Crusaders, Wakefield, ourselves and Salford. And this is happening [iwith[/i some kind of licensing agreement. Something needs to change for RL to become self-sustainable and perhaps a model sport that is reliant on the support of it's fanbase rather than TV money and sugar daddies... it's not like the sport has that much to lose. Plus a lot of England's best players could go to the NRL for the real money and that'll probably help the international team!

It's a stark choice between having to have this happen again to other clubs or ensuring that no club runs at a loss and having to bite the bullet and have semi-pro players playing at the top level.

If credence can be given to recent comments by Salford Mayor, Ian Stuart that the Reds have already received loans from Salford Council of £1.5M, and that the Council are rejecting an ask of a further loan of £750,000 then the Reds are in dire straights in the amount of loan they need to stay alive.
He says that the Reds have a cash flow problem and have failed to pay their rent on the stadium and that fans are part of the solution.

"Fans are part of the solution", sounds like there is no-one with serious cash waiting in the wings, but they are leaving it a bit late to sort anything out for this season and it's fair to say that £750K would be a hell of a lot to ask the fans for.

Sadly I can't see a way forward for Salford. At least here at Bradford we have a potential fan base exceeding 10k which gives us some hope of future sustainability. The 3/4k Salford support is simply not enough. Perhaps if they changed their name to Manchester Reds they might be able to garner a bit more support but from what i've read the supporters would rather see the club die than see that scenario!

One problem, Salford don't own the ground. That is half the reason they are struggling, as they make no money on game day apart from ticket sales.

From the T&A today...

Contrary to reports, meanwhile, Bulls coach Francis Cummins has not tried to recruit Salford assistant coach Sean Long onto his coaching staff.

It is understood the former St Helens scrum half contacted Cummins about potential vacancies in the light of the uncertainty surrounding Salford's future.