Swindon Town Football Club's chief executive Rob Angus has spoken of his delight that Swindon Borough Council voted to move forward with the sale of the County Ground

But he added the club and supporters trusts' joint venture of taking over ownership of the ground is not yet a done deal.

"We're really pleased, it's a step forward, a step in the right direction, but there's still a lot of legal stuff that we need to do and a lot of funding that we need to get sorted so it's not done yet, it's a step in the right direction," he said, speaking to The Adver. 

He also acknowledged the council's decision to approve the £2.5million sale of the County Road site also needed to go through a council scrutiny meeting, although he envisioned there'd be no problems arising from that meeting to further delay things. 

The joint venture had previously tried to purchase the County Ground in 2019, but circumstances surrounding the then owner, Lee Power, and the club's subsequent ownership legal contest halted proceedings. 

Things then got back on track when Australian businessman Clem Morfuni was deemed the rightful owner of the club, and he has since set about trying and largely succeeding to change the culture and public image of the club, something Mr Angus was quick to praise.

"Yeah, when we own the ground we'll be able to do the work that we've been wanting to do for a long time, things that are needed like the roof on the Stratton Bank and the boxes," he said.

"And I know this isn't pie in the sky stuff because we have Clem [Morfuni] on board. This work will happen and it'll be really good because he has experience, he's done a stadium development before and he's working on one now at Sydney FC in Australia."

"Clem is the kind of person that when he says he's going to do something he does it, and we've seen that already with things he's done at the club, so it's very exciting."

The stadium redevelopment plans also indicate that a hotel and conference centre will be built on the Town End, with the expected total investment in the region of £22.5m

Rob did add that while these were the proposed plans, inevitably things might change a little as time goes by. He also confirmed that as per the council's agreement to sell, the County Ground Stadium Custodian's Trust was obligated to do those works, or the council would take back ownership. 

There will be a press conference this week where further details on the ground's changing of hands will be shared.