THE MAN trying to take over Wycombe Wanderers says Blues will need a new ground in ten years time.

Steve Hayes says the 19-year-old Adams Park stadium is fast approaching its sell-by date and he will press ahead with plans to relocate them to Wycombe Air Park if he wins ownership of the club next week.

He said: “All the seats will need replacing in the next ten years. It’s a budget stadium.”

Hayes – who also owns Wasps – wants to see the two clubs sharing a 20,000 capacity stadium on the airfield site.

One of the business models being considered for this would see someone else building the shell of the stadium with the two sports clubs then fitting it out.

A new shared stadium would see Wanderers would lose the income, around £600,000 a year that, they currently receive in groundshare fees from Wasps but Hayes says they would lose that if they stayed on at Adams Park because Wasps would not stay.

He said: “If you stay at Adams Park you will lose the revenue of Wasps anyway because Wasps will need a new ground.

“I’m doing my best to protect Wasps and Wycombe Wanderers.”

Hayes is currently trying to take over the club.

But he is facing opposition from some supporters and shareholders who say he is responsible for the club’s debt, which read £7.2m at the last accounts.

He is personally owed £7m by the club after ploughing that in in the form of loans since becoming the club’s MD.

And he admitted he has made mistakes.

He said: “Not all of that £7m was well spent. I have wasted money in some areas.

“I have chased promotion for five years and been paying League One wages for five years and not got it until now.”

And he refuted some supporters’ accusations that he had manipulated the position so that he could get full control of both clubs.

He said: “I wasn’t even involved with Wasps then.”

He says he needed to force the issue now so that the club can press ahead with its ambitious plans.

He said: “For us to have a chance of a new stadium I couldn’t have different factions.

“I don’t want anything bad to happen to Wycombe Wanderers but I don’t want to put money in if people don’t want me.”

He described it as being akin to a vote of confidence and says that if he gets his plan through he will continue to work with positive people among the club’s support.

He said: “I want to sit down with the Trust board. You’ve got a lot of positive people and I want these people to come together.

“The proof is in the pudding. If I do get voted in it’s up to me to prove that it’s better not worse. And I do like these challenges.”