THE crisis at Whitehaven has just got much worse as the club’s players are now refusing to play the remaining fixtures of the Championship season.
The Cumbrian side have been embroiled by financial issues all year, with the players not being paid last month and head coach Jonty Gorley resigning immediately after the club’s big win over Doncaster on Sunday.
Haven had just 16 players available for that game, but, despite the appointment of St Helens veteran Kyle Amor as head coach until the end of the season, they have now downed tools until things change at the club.
“I set off up here to drive today and had spoke to a number of players on Monday, and spoke to the performance staff on Monday,” Amor said in a Facebook post.
“I was quite excited about an opportunity to come up and try and pick up a group that was upset and was a little bit fragile which was fully understandable too.
“I’ve arrived and as I was driving up, things have materialised over the last 24 hours that have made a lot of the current people unable to work with the board here at Whitehaven Rugby League.
“Unfortunately, by the time I got here, I’ve landed with no performance staff, team managers and I’ve had a conversation with a group of players who are fully united in that they will not play any remaining fixtures in this season for Whitehaven Rugby League unless some drastic measures and conversations can happen between them and the board.
“It’s been well documented over the last couple of years the troubles the club has had. This is just another season and another piece of evidence where the organisation at board level down to the playing staff is broken.
“A lack of trust there between them all, and unfortunately without one you can’t have the other and that’s where we are at right now. It’s disappointing but I understand it from everyone concerned with where they are at.
“They were all pretty unanimous that that is what they were doing so I’m not sure if it can be resolved. I hope it can be resolved, we’ll just have to watch this space. But for right now, it seems like that’s it.”
Amor would, however, be fully behind coaching the Cumbrian club.
“100 per cent (he would coach). There wasn’t another coach in the land that would come up given where they’re at.
“Being from here and what the town means to me, what were my choices? It was either that or the lads would find it very difficult to reach the level of performance. If it can be resolved, of course I’ll continue.”
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