere along the line and quite rightly so, it's up to us as board members to act accordingly and make sure the right things are done.

"We have to make sure the right processes and structures are in place and also that we grow the football club as a whole.

"Whilst the senior team needs to get us into Europe and win cups and trophies, there is also the Ladies section, the Academy, the Social Club, the retail etc.

"I want to grow the whole club and Ranald can bring expertise and introduce us to different people who will introduce different skill sets to us whilst we still have a say in how the club goes forward."