A GROUP of fans hoping to resurrect a 150-year-old football club at its former ground have been told their dream is over.

Supporters want to see adult football reinstated at the former Bicester Town Football Club, in Oxford Road.

The club closed in July when its landlord Bicester Sports Association (BSA) gave it notice to quit the site stating the club had not meet commitments it had agreed to.

But since then fans have been working behind the scenes to re-establish it.

However, the BSA has now said the matter is “closed” and a new under-16 team, Bicester Colts, has moved to the ground.

Supporter Alfred Pickett said: “The fact is the trustees of the BSA had no grounds to get the football club off the Oxford Road site.

“The BSA’s deed says it has got to provide sport for Bicester so there was no point kicking the football club off the site.

“Now if you want to play a reasonable standard of football (post 16 years old) you have got to go out of the town.

“All they have done is deprive the town of its top football club.”

Mr Pickett said campaigners would continue to press for the club to be reinstated at its former ground.

He also called for the BSA, a trust set up to provide sport for the town, to be more transparent.

Football supporter Keith Watson, a former president of the town’s chamber of commerce, called for all parties to draw a line under “conflict” and work together for the sake of sports in the town.

He said: “Over the past few weeks the BSA has taken a lot of criticism and many people feel the BSA has lost its way.”

Mr Watson urged the BSA to join forces with an action group made up of Bicester sports clubs to get funding to pay for top facilities at the Kingsmere housing estate, off Oxford and Middleton Stoney roads.

BSA chairman Adam Wade said: “Bicester Sports Association is a private trust and its finances will remain private as will our internal meetings and management processes.

“However, we are private but not secret. As for BTFC, we consider the matter closed and will make no further comment on the matter.”

The BSA own sports land off Oxford Road, the rugby and football pitches, and pitches at Chesterton.