In the light of both Crusaders and Harlequins financial plights over recent years, it will be interesting to see what happens to Wakefield in the coming months.

Why so?

Without doubt, Wakey have sailed very close to the wind and will probably pay the price. However, they have been unlucky that their planning application was called in largely as a response to overdevelopment of other parts of the region.

I think we all agree on this, so why have the RFL bailed Crusaders out with a £700k non-secured loan and by doing so caused the HMRC to become ever more unreasonable to RL?

Maybe the number cruncher did. Maybe that's why the RFL were so positive that an NL1 team would qualify for a franchise.

How does the RFL loan to Crusaders affect HMRC's decisions on image rights?
And i think you're falling into the trap many on the VT have done, by suggesting that Wakefield and Crusaders are identical cases that requires an identical response to the respective situations.

Admittedly my knowledge on this is limited but it appears to me that Crusaders are in a far stronger position than Wakefield to continue and make a go of SL. At the very least Crusaders have a ground to play in.

They allowed them to go under owing money to HMRC and then helped them to do a phoenix... this has upset HMRC a little apparently! They are not identical cases, Crusaders went out of business, Wakefield haven't... yet!

Fair enough

But the new Crusaders will be in a better position than Wakefield currently are won't they? With, presumably, the majority of their debts gone and a half decent ground to play in. Seems a better bet to me anyway.

Perhaps the RFL see it as an investment they have a chance of getting back with interest, not something I think you could say about anyone loaning/investing money in the Wakefield club?

My point however was in response to suggestions that the RFL should be playing management accountant to its member clubs, who presumably already have financial controllers and boards of directors doing that job themselves in house.

If you need your governing body to review your accounts and tell you that you're up sh*t creek without a paddle, then you're clearly failing as a business.

What could be more important than ensuring it's member clubs continue to exist? I'd guess it's not just Wakefield they need to concern themselves with either.

You may have forgotten way up there on that high horse, it's not in the distant past that we were in a perilous financial position ourselves.

think its the end of us and i doubt we will be there to start at millenium, just want to say as a Wakey fan i have enjoyed the rivalry and banter over the years with the Loiners, sad day for Trinity coming i think and a sad day for RL as a whole, its losing one of its founder clubs who was there at the start of it all, 137 years of service to RL and we are going to be let go, if we was welsh or Cockney then we would be ok,

good luck for the season

See, now you were doing fine until you decided to blame it on the RFL.

didn't and not blaming RFL, our Bod need to explain how they got us in this mess,
all i meant is if we was an expansion club they would come to our aid

Tell them you're trying to expand into Barnsley, there's bugger-all support there.

Yep, and explain where the money has gone and for what reasons.


Do you have any evidence of another club in the same situation being given help by the RFL that Wakefield have been denied?

no,but they've bailed out a club in a far worse situation.

Who and how?

the WCs.
dont the rfl now own 700thousand pounds worth of the race co ground now, as a result of this ?

Right, so how have they 'bailed' them out? That looks like a secured loan to me.

The RFL - Crusaders loan news has just been on skysports news

no idea mate.
why was this money given to the WCs?
wasn't this money given to them quite a few weeks ago when they were in admin and has now been turned into a secured loan ?.

It was given to them the day they exited administration, as far as I can understand.

I'm sure if Wakefield had a ground to secure a loan on, the RFL would do all they could to help them too, as they did with Keighley a few years ago.

In what way are Crusaders in a far worse situation than Wakefield?

apologies.
i should have said,that were in a worse situation.

fwiw wheels i dont think any club should be financially bailed out by the rfl.
i dont think they've got the money to do it and its not what the rfl exist for imo.