Featherstone Rovers 2024 Squad

[Fevrover]

6 hours ago, Pigeon Lofter said:

Nine posts, all concerning Featherstone and all having a pop or trying to put the boot in.

Not very impressive.

Used to it, but this season is about rebuilding and we simply don't have the money to splash out as in recent seasons,fans have got to realise that. Imho some of the players we've retained have pleased me and we will have to give them our support regardless who we have,no pressure this coming season for a change.

[bigbaldnmad]

For match tickets they have gone to Adult and Kids, no concessions.

The memberships still allow for for concessions, kids and I believe young adults.

 

[POR]

1 hour ago, Fevrover said:

I've just had a look at admission prices and it says +16 - £20 but doesn't have a lesser price for +65, so i wonder if that's going to be across the board instead of the £25 and £20 as was stated end of last season, children under 16 are £5. I couldn't see many paying £25 so maybe the club feel the same ?

So if it's across the board for the season 13 games is a tenner cheaper than adult season ticket

[sentoffagain2]

1 hour ago, bigbaldnmad said:

For match tickets they have gone to Adult and Kids, no concessions.

The memberships still allow for for concessions, kids and I believe young adults.

 

   That is a backward step i am covered for the coming season but some pensioners are living on the poverty line.And a Fev home game helps to relieve the stress.Although this season it may not.Trouble is i think most of the early bird season ticket money has already been spent.We need to encourage more walk up game day supporters not make it harder for them.I would give cheaper admission to away supporters in these hard times.

[The Phantom Horseman]

11 hours ago, bigbaldnmad said:

I'm not all doom and gloom, more a realist.

As it stands at the moment we don't have a full side. In the past few days we have lost 2 players we were expecting to re-sign (Hankinson and Longstaff) and have signed one reasonably good player.

We have just 6 backs, 7 if you count Josh, who I don't expect to play in the backs, and expect him to be eased gently back in.

The forwards are starting to come along, but we are still 3 or 4 short as a minimum. I understand we have some players on trial, but I doubt we will be looking at a starting centre being a trialist. Our first game is just 7 weeks away and players need time training together to create understandings.

I have little to no confidence that the DR with HKR will work even half as well as the one with Leeds did.

I expect the attendances will drop, I would be really surprised if we are not in the top 3 or 4 in overall matchday income, from membership, match tickets and food / drink sales. Bearing in mind they are selling memberships on the back of being a top 6 side, with the highest membership prices, even higher than a lot of SL sides.

I don't expect us to throw the money that Wakefield and Bradford obviously are, and fully understand we are working on a reduced budget. I look at some of the other squads, and I think we may struggle, especially if we pick up a couple of injuries. I would love to be proved wrong.

Will I still go to as many matches as I am available to attend, yes... and I will probably enjoy more of them not fearing if we are going to lose, as I expect to lose some. It may make some of the wins that bit sweeter.

 

For me most of that is fair enough and well-balanced and I like the last paragraph.

The issue is what could the club have done differently given the situation we have found ourselves in? We know that our budget is only half of last year's and I think what we look to have done (spent most of the budget on signing about 15 decent players, hoping to add six or seven more much cheaper players to pad the squad out a bit and then using DR on a regular basis) is the only thing we could have done.

I'm not sure we'll make much impact in the 1895 or Challenge Cup, but we'll probably be using those games as well as the pre-season ones to see which of our fringe/trial players might be able to make a contribution as the season goes on.

Not really sure what to expect this season but as you say it will be nice watching games without the massive burden of expectation we had last year.

[Fevrover]

2 hours ago, POR said:

So if it's across the board for the season 13 games is a tenner cheaper than adult season ticket

Looks like it,it could change yet who knows lol.

[Michael Bates]

What is interesting is we've gone from apparently being "self sufficient" according to Vickers to having to release pretty much the entire squad to save money. So either they were lying then or lying now

[Fevrover]

Just now, Michael Bates said:

What is interesting is we've gone from apparently being "self sufficient" according to Vickers to having to release pretty much the entire squad to save money. So either they were lying then or lying now

A few retired and the squad proved again they weren't quite up to the mark so it was pointless keeping them all again,anyway we couldn't afford to keep them all if we'd have wanted to. We've got to cut our cloth accordingly and fans have to belive the club - rightly or wrongly.

[Monkeymagic22]

1 minute ago, Fevrover said:

A few retired and the squad proved again they weren't quite up to the mark so it was pointless keeping them all again,anyway we couldn't afford to keep them all if we'd have wanted to. We've got to cut our cloth accordingly and fans have to belive the club - rightly or wrongly.

Exactly, we’ve less money this season, and last seasons team failed to achieve their objectives. Time for clear out in my view.

[gazza77]

14 minutes ago, Michael Bates said:

What is interesting is we've gone from apparently being "self sufficient" according to Vickers to having to release pretty much the entire squad to save money. So either they were lying then or lying now

I've never squared that one off either. I get paying less on playing squad if the intention is to invest elsewhere, and the logic in not spending what we haven't got. What doesn't make sense is the cutting of costs because individuals don't want to (or can't afford to) keep putting their hand in their pockets, when as you say we were supposedly self sufficient meaning that no-one was doing that.

No way of knowing of course, but I'd suspect it's that we weren't as self sufficient as proclaimed last season.

[gazza77]

14 minutes ago, Fevrover said:

A few retired and the squad proved again they weren't quite up to the mark so it was pointless keeping them all again,anyway we couldn't afford to keep them all if we'd have wanted to. We've got to cut our cloth accordingly and fans have to belive the club - rightly or wrongly.

I'd agree it was time for a fresh start playing wise. The unanswered question is why we've less money that last year to spend, when the club was apparently not dependant on any benefactors.

[Monkeymagic22]

1 minute ago, gazza77 said:

I'd agree it was time for a fresh start playing wise. The unanswered question is why we've less money that last year to spend, when the club was apparently not dependant on any benefactors.

Clearly last season we weren’t self sufficient.

[The Phantom Horseman]

I had been thinking about this "self-sufficency" thing too. My take, which is just a guess, is that maybe the "self-sufficient" tag is true up to a point ie we can fund an above-average Championship squad from our own earnings, but that the deluxe sqauds we have assembled over the last couple of years have needed some extra funding.

It may also have been that we did spectacularly well with sponsorship over the last two years and perhaps the financial climate/underachievement on the field meant that we haven't quite got that level of sponsorship for next year. Just guessing though.

[Phil Briscoe]

I think I saw in the clubs accounts a loan listed from MC. Maybe he’s asked for his money back. 

[gazza77]

17 minutes ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

I had been thinking about this "self-sufficency" thing too. My take, which is just a guess, is that maybe the "self-sufficient" tag is true up to a point ie we can fund an above-average Championship squad from our own earnings, but that the deluxe sqauds we have assembled over the last couple of years have needed some extra funding.

This is my thought of the actual situation, combined with a lack of transparency in the press releases.

[Michael Bates]

20 minutes ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

I had been thinking about this "self-sufficency" thing too. My take, which is just a guess, is that maybe the "self-sufficient" tag is true up to a point ie we can fund an above-average Championship squad from our own earnings, but that the deluxe sqauds we have assembled over the last couple of years have needed some extra funding.

It may also have been that we did spectacularly well with sponsorship over the last two years and perhaps the financial climate/underachievement on the field meant that we haven't quite got that level of sponsorship for next year. Just guessing though.

Probably spot on I'd say. It just struck me as an odd thing to say.

[The Phantom Horseman]

5 minutes ago, Michael Bates said:

Probably spot on I'd say. It just struck me as an odd thing to say.

I think the club was probably making those comments to contrast ourselves with one or two SL clubs that had a history of being seemingly highly reliant on central funding rather than bringing in their own revenue. Again just a guess though.

[Les Tonks Sidestep]

3 hours ago, Phil Briscoe said:

I think I saw in the clubs accounts a loan listed from MC. Maybe he’s asked for his money back. 

The club has 'owed' MC money for years although for some reason it doesn't ever to have been recorded in the accounts until last year. The loan is interest free, with no payback date and seemingly unsecured. Unless an investor comes along he's unlikely to get it back any time soon.

Edited December 8, 2023 by Les Tonks Sidestep

[jamescolin]

On the 27th of August I paid £170 for my season ticket. Not yet received it. I am a few months short of 90 but will support the Rovers to the best of my ability both in giving time and finance. As other pensioners are struggling a bit, so am I,  but a supporter since 1938 so will continue to try to help. UTR.

[sentoffagain2]

27 minutes ago, jamescolin said:

On the 27th of August I paid £170 for my season ticket. Not yet received it. I am a few months short of 90 but will support the Rovers to the best of my ability both in giving time and finance. As other pensioners are struggling a bit, so am I,  but a supporter since 1938 so will continue to try to help. UTR.

   Don't think any of the season tickets have gone out yet.I paid for mine but don't expect it until after Christmas.Like me you have seen Fev in a much worse state than now.All we can do is keep supporting the players on the field and hope for the best.

[Monkeymagic22]

The Season doesn’t start until March, so plenty of time.

[gazza77]

16 minutes ago, Monkeymagic22 said:

The Season doesn’t start until March, so plenty of time.

They're sent out just before the season starts, every year. As you say, no need to panic.

[Fevrover]

1 hour ago, sentoffagain2 said:

   Don't think any of the season tickets have gone out yet.I paid for mine but don't expect it until after Christmas.Like me you have seen Fev in a much worse state than now.All we can do is keep supporting the players on the field and hope for the best.

Although we didn't get to the GF again i think we've been 'spoilt' by winning virtually every week and this season is back to reality, its certainly going to be different ( but not for the first either) losing plenty.

[POR]

One of our old boys Callum McLelland has put his injuries to bed and joined Midland hurricanes  and one interesting headline

Rugby league legend Graham Steadman set to join Featherstone Rovers

[RobLambert]

46 minutes ago, POR said:

One of our old boys Callum McLelland has put his injuries to bed and joined Midland hurricanes  and one interesting headline

Rugby league legend Graham Steadman set to join Featherstone Rovers

He'll have lost half a yard of pace but we are desperate......