The patient was taken ill in June last year but our eminent doctor a Mr McDermott could give no reason for it. This year he has prescribed more of the same, the patient grows weaker weekly.

If this goes on - the crowds will drop, the faithful will wilt. London will turn its back and the RFL and David Hughes will lose patience. The patient will die and not live to see 31.

Any remedies please send to the Twickenham Stoop.

A collection may be held for a wreath.

'Here lives the beloved body of London RL
born September 1980 - died of unkown causes 2010'

Here is an idea, employ someone who knows something about Rugby League. Here is an example. There was a journey man at wakefield who could not really cut it with many NL1 clubs never mind SL. John Kear picked him up cheap and made him into a decent clubman. When his contract was up some idiot from Quins offered him a huge salary nearly double what he was on at Wakey. Signings like that will kill you

Sadly i can see this coming true!!!

unless something happens this season i can see the RFL and Sl loosing patience with us and us not getting the franchise renewed

It would be a major blow to the game to lose the London side , but I think it may be a possibility if the next two seasons are poor.

The only way is up! www.sportinglife.com/rugbyleague ... dex.insdat We're only 2 places behind Saints.

The only way is up! www.sportinglife.com/rugbyleague ... dex.insdat We're only 2 places behind Saints.

Will we even bother applying?

Why wouldnt we? We have a 3 year sponsorship with WIN, we've got players signed for 3 years, we have a long term arrangement to stay at the Stoop-would these not be indicators of intent

....or is this just you on a downer because weve been spanked.

Players contracts are nul and void if we are not in SL. No doubt there is a get-out clause with WIN and the Stoop as well. If we don't get a franchise you can guarantee we would be wound up anyway. Who do think would foot the bill IL??

No, I've been pondering this for a while now. The players we've been signing aren't of SL quality, but would be OK in the Co-Op premiership, plus there's a general air of drift and lack of concern at our present position - what other SL club with serious ambition wouldn't have given McDermott the boot at the end of last season? It's worth considering whether the consensus in the club is that SL in London is not going to work and we'd be better off in the Co-Op leagues at a much smaller ground.

No wonder your club is in the state its in with fans like you lot. Why would any northern players want to come and play for a team whose fans do nothing but criticise. You would have to be pretty tough to play week in week out and take the flack from the so called "Fans". You obviously don't know the meaning of the word SUPPORT.

I beg to differ - one win in 14 games, no home win since May. We are more than entitled to our opinions. We are the customers after all. Name one club with fans so supportive - in all those home defeats barely a peep of criticism of the players. If this were happening UP North.............

Didn't the Saints fans boo their team on Saturday LOL.

Because they play for clubs with fan bases who are far quicker to judge, far harsher in their comments and far quicker to call for heads to roll. Compared to the other clubs, Quins fans have an almost unlimited pool of patience.

This is the club whose fans have stood and applauded a team off the field after loosing by 60 points, because we saw effort.

One of the most bizzare things I have ever seen.

Personally don't see why you've come barracking the cockneys - their hardcore support has had the roughest time out of probably any team and for an upstart club supporter like yourself to turn up with this crap is really quite sad.

Hope u turn it round Quins - love comin down to the big smoke - possibly the friendliest atmosphere at any club in the league IMO.

As many of us have been saying for a while, the club had the opportunity to turn things around in August/September last year, by chucking McDermott. They bottled it, let the squad thin out, and then embarked on the brilliant idea of an actual marketing campaign when the squad is at its weakest since 2004.

I am not someone with the 'inside track'. I don't hobnob with the players after the game, so I can't speak for them. I'm purely speculating, but I don't believe they have any confidence in McDermott. Ever since the second half of last season, they look fragile, make a litany of mistakes and look clueless going forward.

Recruitment has been poor - we were supposedly near the salary cap limit last season, meaning we must have paid/ be paying the likes of Williamson, Dorn, Randall and the now departed Robinson a small fortune; While Hull, Catalans, Crusaders and Huddersfield plundered the NRL for high quality players.

Ultimately, the stable door as bolted. Sacking McDermott won't work now, the club had its chance and blew it. Its up to him now to live up to his ridiculous rhetoric, and try and string some good performances together when the injured players come back. There are those of us, that even if this happens, will never have faith in the man because he shows no tactical nous and has brought in a string of poor quality players; I refuse to believe he has no say in recruitment.

Hello, I've been reading your posts with interest and wondered if you had considered the influence a supporters trust could have on the future of the club? From my personal point of view, all of the clubs problems, both on and off field. ultimately come back to money, or lack of it and whilst I am not suggesting for a second that the supporters should pump mopre of their hard earned cash into a black hole, there are numerous ways money can be raised and used in a sensible way, increasing the supporters influence over the club and therefore having some influence over it's future. As someone who has close connections with Quins, I have a big soft spot for them, and would love to see them be successful and a supporters trust could be an ideal way to assist this process. I would urge you all to have a look at our website at www.supporters-direct.org and see what we are about. If anyone would like more information please feel free to contact me on 07985 628215 or laura.harrison@supporters-direct.org Thanks Laura Harrison Rugby League Supporters Trust Development Officer - Supporters Direct

Hello, I've been reading your posts with interest and wondered if you had considered the influence a supporters trust could have on the future of the club? From my personal point of view, all of the clubs problems, both on and off field. ultimately come back to money, or lack of it and whilst I am not suggesting for a second that the supporters should pump mopre of their hard earned cash into a black hole, there are numerous ways money can be raised and used in a sensible way, increasing the supporters influence over the club and therefore having some influence over it's future. As someone who has close connections with Quins, I have a big soft spot for them, and would love to see them be successful and a supporters trust could be an ideal way to assist this process. I would urge you all to have a look at our website at www.supporters-direct.org and see what we are about. If anyone would like more information please feel free to contact me on 07985 628215 or laura.harrison@supporters-direct.org Thanks Laura Harrison Rugby League Supporters Trust Development Officer - Supporters Direct

Sorry Laura, but I have offered assistance over the years, in many ways, both free and on a commission only basis (1 new fan = Commission) and including an avenue to the club to raise funds at NO EXPENSE TO THE FANS OR CLUB and as per usual, was ignored. At the time of this offer, the avenue suggested was in its infancy, but is now a nationally advertised revenue stream that, for Example, Pays 1 National Newspaper in excess of £100,000 a month in revenue.
As such, although I am a fan of the club and of RL in London, the club would need to show me exactly where the £,000,000's of pounds went that make up the reported losses before I ever offer any assistance again. What would be the point? Apparently, fans don't make the most reasoned employees........unless your initials are DH that is


This may sound bitter and if I am honest, it probably is, but after nearly 10 years of pointing out what was going to happen if the club didn't market itself properly and after being barracked for saying it, I have been proved right.
£30,000 a week in losses over 52 weeks is plainly unacceptable...so why should Fans be expected to offer any further assistance to an organisation that, regardless of what is happening now (2 little/2late IMO).

I will continue to sit up at 3am over here and try to listen to a dodgy on-line radio broadcast of Harlequins Games and if I ever return to London I will attend the Stoop and the occasional away game, but the events of Last season, with the on and off pitch management patently not up to the job, have left a bitter taste in my mouth that just won't go away.

Laura,
I'd love to see this happen and would support it. Problem is though, that this has been mooted a few times in recent years but no Quins supporter has ever been willing to take the lead. One seemed to be getting quite close last year but it didn't happen then. And without the leadership, I'm afraid it won't happen.

Gutterfax, I can very much appreciate what you are saying and I am aware that a number of supporters over the years have offered help and assistance to the club. However, a trust is slightly different in that it is not there simply to service the club and raise money for the 'black hole', it is there to become a voice for supporters and influence the club to ensure that future generations can enjoy watching Quins.

Currently, 65% of the club is owned by Ian Lenagan and as far as I can see, this situation does not look like changing any time soon. That means that there is 65% of the club up for grabs. A trust, as a legal entity, is able to hold shares and there is no reason a trust could not get the funds together to acquire some of these shares. Whilst I am not suggesting this would be easy, it is definitely possible and a strong trust, with a united voice and message, can be a very attractive investment opportunity for individuals and businesses alike. Even as a minority shareholder, the trusts influence increases greatly and a collective body of supporters pushing in the same direction is far more difficult to ignore than one person offering ideas and assistance, regardless of how good they may be.

The major selling point of a trust is that it is open and democratic. Every member gets one vote regardless of their level of investment and every member has a say in where money is spent. It is up to the trust to ensure that any money invetsed, produces a return for the trust, whether this be in shares, publicity or another method.

I appreciate that these are difficult times for the club and supporters alike, but surely it would be better to act now rather than sit back and wait for the club to disappear?

Also missed - Hendon, Barnet, and Kingsmeadow (Kingstonian)

How does this work? Normally trusts are administered by trustees whose decisions have to be unanimous. While the trustees have duties towards the settlors/beneficiaries, they do not have to follow their wishes.

A supporters trust is not run in the traditional sense of the word. Our supporters trusts are run as Independent and Provident Societies, or not-for-profit cooperatives. Each person joining the IPS holds one share in it and therefore has one vote. The board of the IPS are elected by the members and must then act within the constitution which is registered with the Financial Sevices Authority. Whilst the Board [icould[/i then go off and do whatever they wanted, they would be accountable to the trust membership and possibly the FSA if they did.

Do you think you started the slow death when you dropped "London" from your name? I don't live in London, but if I did, I can't see how I would be remotely interested in watching a rugby team that seemed to have nothing to do with the city I lived in, other than the fact that it is the nearest geographically. It must make it twice as hard for the marketing department, which is a shame, because it's a good ground that is easy to get to from the north.

We were called London Broncos in 2000 and averaged 3,430 that year. In 2009 we were Harlequins Rugby League and averaged 3,436.....so no, London being removed hasn't caused the attendance problem, the lack of any Marketing over the 1 years has!

It works for cricket ie counties, Rugby Union-Ospreys, Munster etc, Crusaders aren't called Wrexham. Sale have moved from Sale and now play in Stockport with bigger crowds. So no London hasn't made any difference