Yesterday was another depressing experience and today I still don't feel any better!

Now that the season has concluded and the dust has settled I now feel it would be a good step in engaging with the fans to provide some details of how the club is to go forward. We have already signed up to IMG regime. It must have some merit for the club to agreed. I for one would like some assurances on why they signed up for the IMG, and a statement on how the club plan to progress and prosper in the new IMG era. Do the club have a `Plan` going forward?

The club will not be using this forum to provide the answer to your questions so any comments on here won’t be official unless they are direct quotes coming from the club.

Options are looking back on what they have already said, waiting for future announcements or asking / contacting them directly at the next club / fans open meeting at the Shay.

It looks like the club is in a mess at the mo. Still very unhappy about the hike in admission by 15%, paying over 20 quid to watch lower tier RL is bonkers and won't attract new fans, if anything it'll lose existing fans.

For the first time in over 30 years I'm knocking a season ticket on the head and will just attend the meaningful games next season ...... I'm not paying over 20 quid to watch the likes of Whitehaven (unless of course they make some signings and become a contender). In fact you never know, we might shed some players and become a relegation candidate then Whitehaven will be a meaningful fixture! Is there relegation?

Not sure where all this IMG nonsense will take the sport, will there still be a top 6 play off next season but no promotion? RL is a shambles, no idea whether we're coming or going from one season to the next!

I’m don’t think IMG know what plans they have in place.

Unfortunately the club and directors are going around the same financial problems for the last 20 years. The business model trying to run the club at a place it doesnt own and trying to fork out 50k plus rent a year with no bar receipts and diminishing crowds is never going to add up . The club exists and has survived by the goodwill of individuals . Personally i think they need a fresh piece of paper that means they play at a local rugby club and have the means of running and benefiting from a bar and functions . Ovenden park for me could be an option as could heath old boys but its all down to if a deal could be brokered. I think the club needs to step back before it can ever go forward. Currently its running way above its means . Tough choices .

Connecting a few dots on IMG the club and stadia.

How come there is this rumour of a failed bid to buy the Shay by the current board at the same time when there’s a rumour that they haven’t get any money?

There's a big difference between buying something cheap you could potentially make millions on and pouring a couple of hundred grand away on bad debts..
See there's now a proposal to merge us with league one..

So did the current board try and buy the Shay and if so for how much?

I have no idea,I was speaking theoretically.

I mentioned last year about the rumour of a take over and them trying to buy the stadium. Obviously i got the people who were taking over wrong but there sounds like there could be some truth in them trying to buy the stadium. And as faxcar says if they can get hold of the sought money they would need to try and buy the stadium then they can not be as bad off financially as some may think.

I have been told that the Board were aiming to buy the stadium with investment raised by a pre agreement to develop the Skircoat Road side.

In effect they were proposing to pre-sell the land on that side of the ground, for a hotel and flats, and using that money to buy it from the council. The football club would become tenants as they did not wish to participate as shareholders in the purchasing/owning company.

An interesting approach, but I don’t know why it’s not progressed.

I will add that there are also proposed pending significant changes amongst the BOD as one is seeking total control.

Perhaps one is linked to the other?

When I suggested that a few weeks ago I was shot down in flames. We can't carry on at the Shay as we are now with 2 unused stands, no extra income and a big rent bill. This is the first season ever where the North Stand hasn't been opened for a league match (only used for St Helens) which I suppose highlights the alarming drop off in away fans.

Very interesting thanks.

So the funding wasn’t coming from what was already in someone’s pockets and in effect wasn’t a bid but a proposal that didn’t come to fruition at the time.

At least it wasn’t all down to some failure on the rugby clubs side of things and that they are trying to address the challenges associated with being at the Shay.

With the football club not being on board I’m surprised with their relationship with Fax that they and their fan base didn’t kick off big time about it as in the past.

I'm surprised somebody has not fired off a load of Freddom Of Information Act requests to be honest but reading the emails last time around the council were very keen to rid themselves of the stadium and you have to wonder if they are still as keen.

I heard the rumors about one of the current board getting his business taken over in a deal potentially worth millions so it makes me wonder if he is the one wanting full control. I imagine there will be a fallout from this that has likely already started and could explain some cash shortfalls, I mean would anybody be putting money in if they were no longer going to be involved?

Especially Bubba on the FOI and saying nothing on here and would a current director go for total control before he had the means of taking total control.

Who from among them has a business that’s worth millions if it was sold off because knowing that might narrow it down a bit?

A "sale" of the stadium from the council would more likely be in the form of a long term lease (99 years or something daft). Council don't make money from the stadium, if anything it costs them money, so in the interest of saving money they'd likely see the back of it.

Iinteresting discussion above , the agreed thread is everyone seems to be moving to the view that the stadium might be nice , financially it is just a burden for everyone . I just hope that someone can unlock the stalemate and provide a solution that benefits all . Without both football and rugby there the council would be financially forced to make a decision. It may have to come to that .

According to Mick Gledhill Championship and Champ 1 clubs will be informed tomorrow ( Friday ) how much central funding they will receive for 2024 which have some bearing on the plans of each club.

SL are getting £1.3 million down £200,000.

The information I heard was that the current board paid the historic debt off when they joined as the club was 48 hours from going bust , the only debt left is roughly 40 to 50 grand of shop stock owed to Ian croad. The potential signing of Connor Davies is a strange one , he’s primarily being playing loose forward for dewsbury , if this is the calibre of player we are looking at then it might be a repeat season, however I will reserve judgement till other rumours circulate , afterall we re-signed nick rawsthorne and look what happened there .

The latest published accounts show total debts of just over £600k* as at 30/11/22
*£302.5k due in less than a year, £200k due after more than 1 year and £104k due after more than 5 years

I believe one of the current directors as covered those historic debts possibly via a loan from his own companies profits .

You've double counted the £104k, Mr Dog, as it's included in the £200k (all related to a bank loan), so the total debts are £500k. No idea what the £128k trade creditors could be. Rent to the Council?

I notice the early bird season ticket offer has been extended a couple of weeks. Let's hope it's because Fax will announce a couple of blockbuster signings after the Championship season has finished in order to to sell more tickets.

One thing Grix admitted in his last interview is that they were late to market meaning they got recruitment wrong , I can’t see us announcing anyone yet as some players will still be playing for their current clubs in the playoffs, ie Brandon Douglas.

The extension to 14th October means there is a full week after the Championship Play Off Final to announce any signings.

I also notice Huddersfield Giants selling adult season tickets for £165 which covers 13 home games, averaging less than £13 a game. Whereas Fax costs £255 for a comparable sit down, averaging nearly £20 a game, and even the standing ticket averages nearly £17 a game.

So it's a lot cheaper to attend a SL match. That can't be right, surely?

That'll be Ken Davy propping them up again.