SWINDON Town are set to explore the possibility of developing the County Ground after the arrival of new non-executive vice-chairman Clem Morfuni.

Morfuni, the founder of Axis group, who recently renewed their shirt sponsorship with the club until 2019, comes in on the same day that director Sangita Shah’s departure was announced, having joined the club in 2013.

Morfuni has already made a statement of intent by saying that there is ‘a lot of potential here with the development of the stadium’.

The County Ground is currently owned by Swindon Borough Council, with Swindon Town Supporters’ Trust in advanced discussions with council leader David Renard about the possibility of purchasing the stadium, having had an initial offer of £1.1million turned down.

Should chairman Lee Power now be looking at investing in Swindon’s home of 129 years, it will be a complete about-turn on his previous stance, having stated in December 2013 when he took sole control of the club: “I haven’t got the wealth of certain other individuals that have owned it and I’ve got no interest in the ground redevelopments or relocations or whatever you call it.”

Morfuni’s company Axis, who have invested an unspecified amount in the club over the last two years, have a history of developing stadia, having worked on Wembley Stadium and are currently involved in the construction of Tottenham Hotspur’s new state-of-the-art home.

Now Morfuni has said his ‘main focus’ is developing the County Ground, as he looks to help Swindon return to ‘where it should be’.

“It will be great for both parties and being in the building services industry around the world, we saw that there is a lot of potential here with the development of the stadium,” he told the club’s website.

“I spoke to Lee Power and I said that we can help the club and we can go through the processes and management of building a world-class facility for the fans and the community of Swindon.

“We want to build this club back to where it should be.

“There’s a few ideas that I’ve got so I’ll sit down with Lee, discuss what he wants to do and then follow the process and start getting the ball rolling.

“The main focus for me is to look at the development and we’ve got over 700 employees worldwide, so I’ve got a whole infrastructure that can help us.

“I believe that (Swindon) should be way above where we are but things happen and it is now all about rebuilding, refocusing and taking small steps in the right direction.”

Power, who has been publicly adverse to outside investment in the past, added: “We are delighted to welcome Clem on board as non-executive vice chairman.

“During my time at the club we haven’t had chance to have a detailed look at developing the County Ground, but Clem’s arrival will help with that and we are thrilled to have someone with his experience and knowledge join us.

“Clem will move discussions forward with the council and other parties and he will also be looking to explore every option when it comes to redeveloping the County Ground.”