A NEW era is now underway at York City Knights after Australian businessman Clint Goodchild this weekend purchased the club.

The deal brings to an end the hugely successful reign of Jon Flatman, who bought a club on the verge of closure in 2016 and, alongside head coach James Ford, soon delivered the 2018 League One title and a third-placed Championship finish a year later.

A cup final at Wembley, multiple Club of the Year awards and the long-awaited move to the LNER Stadium were further highlights in Flatman’s five years at the helm.

Now begins a new chapter for the club under Goodchild’s stewardship and, naturally, there is a sense of exterior uncertainty given that the Australian only took residence in the city last month.

He is not afraid to face up to such doubt though. In a long-ranging interview with The Press, Goodchild was asked for a response to potential scepticism from supporters to his takeover.

“I don’t think I can counter that,” he replied. “It’s a justified concern. There’s no shortcut to that respect. It’s going to have to be earned.”

Goodchild’s background comes in business turnaround or, in his words, “I’m a guy that is used to going into businesses that are a mess.”

At York City Knights, he insists that the opposite is true and, despite having been involved in 35 businesses, he is here for the long haul.

“The moment that I stepped foot into the new stadium, it become really obvious to me that this is a good organisation,” he said.

“Not only were the finances really attractive from a business perspective but the truth is that Jon has a great eye for talent, on and off the field.

“I honestly couldn’t be more impressed with what they’ve built and how quickly they’ve built it from the situation five or six years ago, it’s unbelievable.

“I’m 40 and I intend to make this my life. The hope is to continue the upward trend.”

Goodchild’s journey to becoming York City Knights chairman began through a consultancy role within North American rugby league.

He says he is limited by non-disclosure agreements to speak further about that particular position, but reveals that his connections in the sport led to a relationship developing with Flatman.

The takeover negotiations began prior to the coronavirus pandemic and lasted 18 months due to the virus’ global ramifications.

Goodchild “fell in love” with York on his first visit during the summer and has had multiple trips back and forth before permanently moving to the city before Christmas.

Although a passionate life-long rugby league supporter, Goodchild reiterates on several occasions that he has “so much to learn about the game over here.”

He said: “The immediate goal for me is just to learn. To come in and think that I know what needs to be done would be a little arrogant and foolhardy.”

Such an admittance should not be taken as a sign of a lack of foresight or planning however.

“There’s multiple plans,” Goodchild outlines. “There’s a one-year plan, a five-year plan and a 10-year plan.

“If you want to talk about the 40-year goal, it’s to beat Australian teams in the World Club Challenge. I obviously hope that it doesn’t take 40 years to achieve that.”

Before the Knights can think about world domination, they first must win promotion from the Championship.

Does Goodchild bring the financial clout to compete alongside the division’s other top contenders?

“Absolutely,” he asserts before quickly adding, “but it’s not about spending money, it’s about bringing in the right people.

“It’s easy to spend money and if you want me to spend money, I can spend money. But it doesn’t guarantee you anything.

“It’s all about growing a sustainable business model. I really can’t enforce enough that this club has the opportunity to succeed financially and on-the-field without throwing cash at it like a fool.

“There’s more to running a club than what happens on the field, you’ve got to get it right in every department.

“There’s no chasing winds here with a chequebook. This is going to be a club that’s strong off the field and, on the back of that, can hopefully win.”

Goodchild confirmed that the Knights remain a part-time outfit “for this year” and, when asked about how competitive the club’s budget would be, he added: “We’re in a good position to do everything it takes to achieve everything we want.”

The new chairman is evidently ambitious but is equally aware that “over-promise and under-deliver will soon bite you.”

“Are our aspirations for Super League? Well of course, they are,” Goodchild says. “I think that everyone wants to see York in Super League, including the league.

“We want to go as far as we can. But it’s about doing it right and building so we have sustained success.”