Hearts administration: BDO hold Heriot-Watt talks

Hearts administrators BDO will hold talks with Heriot-Watt University today in a bid to negotiate a reduced lease agreement with the club’s training ground landlords.

Hearts training at the complex earlier this week. Picture: SNS

Reports had suggested the Tynecastle outfit could be forced to quit the state-of-the-art facility because of high costs. The club currently pays just over £400,000 per year for the use of the academy and BDO identified that outlay as excessive.

Hearts, who put £2.35 million towards the cost of the £6.5 million complex, struck a 25-year lease arrangement with the university when they moved into the newly-built facility in the summer of 2004, but with Hearts’ wage bill having been brought under control by BDO, the insolvency practitioners are now looking to cut training ground overheads at the 
campus.

BDO joint-administrator Bryan Jackson said: “No decision has been made regarding the academy. We’ve had meaningful discussions with the university and we’re hoping we can move closer to a resolution this week.”

The university, who are listed as one of the club’s creditors and are due £146,000, were initially said to be reluctant to 
renegotiate.