Great news and once again shows GH and Mr Caddick are the right people to run our club.

Depends on how you want to run your club 'spose.

As a business with a clear strategy on business model, long term planning, astute, carefull management.

Or as a plaything.

To turn around this club the way GH & PC have done is testament not only to their business savvy but their ability to make tough descisions that are usually bemoaned in the short term and lauded in the long term.

Long may Darth continue.

Dont we give all the monday we make for getting to finals back to the players in the form of winning bonuses? If thats the case the £500k if made up of a CC final appearence and grand final in will have gone back to the lads

so What kind of bonus will the team have been on for winning the GF?

Have just had a quick flick through the accounts - these cover Leeds CF&A Limited whose principal activity is "the staging of professional Rugby League football". The RU club trades through an entirely separate company.

In the previous year, 2010, Leeds RL made a small loss - primarily as provision was made in that year for the HMRC issue. The lack of this in 2011 has enabled a rebound but the profits of £596k before tax are still quite remarkable in the present environment. The directors' report notes that, the HMRC liability has been "concluded satisfactorily and settlement reached".

The loan of £1.4m remains outstanding from the RU club but has not been provided against despite their quite disastrous financial position. We had £2.23m in the bank although I'm fairly sure HMRC hadn't been paid out at the year end. Once that clears out and assuming the RU club return our cash (or whoever has guaranteed it on their behalf) then it will leave us with the best part of £3m to make a start on the South Stand financing.

Thanks for the detail MjM. Interesting on the RU loan.

Good information that mate, Good work.

Listening to radio leeds on tuesday the union funding from the RFU has dropped to £300k per year. The big earners have been told to leave

Do the 2011 accounts show any income from the Harris compensation or was that all finalised in 2010? And was there any saving from the 2010 HMRC provision brought forward into 2011?

While the 596K profits before tax are excellent does it mean the club would have made a loss without the GF & CC income?

With so many SL clubs in poor financial health, the loss of income from SL's major sponsor is of concern. There needs to be some serious thought to a restructure of SL to turnaround the decline in crowds and entertainment value.

It's never become clear but I would have expected that to all have been recognised when it was agreed - so earlier than 2010 (2008 IIRC).

Impossible to say whether they over or underprovided but either way the results over a two year period are still very good given they take the HMRC into account. The 2011 figures are also affected by donations to the Leeds Rugby Foundation (£120k, 2010 £nil), a return of the mysterious management charges payable to Leeds RUFC (£136k, 2010 £nil) and ongoing management charges payable up to the Caddick group of £55k (2010 £55k).

Although there is still an intention to progress with it my guess is that a debate was had with the auditors as to whether it would be appropriate to capitalise any of the presumably not insiginificant architect's, legal and planning costs associated with the aborted S Stand project. A prudent move given the uncertainty of that (to the public at least) would be to write it off through the P&L rather than capitalise it. However there have been £337k additions to Land & Buildings which I can't immediately pin down so maybe not. Separately, the £750k of additions to Plant and Machinery are presumably primarily the new scoreboard and big screen.

My view in previous years has been that Leeds are break even if they don't get to finals and make profits when they do - which is probably the kind of basis that management budget on. It may now be that the company is profitable at a lower level without success rather than just break even.

This isn't a "normal" kind of business that looks for big, consistent profits as there are non-remunerative costs which the club can ramp up or down to a degree relating to local and junior development and the charitable foundation. Certainly, however, Caddick does not give the impression that he is interested in stumping up cash to fund losses at the Rhinos.

The loss of engage sponsorship money is really quite trivial in the overall scheme of things (about £50k per club a year) and more than offset by the recently-increased TV deal and any sub-sponsorships the Stobart deal permits/facilitates.

I'm not sure how you have decided that crowds are in decline as the facts determinedly suggest otherwise.

It has to be agreed, however, that Leeds are a special case. They are an extreme example of the fact that clubs which own and can exploit their own stadia (or other, similar, facilities) have the potential to perform much better financially than those which rent - even when renting is on favourable terms.

I note that Leeds include this year £106k of "Development land" in stock so it may be that the next stage in the business plan is to diversify away from the current reliance on that risky RL market and move into property development

I understand there is some knowledge of this sector on the board.

Are Leeds the best run club financially in Super League?
Can't see Hetherington embarrasingly begging to fans anytime in the near future.
Long may it continue!

Ref. mjm. Knowledge of property devolpment by Leeds rhinos board.

Paul caddick is a co owner with others of a highly successful property devolpment company. Based in wetherby trading as oak gate.

An excellent synopsis MjM

We are privileged that we have GH in charge of our great club, He runs the club impeccably well from top to bottom

GH has overseen a very succesful period at our club and without the need to spend big money chasing the dream

Wasn't it Russell Crowe who termed the Rhinos as the best run RL club in the world?

Thanks MjM for taking the time to look and answer.

This is IMHO exactly how a well run sports club should operate...now can someone please explain it to Ken Bates

I'd like to add my thanks as well, MjM. I always appreciate the information and analysis you give on Leeds and others finances.

Can we now describe MjM as "The Financial tvoc"?

*awaits Rogues to enter discussion explaining how Wigan are in a better position financially and are better run than the Rhinos*

And when and how will the Union side pay that loan back.
The crowds will drop (not that they can get much lower) and they will only receive £300k from the RFU.
Have they ever made a profit ?

Not really sure how RU works but my understanding was that the money would be repaid from the parachute payment the club got from the RFU in their current season. Hopefully it has therefore all come back now and we will not have to fork out in quite such a direct manner again.

What the future holds for Carnegie is anyone's guess but with Caddick reputedly no longer willing to stump up millions of £££ to cover their losses it will be a challenge to keep them going with any credibility. I think there will be an announcement on that front next Monday.

RE-Carnegie it's been announced 14 players will be leaving and most are good earners so that will reduce their ££££££ out goings somewhat.

How close are the RU lot from ruin?

Not close at all, they will simply find a level that allows them to operate within their means, they are still the premier club in most of Yorkshire.

I've been invited to an end of season celebration in the Long Bar - not quite sure what is being celebrated though.

True, I mean they still get a few thousand for games I suppose

Bet that will be a dour affair

If "not close at all" involves having a balance sheet deficit of £1.7m then that's super. The club is near the end.

Which I assume means this has had a major detrimental effect on the funds available to the Rhinos - money which could have been utilised in improving the facilities at Headingley.