I think you'll find Hell will freeze over before AH is welcomed back as a Board member.
Paulie xx
@cumbria-viking Stuart didn't have the exact numbers during the interview, however since I have been informed 18 players are signed up and sealed for next year. So going off the squad number of 24 there are 6 squad places left.
Yeah and on social media it sounds like Tom Gilmore and Jack Owens not signed up yet. Great Podcast and all us as fans need to support the club the best we can mate. The Australian commercial side might help us hopefully too.
But having 24 players is good news and we find out about the 15th August. Hoping some Academy come though too with Taylor and Sergent in the mix.
@cumbria-viking Stuart didn't have the exact numbers during the interview, however since I have been informed 18 players are signed up and sealed for next year. So going off the squad number of 24 there are 6 squad places left.
Are they 18 of the present squad Mike!
Clearly said by SM that the board will cover the shortfall from turnover to hit the maximum budget allowed of 500k. So not sure what else they can do?
maybe AH would be prepared to put his 100k into an escrow account, or was it 150k? People clearly forgetting their own rumours on Twitter 😂 but maybe he wouldn’t be prepared to do that, then what? He couldn’t invest it?
I still think it’s poor about the 6 year plan issue not being addressed much earlier when they said it was thrown out because of IMG changes a year or so ago
You know that I'm a computer idiot, Begg, and just can't find this podcast anywhere on the club site..
Any chance of a link to it - (pretty) please...
@martin 18 including new signings yet to be announced, contract renewals yet to be announced and current contracted players. Plenty of business still to be done and decisions still to be made on the current playing squad. Going off Stuarts number of 24, 6 spots still to be determined
Good open and honest interview. I find the ineptitude of the RFL shocking, but not surprising.
Still no idea of the league structure or funding for 2027, despite all the meetings they seem to hold; and they appear to be panicking that London will not qualify for SL under the IMG grading system, which I do not believe for one second!!!
I totally support the Club's stance on the proposed re-scheduling of the Sheffield game a few days before the game against London. Surely, the Clubs can come up with a date agreeable to both and keep the RFL out of it.
I see big Nige has been lauding the massive £4,100 profit for the RFL to the end of 2024 on a turnover of just over £13m. I am not an accountant, but this is perhaps nothing to brag about. Maybe Nige should be looking at the £4.7m staffing costs plus £270,000 payments to Directors - with one Director pocketing £150,000 (i wonder who?), shared amongst the 100 or so employees. Compare this to the £2.7m paid to or on behalf of Clubs. Seems to be an imbalance to say the least.
Maybe if the new Sky/TV deal is done without V'landys/NRL involvement, perhaps Big Nige and Co don't care if London go up to SL, or not. Let's be honest, as a Club they bring nothing to the party. Sub-1000 crowds, no away support, and apart from the novelty season of 1980, never have. If winning the GF guarantees promotion, then fine. But the RFL/IMG should not be adjusting 'Pillars' to accommodate them more than other Clubs. I have nothing against London, in fact I enjoy our away games in the Capital.
Paulie xx
Given that Rugby League has no leadership or direction - and hasn't had so for many years - I believe the Club are doing the right thing with their steady as you go approach.
In fact, I think its a current lose, lose situation for Clubs outside of the elite as they have no idea which direction to go in, in order to meet the ever changing criteria (if such a thing ever existed in the first place).
How can you ever hope to run and develop a successful business with one or both hands tied behind your back.
It must be a real nightmare for Club owners.
I just find it odd, that a Sport with hardly a pot to pi$$ in seem happy enough to alienate the Clubs and the supporters who are likely to contribute the most by way of cash and support, and replace them with teams from far flung places that bring little or nothing to the party.
Has anybody even bothered to work out the cumulative losses the game will suffer from by having at least three teams in Super League that have little or no support? At the very least, imagine how bad the empty terraces are going to look to the rest of the watching world.
As for the never ending story regarding London.
Correct me if I am wrong but why all the fuss now to put them in. Two or three years ago, they made SL the right way by winning the Grand Final, only to then be told that they wouldn't be in the following year because of IMG.
None of this makes any sense at all.
You could cut & paste most of what you say, Darth, and apply it to most of the Championship Clubs.
Most have <1000 attendances =Brings nothing to the party
Most have less than a bus full of fans at their away games = BNTTP
Rely on Widnes & Salford as their big payday = BNTTP
Exist year after year just for the RFL funding =BNTTP
Most are a rest home for players that should be retired (Sykes is about 58) and are hindering the development of young players (And we wonder why can't beat the Aussies).
Paulie xx
And you're right, but the problems go much much deeper.
The point is that majority of Clubs outside of the select few has seen their supporters ignored by the Authorities, and therefore have drifted away from the Sport.
As such, that is the reason why nobody really bothers with it any more.
Why bother, when hope and ambition has been stripped away.
It's really that simple.
I've given the chairman pelters ...in my eyes justified... especially after the barrow away game when he seemed more interested in what was happening at Wigan/saints ....but I'll say this... fair play to him and the board not being bullied by the RFL over trying to make us play Sheffield away in midweek prior to the 1895 final ... especially on the back of London getting their outstanding game Vs Swinton moved to after the final ...so powers that be were happy giving them a 8 day turnaround while trying to bully us into 3 games in 8 .... apparently even threatened to refuse to play the final if it was enforced...and rightly so