Workington Town , Can you help ?

[sweaty craiq]

Workington obviously don't want a club to support, think this was at £1200 when I looked, if you can't pull £10k out of a supporters meeting then there is no hope imo

[LeeF]

no monies what so ever are being redirected to toronto instead of heartland clubs....STOP BLAMING NEW CLUBS!

 

 

the reason our clubs  struggle,oldham included. is down to crappy management...not toronto,oxford,london etc

 

 

you know what cumbrian RL needs? barrow,workington & whitehaven need to join forces and create CUMBRIA SL as a joint venture, and the 3 clubs become feeder teams to the main cumbria SL team..and sod playing the games in carilse,i realise how far that is....so rotate the home games around barrow,whitehaven & workington!

And how do they get into SL?

And who will fund it?

And do you know how long it takes to get from Workington to Barrow?

[sweaty craiq]

Barrow is really a Lancashire club

[Derwent]

Workington obviously don't want a club to support, think this was at £1200 when I looked, if you can't pull £10k out of a supporters meeting then there is no hope imo

The just-giving thing is not an official one, it's been set up by one of the supporters clubs. The club itself is raising money by selling shares to fans (£5 per share, minimum purchase £100) which I am told is doing very well.

[sweaty craiq]

Derwent I am glad to hear that, the Worky fans I have ever met where at least passionate and via shares they get ownership

[The Parksider]

you know what cumbrian RL needs? barrow,workington & whitehaven need to join forces and create CUMBRIA SL as a joint venture, and  rotate the home games around barrow,whitehaven & workington!

 

 

How on earth do you sell a 5 match season ticket to Barrow fans??

[The Parksider]

Workington obviously don't want a club to support, think this was at £1200 when I looked, if you can't pull £10k out of a supporters meeting then there is no hope imo

 

If Leigh hadn't just escaped relegation in 2009 there but for the grace of Deggsy may have gone your club..........

[Hornetto]

you know what cumbrian RL needs? barrow,workington & whitehaven need to join forces and create CUMBRIA SL as a joint venture, and the 3 clubs become feeder teams to the main cumbria SL team..and sod playing the games in carilse,i realise how far that is....so rotate the home games around barrow,whitehaven & workington!

 

Barrow to Workington 53 miles. Driving time 1 hour 30 minutes.

Oldham to Stoke-on-Trent is 47 miles and  drive time of 1 hour 28 minutes. Would you drive to Stoke to watch a merged club?

[Derwent]

Barrow to Workington 53 miles. Driving time 1 hour 30 minutes.

 

 

On a good dry day with little traffic maybe, its closer to 2 hours in reality

[dkw]

On a good dry day with little traffic maybe, its closer to 2 hours in reality

And it's also one of the worst roads in the UK.

[sweaty craiq]

If Leigh hadn't just escaped relegation in 2009 there but for the grace of Deggsy may have gone your club..........

Parky, the club hit the rails after Arthur Thomas company ran into trouble in 2011, it survived without admin or hand outs. It hit the wall again after Fax away in 2013, it has got stronger ever since, again without a hand out. I am sure we will hit the rails again in the future, and I am equally certain the fans will rally again, it's hard outside SL but without fans it's time to pack in as they decide if a club lives

[sweaty craiq]

On the subject of a Cumbrian club the only reality is a West Cumbrian one, Barrow is big enough in its own right when including the Milloms and Ulverstons etc, especially with the trident call

[dkw]

Parky, the club hit the rails after Arthur Thomas company ran into trouble in 2011, it survived without admin or hand outs. It hit the wall again after Fax away in 2013, it has got stronger ever since, again without a hand out. 

Wasnt there some involvement from Wigan when the brown stuff hit the fan for you?

[Bartholemew Smythe]

Parky, the club hit the rails after Arthur Thomas company ran into trouble in 2011, it survived without admin or hand outs. It hit the wall again after Fax away in 2013, it has got stronger ever since, again without a hand out. I am sure we will hit the rails again in the future, and I am equally certain the fans will rally again, it's hard outside SL but without fans it's time to pack in as they decide if a club lives

Don`t show Parky up for quoting misinformation will you!

[Bartholemew Smythe]

Wasnt there some involvement from Wigan when the brown stuff hit the fan for you?

Yes we had dual reg with the Pies for a short while.

[The Parksider]

Parky, the club hit the rails after Arthur Thomas company ran into trouble in 2011, it survived without admin or hand outs. It hit the wall again after Fax away in 2013, it has got stronger ever since, again without a hand out. I am sure we will hit the rails again in the future, and I am equally certain the fans will rally again, it's hard outside SL but without fans it's time to pack in as they decide if a club lives

 

Always a civil and interesting reply.

 

I went to Hunslet.v.Skolars last week and we had 440 fans.

 

The match was OK, the crowd of 440 were enthusiastic, there was a game to win, there was a competition to win.

 

AFAIK the club has found a level at which they can compete and survive on the income they make, those who run the club are proud, those who watch the club are strong on the heritage with some 70 odd year olds and more wearing the replica jerseys.

 

Why should Hunslet pack in? For me I called them to do so when they decided to become Leeds "A team because they apparently could not survive without doing so. But they can.

 

I've not been to Bramley for years for a game, but I passed the ground walking the dog and they have survived too, Hunslet once thought of "merging", I wonder if either club would be about today if they had.

 

By all means clubs should turn the lights out but only when they can't find someone to run it, a ground and 17 lads to play on it. Workington are miles off that, last year a losing Town had 850 crowds and 1500 for the derby.......

 

And if Leigh ever drop to the third tier, and go some years there, they too would be short on the fans, who'd count in the hundreds but I bet you would not call for your clubs closure?. 

[Ginock1]

Just a fresh update , we are at 1340 and as a fellow townie said the club has been very well back through other initiatives by fans, the fund will help so I'm appealing to the masses of the rl family can you donate a small amount to help the situation? Also big thanks to all the donations from far and wide so far.

[kiwis 13 6]

man i need to work on my own merger or joint venture lol...  just thought West Cambrian merger could be the new Catalan Dragons & a new force like Wigan... but its what people in the region want will prevail. What ever he case all power to you.

[OttO]

man i need to work on my own merger or joint venture lol...  just thought West Cambrian merger could be the new Catalan Dragons & a new force like Wigan... but its what people in the region want will prevail. What ever he case all power to you.

Common sense says a merged team is the way forward..... but many fans don't want it to happen.

[The Parksider]

Common sense says a merged team is the way forward..... but many fans don't want it to happen.

 

Then it's not common sense is it. People have a sense of loyalty and dedication to their clubs, their senses tell them they don't want to be merged with their rivals.

 

Business sense also comes in, it's a product with a limited customer base with personal preferences for certain brands, introduce a new brand and they are likely to reject it.

 

The only merger plan that could work is to create a new product that would appeal to people who don't have those brand loyalties.

 

Cumbria could "work" if you built a new stadium and put a team in it that could win games all the way to SL, but that would likely run up far bigger debts than Workington have.

[JohnM]

Tradition and local rivalry..........that's exactly the point,

Unless you live in the area and understand that tradition you cant possible appreciate the strength of feeling.

Also lets not get carried away that this merger idea works anywhere, even in the biggest league of them all, down under, tradition has eventually played its part and affected merged clubs. Quite quickly they have effectively split with the stronger club then carrying on under the merged title but in reality being its original self.

Seems that strength of feeling is not enough to ensure survival, though.

[Derwent]

 

Cumbria could "work" if you built a new stadium and put a team in it that could win games all the way to SL, but that would likely run up far bigger debts than Workington have.

At the risk of bringing facts into it, I'll just reiterate that Workington Town RLFC have no debts whatsoever. They are a club that does not spend what it doesn't have. The current situation has been caused by a sponsor having financial problems and thus reneging on their payment, leaving Town with a hole in the cash flow to meet the budgeted costs. It's a short term problem to meet current season obligations.

[The Parksider]

At the risk of bringing facts into it, I'll just reiterate that Workington Town RLFC have no debts whatsoever. They are a club that does not spend what it doesn't have. The current situation has been caused by a sponsor having financial problems and thus reneging on their payment, leaving Town with a hole in the cash flow to meet the budgeted costs. It's a short term problem to meet current season obligations.

 

At the risk of disagreeing I'll just maintain my stance that if a business is short of cash and can't meet it's obligations then it's indebted

 

Debt is defined as a "sum of money that is owed" if your club doesn't owe anything then why is it asking for money?

 

If a sponsor isn't paying up then he's left Town in debt hence the begging bowl. If the budgeting is so tight then Town have budgeted to the last penny hence any bad debt has impacted, clearly you have no reserves, and if your club is asking me to stump up the money then clearly nobody wished to invest from within the club.

 

I don't swallow the "doesn't spend what it doesn't have" stuff at all do you DKW?? What do you think good sir?

 

You didn't have the sponsors money so why did your club spend it then??

 

Your finances are on a cliff edge, one bad debt and the begging bowl is out? On what basis is this??

 

Are the financial obligations you have so tight that Town are in trouble if in turn you don't pay your own debts on time? Why not borrow the money commercially and pay the interest.

 

Sorry Derwent and DKW, accountancy double speak doesn't wash with me financial problems are financial problems however you want to dress them up.

[The Parksider]

Seems that strength of feeling is not enough to ensure survival, though.

 

"My club have hit hard times and are fighting hard to survive" was the OP..

 

"Workington Town RLFC have no debts whatsoever. They are a club that does not spend what it doesn't have." is now the position and I don't have a grasp of the facts

 

I think we should be told the reality before we're asked for money, maybe all Town need is a pay day loan?

[Derwent]

At the risk of disagreeing I'll just maintain my stance that if a business is short of cash and can't meet it's obligations then it's indebted

Debt is defined as a "sum of money that is owed" if your club doesn't owe anything then why is it asking for money?

If a sponsor isn't paying up then he's left Town in debt hence the begging bowl. If the budgeting is so tight then Town have budgeted to the last penny hence any bad debt has impacted, clearly you have no reserves, and if your club is asking me to stump up the money then clearly nobody wished to invest from within the club.

I don't swallow the "doesn't spend what it doesn't have" stuff at all do you DKW?? What do you think good sir?

You didn't have the sponsors money so why did your club spend it then??

Your finances are on a cliff edge, one bad debt and the begging bowl is out? On what basis is this??

Are the financial obligations you have so tight that Town are in trouble if in turn you don't pay your own debts on time? Why not borrow the money commercially and pay the interest.

Sorry Derwent and DKW, accountancy double speak doesn't wash with me financial problems are financial problems however you want to dress them up.

The club has no debt, no overdue payments, no overdraft, no loans.

What it has is future commitments for playing contracts for the rest of the season. Those commitments have not fallen due yet. However, the non-appearance of the sponsorship cash has left the club with a cash shortfall to meet those commitments when they fall due. That is not debt it's cash flow.

No club at this level has much in the way of reserves, indeed most of them live hand to mouth. Sponsorship is a key income stream and is an integral part of the budget. We aren't talking a couple of grand here, the sum that has failed to materialise is a substantial sum in excess of £20k.

And yes the club doesn't spend what it doesn't have. It doesn't commit to expenditure exceeding its expected income, unlike other clubs it is competing with. It pays its VAT and PAYE on time, unlike other clubs it is competing with. For that it pays the price in on field results. Maybe we should be like Fev and not pay HMRC and face winding up petitions every few months (their latest is their 8th in 18 months) and put the money into buying a better squad and gamble on making Top 4 so we can pay it off eventually with the extra income ?