New drama

[Archie Gordon]

Has the RFL said anything about this yet? What dispensation have they announced?

I find it more than odd that clubs in, e.g., Tier 5 can have their applications rejected based on their ground but a SL club is accepted without having a ground at all.

[JohnM]

The close season seems to be a good time to reflect on which other clubs, if any, employ unsustainable business practices and live outside their means.

Is there a list? 

[gingerjon]

53 minutes ago, Archie Gordon said:

Has the RFL said anything about this yet? What dispensation have they announced?

I find it more than odd that clubs in, e.g., Tier 5 can have their applications rejected based on their ground but a SL club is accepted without having a ground at all.

It is in situations like this that the governing body should be proactive and, you're right, they really don't seem to be.

Even a, "Yes, we're aware" statement. Not sure I've seen one.

[JohnM]

Lack of statement creates opportunity for speculation, as we've seen, so yes, there should be something said. 

Not sure that would please everyone and  credibility would be questioned.

[Charlie]

2 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

I'm a Leeds fan, I know Wigan fans who have said similar too.

What has been most egregious has been Salford fans continually insisting "everything is fine" and that nobody can discuss the obvious financial train wreck the club has been heading towards for the past year at least. I remember disctinctly being told tha writing off the CVA debt during covid, essentially cancelling the payments to the Council, was a great idea and all part of a cunning plan! Its gaslighting everyone from what is clear and obvious.

Between an unaffordable wage bill, being in dire need of player sales, taking the local council for mugs (repeatedly), not paying anything like full rent, asking thr RFL for an advance on central funding for reasons we can only assume is standard cash flow related, and selling a bucket collection as "fan ownership", Salford are deluding themselves (and trying to delude everyone else) about their position and capabilities. Its not personal, its not "my club is better than your club" or "you cheated so we should have stayed up", its discussing reality.

Its ridiculous that fans are criticised for doing anything less than indulging this fantasy.

Look it’s not as bad as some of you make out but the club doesn’t help themselves as everything is really secretive. I think most fans were aware Croft was never staying and that deal was only there to get a fee 

 

as a Salford fan I’m not happy at all with the situation but people who seems to be “in the know “ more then me seem confident so I’m just gonna have to wait for now. I will say they don’t spend as much on the squad as you’d think it’s very top heavy but no depth 

 

 

 

Edited December 3, 2023 by Charlie

[Charlie]

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Edited December 3, 2023 by Charlie

[Click]

3 minutes ago, Charlie said:

Look it’s not as bad as some of you make out but the club doesn’t help themselves as everything is really secretive. I think most fans were aware Croft was never staying and that deal was only there to get a fee 

Aren't Salford technically homeless right now?

Seems pretty bad.

[The Masked Poster]

3 minutes ago, JohnM said:

Lack of statement creates opportunity for speculation, as we've seen, so yes, there should be something said. 

Not sure that would please everyone and  credibility would be questioned.

It’s December 3rd today and this means the 1st December has passed. 
So I’m not sure why it’s sinister to ask “just what exactly is going on?”.

As to your point, a statement would satisfy pretty much everybody, so I don’t know what you are driving at there. And if they don’t want to clarify, then speculation will continue. Not because people hate Salford but because they don’t understand why this is a never ending situation that seems to lurch from one crisis to the next.

[Toby Chopra]

1 hour ago, Archie Gordon said:

Has the RFL said anything about this yet? What dispensation have they announced?

I find it more than odd that clubs in, e.g., Tier 5 can have their applications rejected based on their ground but a SL club is accepted without having a ground at all.

It really is shocking. Not so much the lack of statement - sometimes these things have to be dealt with behind closed doors - but the very fact that a club in the flagship league has got to within 3 months of season start without a binding stadium deal. No other comparable sports league allows this, the deadline is always prior to the end of the previous season. 

Some people on here were getting hysterical about the gradings and how the situation regarding London would look etc, but all that was irrelevant compared to this.

The RFL have seriously dropped the ball.

[Charlie]

Just now, Click said:

Aren't Salford technically homeless right now?

Seems pretty bad.

Yes and no and this is what does my head in. I go to the gym at the stadium and I’ve been told a temp deal has been agreed which should be superseded by a long term deal with better benefits in January. But between the club and the council it’s so secretive 

[Click]

Just now, Charlie said:

Yes and no and this is what does my head in. I go to the gym at the stadium and I’ve been told a temp deal has been agreed which should be superseded by a long term deal with better benefits in January. But between the club and the council it’s so secretive 

Didn't the clubs own statement say they were looking to get a short term deal in early 2024? Doesn't sound like anything is agreed for next year.

[dboy]

10 minutes ago, Charlie said:

Look it’s not as bad as some of you make out

Being really specific, which bits of the situation are people thinking are worse than they are?

[Charlie]

Just now, dboy said:

Being really specific, which bits of the situation are people thinking are worse than they are?

The more I look at it I don’t blame youse as this is what it looks like. But 1 the clubs not homeless it’s just annoying they don’t communicate this problem. Kinda there own fault really 

[dboy]

5 minutes ago, Charlie said:

Yes and no and this is what does my head in. I go to the gym at the stadium and I’ve been told a temp deal has been agreed which should be superseded by a long term deal with better benefits in January. But between the club and the council it’s so secretive 

If ANYTHING had been agreed, there would have been a statement saying so, putting an end to the speculation.

I hope a deal and re-modelling of the business is achieved sooner rather than later, but it certainly hasn't happened yet.

[JohnM]

2 minutes ago, The Masked Poster said:

It’s December 3rd today and this means the 1st December has passed. 
So I’m not sure why it’s sinister to ask “just what exactly is going on?”.

As to your point, a statement would satisfy pretty much everybody, so I don’t know what you are driving at there. And if they don’t want to clarify, then speculation will continue. Not because people hate Salford but because they don’t understand why this is a never ending situation that seems to lurch from one crisis to the next.

" a statement would satisfy pretty much everybody" 

I don't see it that way. There are in my view a number of posters on here who either don't trust or don't believe any pronouncements from the RFL.

[Charlie]

3 minutes ago, Click said:

Didn't the clubs own statement say they were looking to get a short term deal in early 2024? Doesn't sound like anything is agreed for next year.

John Davidson jerno on twitter did a interview with Paul king and he said this just weird they don’t put it more publicly 

[Charlie]

2 minutes ago, dboy said:

If ANYTHING had been agreed, there would have been a statement saying so, putting an end to the speculation.

I hope a deal and re-modelling of the business is achieved sooner rather than later, but it certainly hasn't happened yet.

Finally some good news for the

@SalfordDevils

. Understand the club has, in essence, agreed in principle to a 12-month extension of the current lease of the stadium with the Salford Council. Hopefully that will then be super succeeded by a new lease in the first quarter of 2024

·

30.8K

Views

 

[Charlie]

with a lengthy long-term tenure. And then that will hopefully open up new income streams for the club, in terms of fanzones and food & beverage. Salford club chairman Paul King: "It’s a pretty big step in the right direction. There’s a real air of positivity.

[Harry Stottle]

1 hour ago, JohnM said:

The close season seems to be a good time to reflect on which other clubs, if any, employ unsustainable business practices and live outside their means.

Is there a list? 

I suppose the RFL is the only body that could create such a list John, being privy to the annual returns all clubs are required to submit.

[Harry Stottle]

1 hour ago, JohnM said:

Lack of statement creates opportunity for speculation, as we've seen, so yes, there should be something said. 

Not sure that would please everyone and  credibility would be questioned.

The governing body's credibility could also be questioned for the simple reason that if Salfords position is untenable and this has been going on for some time now, why has the RFL not intervened before now before it has got this far.

[dboy]

"Understand / in essence / in principle / hopefully / in the first quarter of 2024 / air of positivity..."

Precisely nothing.

Edited December 3, 2023 by dboy

[Harry Stottle]

1 hour ago, Charlie said:

The more I look at it I don’t blame youse as this is what it looks like. But 1 the clubs not homeless it’s just annoying they don’t communicate this problem. Kinda there own fault really 

Charlie, what I don't understand if there is something positive the club can relate to the fans why are they holding back on such information?

To an onlooker it sounds as though they have nothing positive to say and are doing the 'Ostrich' in the hope that the problem just goes away.

[Harry Stottle]

10 minutes ago, dboy said:

"Understand / in essence / in principle / hopefully / in the first quarter of 2024 / air of positivity..."

Precisely nothing.

Yes in effect it does say nothing, but it is a statement nevertheless and Salford fans will hang on to every word and see them as positives.

[Charlie]

17 minutes ago, dboy said:

"Understand / in essence / in principle / hopefully / in the first quarter of 2024 / air of positivity..."

Precisely nothing.

 

10 minutes ago, Harry Stottle said:

Charlie, what I don't understand if there is something positive the club can relate to the fans why are they holding back on such information?

To an onlooker it sounds as though they have nothing positive to say and are doing the 'Ostrich' in the hope that the problem just goes away.

There’s nothing else to go on, what exactly would you want us to do? There’s no point crying when we don’t know the full story 

[Charlie]

As I’ve said I’m not particularly happy with the lack of information but there’s nothing else for me to go on other the whispers which isn’t great but it’s just how it is.hopefully something changes soon as the city of Salford is massive and being  a stone’s throw for Manchester there’s so much potential IF and that’s a big if things work out. 
 

one thing is certain it’s a hard ride being a Salford fan from no money to the doc and his antics to the fan ownership.