Today vice-chairman Nick Higgs, director Geoff Dunford and company secretary Toni Watola spoke to the media about the reasons behind the stadium delay.

The edited highlights of their conversations can be found below.

Vice-chairman, Nick Higgs, explained how Opal pulling out had affected the scheme, and how the club plan to progress the project.

He said: "It has been a very difficult fortnight, the news came and it was devastating for us because we were so far down the line with a number of other agreements which revolved around the Opal agreement, so with Opal pulling out without any prior notice it really was a very difficult time.

"We have a very good scheme ready to go, and at the last minute Opal pulled the plug and we were all devastated. We just had an email letter saying that unfortunately due to the current economic climate they had no choice but to pull out from the scheme.

"We were very disappointed as only a couple of weeks prior to that we had sought assurances that they were committed to the scheme, as we were so close to tying up a number of other deals, we didn't want any shocks.

"We immediately started looking at all the options available to us, we have had a number of companies who expressed an interest in taking on the student accommodation during our negotiations with Opal, and we basically reverted back to talking to two companies to see if we could keep on with the scheme without having to defer it.

"These negotiations carried on for ten days and we were quite close last weekend, but unfortunately once the media got hold of the fact that Opal had pulled out it took away all our negotiating strengths. We then made the decision on Tuesday, as a board, that for the benefit of Bristol Rovers we had to make sure things were tied up properly, so we decided to delay things for 12 months.

"If the news had not been leaked we would have continued negotiations for another couple of weeks, as they had gone a long way. Ultimately whether it worked out would be impossible to say at this stage, but we were in very deep negotiations to try and resurrect the scheme.

"This has been very frustrating for everyone involved, but this is a very complex project, of which Opal is only one part.

"We have all said that we will not put Bristol Rovers at risk through this project and we feel that we have made the right decision for the club. Nobody can guarantee anything, but this is a well thought out scheme, that has been well designed. The credit crunch has had a huge impact on us, but we are confident that the design we have will work well for Bristol Rovers and we want to be on site this time next year.

"We have done a lot of work in the last 18 months to get where we are today. We have a design that works, we have got a number of interested parties, we have got a full business plan which indicates the income streams from the project bode well and we see no reason why it shouldn't go ahead in 12 months time.

"It is very complicated, it involves a number of parties, and that is always the problem. You only need one part of the jigsaw not to fit, and it undoes the rest of it."

When asked why the board did not talk to the media after Tuesday's decision, Nick said: "We decided the best way would be to try and issue a statement from the club to cover all the different aspects of why there was a delay and where we were at this point in time. We thought this was the best way forward, in hindsight maybe that was the wrong decision.

"If there was a lack of information, then we apologise, but we have to be careful as there are some items that are very commercially sensitive. We think we acted in the best interest of the football club by trying to keep this under wraps.

"We do feel for the fans who would have made the trip to Whaddon Road, that had all been arranged and the timing was pretty poor to say the least. At the end of the day, I would stress that all we have is the interest of Bristol Rovers at heart, and we want to make sure that this scheme does go ahead.

"We would like to thank our supporters for their patience and assure them that we will do our best to deliver the stadium and we hope to give them some positive news over the coming few months."

Director Geoff Dunford described the last two weeks as one of the biggest disappointments in his time with Bristol Rovers.

He said: This has been incredibly disappointing, particularly when you feel you have a project in place and you have already checked with various stakeholders to make sure they can perform and then all of a sudden to receive an email out of the blue saying that funding is a problem for them.

"As a club we have been talking to our bankers and we had the funding in place subject to the performance of our stakeholders and that has let us down.

"Opal are one of the main funding inputs of the project and we have dealt with Opal for the last year and a half, so the scheme has been designed to a certain extent around their needs, there has been an awful lot of work gone into this scheme to accommodate them and it is a shame they pulled out. It is possible that there will be minor changes to the scheme but the scheme has been fully engineered and valued and is ready to build.

"We can cope with minor changes to the build and conditions but we do not envisage any major changes which will affect our planning permission.

"Time was not on our side and we had to make a decision, and for the security of the football club, we had to delay. There is a credit crunch and we will not just be looking in this country now for a student provider, we will be looking elsewhere, I am sure there must be some funds somewhere in the world, and a company willing to take on this project.

"It is something that is very achievable, but we will have to see how the market works, it is difficult for us to predict that. It is a sound scheme with good cross funding. The regeneration is full of good people working on the club's behalf. This scheme is not run by the directors. We have a professional team working on a very good project."

Geoff insisted that despite some opinions in the press, Rovers maintain a good working relationship with both Bristol Rugby Club and Cheltenham Town.

He continued: "Cheltenham and Bristol Rugby Club were always aware if the scheme didn't go ahead or if funding didn't work out then we would be staying put. Whilst I am sure they are very disappointed, it wasn't a surprise and it wasn't something we could help. We have always had a very good relationship with them, we are businesses and we work and talk together.

"If you look at the history of the football club, this is about the fifth or sixth scheme we have had. It is not easy, particularly with this club's background. You can look back and say in the last 25 years, the club has made more progress than it did in the previous 100 years, but it is difficult to satisfy the appetite of football fans now as they want instant success and they want the best facilities, but all you can do is work hard to try and achieve that process.

"There is no reason why we cannot get a decent stadium for the football club in the next 12 months, as long as we have some good luck in regards to the economy batting for us as well. I don't think in any company, if you are dealing with a project of this magnitude, it is an easy project to get off the drawing board, but it is fundable and it is feasible.

"There is only so much you can humanly do to take the club forward. We are investing heavily in the playing side and we have invested in this project. These are very exciting times, and there is no reason for people to be down beat and say it is never going to happen. We are doing this for the benefit of the football club, so we can hopefully compete at Championship level and if not more.

"It is all about trying, the will is there from the board and we have a very professional team working for us. It all points in the right direction. We hope people will continue to believe in the stadium scheme, as we will all do our best to make sure it happens."

Company secretary Toni Watola spoke about the financial side of the project, explaining: "We have lined up all the participants in the deal, but clearly there are a lot of parts to this. We have the backing of our bank, and they will fund the deal all the way through until we sell the component parts at the end.

"That part of it is in place, but that is clearly dependent on those who are at the end of the scheme, like Opal were, being able to honour their part as a stake holder and put their money in. Clearly Opal have pulled out and we have to find a replacement, but we have a lot of interest and do not see that as an impossible feat, but we need time to negotiate that process.

"Until that first brick is laid you never can breathe easy, but if we have that student provider in place that is 70 per cent of the funds sorted. The other parts are less specialist and easier to get funded. It is the student provider that is key to the whole of the process. As much as the FA Cup run was welcome revenues it does not anyway near match the type of money required from our student provider, but give us 20 years of runs like that and we can probably do it.

"If one was to go back 12 months, there wasn't a credit crunch, and each month there has been more bad news. I think we are getting towards the end of that bad news, and life will begin to return to normal and we can carry on with the project as we had originally envisaged.

"If things stay as they are now, one has to retain confidence in the project, but clearly I haven't got a crystal ball and I cannot see into the future. If we have another credit crunch it could be a problem, but as things are now, we are reasonably confident.

"This does not change our playing budget for next season. The playing budget is a separate item from the stadium redevelopment. We have increased the playing budget for Lennie and Paul this year and sanctioned the signing of new players during the close season. We have listened and agreed to their recent requests, we understand that they are very happy and are now planning for the season ahead."