Andy Pilley believes he can transform Waterford’s fortunes after his takeover finally went through
And the English businessman intends using one of his other clubs, Fleetwood Town, as a blueprint for future success at the RSC.
Pilley - who also owns lower league sides in South Africa and the UAE - snapped up the Blues for a six-figure sum short of the €1.3m valuation.
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He takes over from fellow Englishman Richard Forrest who was at the helm of the Munster outfit for the last year.
Pilley, who made his fortune in energy supply, was at Waterford’s recent league games against Galway United and Cork City and sealed the deal while in Ireland last week.
He is due to stand trial in the UK in October, along with three others, having denied two counts of running a business with the intention of defrauding creditors, one count of false representation and one count of being concerned with the retention of criminal property.
The charges related to Pilley’s private energy firm, Business Energy Solutions, not his football clubs.
Quizzed on his intentions for Waterford FC, new owner Pilley said: “I’m not interested in floating in and out. That has no appeal to me. If I’m going to do this, it has to have longevity and continuity.
“I know anything is possible because on my football journey, all people from outside told me was ‘you’ve done well but you’re a small club and won’t go any further’.
“That just motivated me to go again. Waterford is clearly not a small club. Look at the catchment area and population, it can be a club that pulls decent gates in.
“The organisation, facilities and infrastructure is here and the future is what we make it. It really is.”
Pilley continued: “The immediate vision is one of stability and to put together a professional infrastructure, which will replicate what we have in the UK.
“We’ve had enormous success in the UK with Fleetwood. When I took Fleetwood over 18 years ago, the first gate was 80 people.
“It was a small population with a club five leagues below the football league. We won six promotions (and now play in League One).
“It’s not just an injection of money. It’s an infrastructure with a secret of success of everyone pulling in the same direction.
“What immediately needs to happen is that the football club needs to come aligned with the community, the business community, the council, and the SETU Arena (training base).
“The potential here in Waterford is enormous. As the new owner, you look at the Irish Premier League, you look at Europe, but there’s an order of events.
“And in that order of events, the first thing this club needs is stability.”
Waterford fans will hope that Pilley’s longevity at Fleetwood - where former Bohemians star Promise Omochere is now playing - is a sign that he is not looking for a quick fix.
“I’m one of those people that has an obsessive disorder about things that I get into and I’ve got that with football,” he said.
“I ran a Sunday League team for seven or eight years and I was fortunate enough to become successful in business.
“I was invited to come along to Fleetwood, which was a local club and honestly nothing more than a pub team.
“It was an amateur team and it’s just something that I love because I couldn’t imagine life without football.
“I see Waterford as a similar project to Fleetwood as I think that it’s punching under its weight right now.
“But it needs controlled growth - stability, an infrastructure and the future will be what we’ll make it.”
Pilley touched on the attraction of one day playing in Europe and the financial gains that are available to Irish clubs, but insists Waterford will have to bide their time.
“We all have a dream and it’s great to have that potential but I don’t want to put out a headline saying we’re going into Europe. One step at a time which is controlled growth.
“I believe that Irish football is on the incline. I think there are good times ahead. If I can help some of these boys fulfil their dream and get them across to the EFL.
“If they progress nothing would make me happier than shaking their hand and watching them on Match of the Day on a Saturday night.”
Waterford manager Danny Searle - another Englishman - will be retained as the club pushes for the First Division playoffs.
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