Bad Things Happening

[Indigogo]

Hearing bad things about the club. Apparently players are not being paid money they are owed for win/appearance bonus.

Luke Gale signing/signed for Wakefield. He might not be the only player to be leaving.

Doesn't sound like a good place to be at the moment.

[Dovster]

Just when everything seemed to be going well.

 

[Indigogo]

I think the IMG findings have put them off and they reluctant to spend. Also disgruntled at the performance against Batley considering the difference in wage bill.

I'm sure there is plenty more to come out in the wash in the next couple of weeks. Not looking great though. Gutted.

[Dovster]

Well I'm hoping that your wrong and the Cougars arEn't the first victim of reduced investment in the lower leagues due to IMG.

[Buzzer90]

Not sounding great is it.  If it happens, the actual mess of getting shut of Miller for Gale to leave after a couple of months.

[Mr Hicks]

Hate hearing things like this. How accurate is the rumour. 

I certainly think not too much thought went into signings before the season started. Me personally I think the board thought big signings bring success. Luke Gale hasn't really hit the ground running and I have seen opposition half backs play much better than him this season that I've never really heard of. Ben Crooks is wasted on the wing without a recognised centre inside him. No idea what there wages are but I'm pretty sure it would go a long way to bringing in a couple of hard running forwards which we desperately need. Trout been out injured more than he has played. Walker done nothing for me to suggest he is super league standard and not really setting the Championship on fire. Plenty of the squad also showing the are Championship 1 level. Levy, Tomlinson, Everett, Roebuck, Stevenson, Kesik, Spence.

The stand outs to me have been Lewis Young, Chisholm, Ioane, Doyle, Adebiyi, Santi.

The rest I am unsure about. I know everyone has there own opinions which I would like to know other peoples views on the squad.

[guess who]

Statement from the club.

 

The club are aware that in recent days of rumours have been circulating that players are not being paid.  

 

Ryan O’Neill on behalf of the club has issued the following statement:

 

“I’ve read on social media and heard rumours that the club have not paid players wages. 

 

In the 4 years since we took on the club we have never missed a payment to players. It is something we pride ourselves on.   

 

Yesterday Kaue and I came up to Keighley to get to the bottom of where these rumours are coming from.

 

I always believe transparency with fans is part of what this club is about, and I am therefore sharing with you the root of this gossip.  

 

At the start of 2022 season we increased match winning bonus from £200 to £250, in return for a restructure of the payment: Players would be paid £150 per win in the monthly payroll, and the extra £100 would accumulate into a pot that they would be paid at the end of the season in a lump. This ‘pot’ would be paid personally by us rather than the club.

 

This policy is beneficial for club cashflow, and in the end benefits players from having that increase in the winning pay.   

 

At the end of 2022 season we paid this pot to the players, along with a substantial promotion bonus, which was a great boost for the players at the end of the incredible season. 

 

We have now discovered that new players to the club were not aware of the winning pay policy, and this has caused this current issue. 

 

We believe that the structure of winning pay is fair, and ends up with the players receiving more than they would otherwise, and is a considerably higher winning pay than many of our competitor clubs.

 

I hope this will put to bed the rumours, as they are damaging to the club, a drain on morale, and spoils what we are trying to do at Cougars.”

[Indigogo]

All well and good releasing that statement but it wasn't true. When that was released (Saturday lunch time) the players still hadn't been paid (pay day was Friday).

Also, in what world can you take on new staff and not explain to them at the time how they are going to be paid. Hendo made the deals at the time but they will have all been signed off by Ryan and Kaue so everyone is culpable imo. Incompetent at best. 

Gale to Wakefield is being reported elsewhere now and as far as I know it's already done. I've not heard anyone else is definitely leaving just yet but the players are rightly not happy. They have all now been paid so fingers crossed no more damage is done by players leaving.

[POR]

Making sense of Luke Gale's move to Wakefield Trinity with change of circumstances key - YorkshireLive (examinerlive.co.uk)

[Indigogo]

Looks like it's happening then. New half back required

[Neutralfan7]

On 29/04/2023 at 11:51, guess who said:

‘This pot’ would be paid personally by us rather than the club.

Forgive me as I'm not sure how it all works... But is that allowed ? Could that not be seen as brown envelopes? 

[ThunderLeague]

With gale on his way out. How bad was the miller fall out? We want to keep him for the rest of season to try and survive. Hope there is no return just yet

Edited April 30, 2023 by ThunderLeague

[Indigogo]

1 hour ago, ThunderLeague said:

With gale on his way out. How bad was the miller fall out? We want to keep him for the rest of season to try and survive. Hope there is no return just yet

Not 100% sure to be honest. The fans and club love Jack and vice versa, I think Jack's issue would be with Rhys. He's publicly said he didnt want to leave but felt pushed out so it's hard to see him making a come back, especially so soon. 

It would be great for us if we could get him back, thinking selfishly of course!

Hope he is going well for you guys?

[Indigogo]

3 hours ago, Neutralfan7 said:

Forgive me as I'm not sure how it all works... But is that allowed ? Could that not be seen as brown envelopes? 

Good question! Not a clue how it works haha.  Maybe totted up and 'gifted' at the end of the season. Could get into murky waters though if it's not contracted and issues with payments. Surely if it's contracted it's taxable and would be via payroll

[Buzzer90]

Gale confirmed gone, rumblings that Young could be next?…

[Indigogo]

21 minutes ago, Buzzer90 said:

Gale confirmed gone, rumblings that Young could be next?…

Crooks and Young the names that keep cropping up but not heard anything concrete

[Mr Hicks]

It's a shame the club dont come out now and squash rumours about players leaving and also what plans they have for life without Gale.

I know they can't comment on names of players they are maybe interested in but they could say they are chasing a half back or just tell the fans were going with what we've got for the foreseeable future.

Hope we don't go down the Bradford route of dual reg or lian players constantly. 

Hope it's just rumours regards Young he would be a big loss. Crooks needs to either play centre or have a quality centre inside him.

Doesn't make for travelling up to Whitehaven too appealing with all this going on.

[Indigogo]

Totally agree. The lack of communication from the club is concerning. I'm 99% certain Rhys will want a replacement, whether the club allow him the funds to get one is another question. If rumours are to be believed the fee we got for Gale is 30k, not insignificant for a club like us and could be used to strengthen the squad. There's already rumours on twitter (yes I know) that someone is coming in. No idea who.

I could see us maybe getting a loan but only if a long term one for the remainder of the season.

Young would be a huge loss, he's been fantastic in every game since we've signed him. Crooks is just returning to fitness and starting to look good, would be a shame to lose a player of his quality and experience. Losing both would leave big holes in our back line.

 

[Neutralfan7]

What's causing these to leave / rumoured to be leaving? 

[Indigogo]

8 minutes ago, Neutralfan7 said:

What's causing these to leave / rumoured to be leaving? 

I think Gale was happening anyway, obviously Wakefield have gone after him and paid a fee. 

The other rumours are coming from the fact that players pay was late for April and what appears to be a dispute about when win bonus are paid. The owners released a statement on Saturday afternoon (day after payday) saying they had never been late with payment, yet that month's pay was due the day before and not paid. I think there was an issue before that statement, and that has added fuel to the fire.

There's lots and lots of talk rumors and talk going on about the club in general. People may say rumours are just that, but everything I've heard has come to fruition so far.

[Dovster]

I would imagine there will be some negotiations going on behind the scenes regarding a replacement. Whether that be a DR or a loan deal, which i hope they will communicate when ready. 

I guess that they are wanting to reduce the wage bill as the dream of promotion as been quashed. Money is better spent on infrastructure etc. It's the IMG way.

[Indigogo]

14 hours ago, Dovster said:

I would imagine there will be some negotiations going on behind the scenes regarding a replacement. Whether that be a DR or a loan deal, which i hope they will communicate when ready. 

I guess that they are wanting to reduce the wage bill as the dream of promotion as been quashed. Money is better spent on infrastructure etc. It's the IMG way.

Dream of what promotion? We were never going to get promoted this year, or even next year. The ground and facilities we currently have don't even meet the super league minimum standards that are currently in place (I don't know what they are but Ryan O'Neil accepted this fact in an interview). We don't have a reserves, academy, woman's or PDLR team. Truth is we are million miles away from being a super league club. You still need a competitive squad to bring fans in and to create something to go with the infrastructure.

 

I'm not sure what the owners plans are but I wouldn't be surprised to see them sell up if a suitable buyer was interested. They are using IMG as an excuse for everything and I for one am bored of hearing about it.

Edited May 2, 2023 by Indigogo

[Dovster]

10 hours ago, Indigogo said:

Dream of what promotion? We were never going to get promoted this year, or even next year. The ground and facilities we currently have don't even meet the super league minimum standards that are currently in place (I don't know what they are but Ryan O'Neil accepted this fact in an interview). We don't have a reserves, academy, woman's or PDLR team. Truth is we are million miles away from being a super league club. You still need a competitive squad to bring fans in and to create something to go with the infrastructure.

 

I'm not sure what the owners plans are but I wouldn't be surprised to see them sell up if a suitable buyer was interested. They are using IMG as an excuse for everything and I for one am bored of hearing about it.

I think we have come a long way in a short time under the current owners. The dream of Super League was by promotion on the field. I agree that the current facilities are not up to standard but there are plans to improve these. I think the dream was that it would all come together.

Personally I don't think that clubs like the Cougars are in the RFL/IMG plans going forward and our current owners can see this. So it's doubtful that they will be plowing money into a club with no prospects.

I'd like to think that they won't walk away and continue to build at a slower rate. The RFL do seem to change direction quite frequantly and who knows when this may happen again.

IMO IMG are the cause which has necessitated a rethink from the owners. Otherwise its all just coincidental.

[Indigogo]

1 hour ago, Dovster said:

I think we have come a long way in a short time under the current owners. The dream of Super League was by promotion on the field. I agree that the current facilities are not up to standard but there are plans to improve these. I think the dream was that it would all come together.

Personally I don't think that clubs like the Cougars are in the RFL/IMG plans going forward and our current owners can see this. So it's doubtful that they will be plowing money into a club with no prospects.

I'd like to think that they won't walk away and continue to build at a slower rate. The RFL do seem to change direction quite frequantly and who knows when this may happen again.

IMO IMG are the cause which has necessitated a rethink from the owners. Otherwise its all just coincidental.

We certainly have come along in a short space of time, no one can deny that. That doesn't detract from the fact that we are still a long long way from being a SL club and having the infrastructure to support a SL club.

Obviously the Danny Jones Main stand development is key. Plans have only just been submitted so we don't know for certain that it is happening yet. Just a side note on the stand, at the pre season club forum it was announced by Ryan that we were looking for additional funding to the 2.25m that had been awarded in order to create a green friendly all singing and dancing new stand. There's no mention of that in the plans releases so I presume that plan has now been kicked into touch as funding wasn't available? It would be nice to know these things. 

Any club that meets the required criteria will fit in with the IMG plans. There's lots of work to do off the field before we can be considered for promotion imo. Even then we need finish top of the champ!

IMG are definitely the catalyst for the rethink and that is why I believe Ryan and Kaue fought it so much. In their eyes the SL dream has been left in tatters and why would they pump money into playing staff when we wouldn't be allowed into SL if we were to come top of champ in 2024/25/26? When you say it out loud it makes you wonder if they will hang around at all. It's dead money unless we have significant investment (I'm talking millions and millions) 

[Dovster]

41 minutes ago, Indigogo said:

We certainly have come along in a short space of time, no one can deny that. That doesn't detract from the fact that we are still a long long way from being a SL club and having the infrastructure to support a SL club.

Obviously the Danny Jones Main stand development is key. Plans have only just been submitted so we don't know for certain that it is happening yet. Just a side note on the stand, at the pre season club forum it was announced by Ryan that we were looking for additional funding to the 2.25m that had been awarded in order to create a green friendly all singing and dancing new stand. There's no mention of that in the plans releases so I presume that plan has now been kicked into touch as funding wasn't available? It would be nice to know these things. 

Any club that meets the required criteria will fit in with the IMG plans. There's lots of work to do off the field before we can be considered for promotion imo. Even then we need finish top of the champ!

IMG are definitely the catalyst for the rethink and that is why I believe Ryan and Kaue fought it so much. In their eyes the SL dream has been left in tatters and why would they pump money into playing staff when we wouldn't be allowed into SL if we were to come top of champ in 2024/25/26? When you say it out loud it makes you wonder if they will hang around at all. It's dead money unless we have significant investment (I'm talking millions and millions) 

Agree with everything you have said.

It says in the latest press release regarding funding for the stand, that it will be partly funded by some of the £33M Keighley Town funding. Do you know if this is the money which has already been agreed?