David Hughes

[The Future is League]

3 hours ago, gingerjon said:

The Broncos are a zombie club and have been for years. They have to exist to have bills to pay and they barely do.

Yes, but they still pay the bills.

[The Future is League]

44 minutes ago, Click said:

No idea, but it isn't going to be zero.

Exactly, and this is what Gingerjon is struggling with.

[The Future is League]

48 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

How much do you think you need to cover part time players out of season training costs?

You should have an idea about this as your soccer club are part time aren't they?

[Sports Prophet]

3 hours ago, gingerjon said:

It's not going to be much either. As Archie says, costs at the minute are likely to be no higher than a community club running its off season.

 No way

[Ivarr the Boneless]

3 hours ago, The Future is League said:

You should have an idea about this as your soccer club are part time aren't they?

I'm a minor shareholder in a senior non league club and know their wage bill, all but to the penny.  I still have no idea what Broncos wage bill is.

The two markets are not comparable. There's much more demand for semi pro footballers than RL players in and around London, RL players will typically have to travel further to away matches. Like Broncos, until David walked, many of the top three tier non-league teams are heavily subsidised by their owner(s) etc. Broncos now aren't, so have less to spend. Few (probably no) senior non-league sides in London see £200k - £500k out of their income go to another team (AFC Wimbledon.) Again impacting what money Broncos can offer.

My guess - and I absolutely stress guess - is Broncos pay for a typical player will be around that a decent Step Three non league footballer (or very good player at a lower level at the right club) would make. i.e. if you don't have many financial commitments enough to only have to work part time, to permit midweek travel to away football games, training during the day and private fitness work. (In non-league football it's often self employed in a gym as a fitness coach or as a football coach usually working with youngsters.)

That's often young ish folk living at home / in bedsits dedicating themselves to football as much as possible, on the hope of being spotted and moving into big money clubs. As they get older, and the dream of being spotted fades, they generally move into a full time "normal" job but with good flexibility on hours. For family men / those with higher financial commitments, a full time job would be required. 

A good example of how it can work was a lad who played non league, topped that money up working in McDonalds when he was free and they needed someone. He spent a lot of his own time working on his own fitness levels / skills and ended up in the Premier League.

Edited to add a lot of top two tier non league football teams now do at least some training during daytime. Another factor which drives self employment for footballers at that level. I believe Broncos train on the evening?

 

 

Edited December 9, 2024 by Ivarr the Boneless

[Gomersall]

https://x.com/londonbroncosrl/status/1866112468235239857?s=61

[Click]

59 minutes ago, Gomersall said:

https://x.com/londonbroncosrl/status/1866112468235239857?s=61

That's quite impressive to be fair.

I know my dad hasn't renewed his season ticket yet and was waiting a bit longer to see what the next season was actually going to look like, I am sure he wasn't the only one.

[RP London]

7 hours ago, Archie Gordon said:

Yep. Outgoings at the moment may only be top-up money paid to a dozen or so staff who have other jobs/educations, plus hire of RP for training. Probably not substantially different in scale of operation to a community club in pre-season.

It's still a waiting game for a new investor.

can we stop referring to Rosslyn Park as RP please.. I keep reading these posts and thinking "why am I being hired for training?" I mean I'd help if I could but I just dont think they could afford me (and I'm very cheap)

[Dave W]

20 minutes ago, RP London said:

can we stop referring to Rosslyn Park as RP please.. I keep reading these posts and thinking "why am I being hired for training?" I mean I'd help if I could but I just dont think they could afford me (and I'm very cheap)

I used to have a similar issue when Wigan's ground was the DW. 

 

[iffleyox]

15 hours ago, Dave W said:

I used to have a similar issue when Wigan's ground was the DW. 

 

Hang on… you’re *not* Dave Whelan?

[Dave W]

4 hours ago, iffleyox said:

Hang on… you’re *not* Dave Whelan?

I've never broken my leg in an FA Cup final but I did break my wrist slipping on some black ice once. 

[Sports Prophet]

1 hour ago, Dave W said:

I've never broken my leg in an FA Cup final but I did break my wrist slipping on some black ice once. 

It shouldn’t matter if it’s black or white you racist PoS!

[Dave W]

1 hour ago, Sports Prophet said:

It shouldn’t matter if it’s black or white you racist PoS!

Well that escalated quickly! 

You can't even describe adverse underfoot conditions these days...

Edited December 10, 2024 by Dave W

[RP London]

15 minutes ago, Dave W said:

Well that escalated quickly! 

You can't even describe adverse underfoot conditions these days...

erm.. its not adverse as that says its harmful.. its only harmful if you mistreat it, its just not weather conditions you like.. jeez dont judge 

[Gomersall]

https://x.com/londonbroncosrl/status/1866772452883435748?s=61

[gingerjon]

2 minutes ago, Gomersall said:

https://x.com/londonbroncosrl/status/1866772452883435748?s=61

Response underneath: currently 11 contracted squad members, 14 triallists.

[THE RED ROOSTER]

Christmas Event Cancelled at London Broncos

Never a good idea holding an open day at 4.00pm on a sunday before a working day.

Might go to the Janauary event though.

[Cb2]

2 hours ago, gingerjon said:

Response underneath: currently 11 contracted squad members, 14 triallists.

Apparently the 8 new trialists consist of 7 SCL players (2 former Skolars 2023 L1 players) and 1 London prem player. I would imagine being used for training numbers as opposed to seriously being considered for championship rugby.

Edited December 11, 2024 by Cb2

[The Future is League]

11 hours ago, Cb2 said:

Apparently the 8 new trialists consist of 7 SCL players (2 former Skolars 2023 L1 players) and 1 London prem player. I would imagine being used for training numbers as opposed to seriously being considered for championship rugby.

Time will tell

[fighting irish]

Any news? A big time sponsor on the horizon? Plans for a new grandstand? Famous NRL bad-boy signed for a last hurrah? David Hughes son and heir decides to stump up some cash? Please, please give me something to be cheerful about London? I can't bear to dwell on the idea, they are going down the pan. 

[Londonbornirishbred]

On 13/12/2024 at 01:14, fighting irish said:

Any news? A big time sponsor on the horizon? Plans for a new grandstand? Famous NRL bad-boy signed for a last hurrah? David Hughes son and heir decides to stump up some cash? Please, please give me something to be cheerful about London? I can't bear to dwell on the idea, they are going down the pan. 

It is highly likely that any remaining back office staff will have polished their CV's and be out the nearest exit in haste if given a job anywhere else, on any money. This includes the CEO, who has a sideline in Hockey equipment sales and coaching and who in my opinion, is as culpable as David Hughes and Gus MacKay (Sacked by Cricket Scotland but somehow got another MD role at Circa????) in the downfall of the club. and is quoted on Linked in as declaring, quite astonishingly......

Quote

Skilled in all aspects of running a sports club with a passion for increasing revenue and reducing costs. Believe in building solid foundations to create a platform from which to grow the club on all levels rather just at the top end.

.....I am genuinely trying not to laugh out loud.

The Commercial guy, Mark Kemp is listed on Linked in as "actively seeking roles", so no doubt, has left the building as a salaried member of staff.

Head of Media and Commercial, Jake Watson, started his own clothing range in August 2023, before getting the Broncos job in January 2024. His range of T-shirts and other stuff which he flogs with a London Broncos logo on it is as bland as can be and at $30 for a black T-shirt, slightly overpriced.

Head of Youth and Performance now runs a kids academy at Grasshoppers RUFC.

As far as I can tell, if there was any cash left in the kitty after Hughes bailed, then that is how they are currently keeping the lights on and paying the rent at the Regus office in Richmond as well as Rosslyn Park RUFC for facilities use. Crowdfunder raised £10,000 or there abouts, so a drop in the ocean.

News wise? Other than trying to bleed the faithful few fans dry with various substandard kit and supporters gear THAT YOU HAVE TO ORDER before they manufacture it, claiming that they have outstripped 2024's Season Ticket sales (without giving a number) and announcing the success of the Ladies, not really a lot to say. I suppose the old adage about " If you have nothing nice to say" stands here, but as a 24 year supporter of the club, I genuinely feel that the damage has been done (see list above of culprits) and if they manage to fill their entire 2025 fixture list, it will be a pleasant surprise.

Rooster (on here) will attest to the number of times the club has acted in an aloof and disregarded the professional advice offered and belittled the volunteer activities and therefore it makes it hard for me to say they deserve what is coming to them, but I won't, because come the seasons start, theirs will be the first result I search for when I wake up on Monday morning down here in the shaky isles. COYB!
 

[Henson Park Old Firm]

So are you saying Hughes is still founding the club?

[The Future is League]

6 hours ago, Henson Park Old Firm said:

So are you saying Hughes is still founding the club?

Stranger things have happened in sport.

He could probably pay the bills they are getting now with the money he has in his back wallet if he chose too.

[Londonbornirishbred]

On 15/12/2024 at 08:38, Henson Park Old Firm said:

So are you saying Hughes is still founding the club?

What I am saying is that the club received a full Superleague amount of money last year and spent a fraction of that on anything. Part-time players get part-time money, there was a little bit of marketing on busses and trains and a full-time media person employed, but other than that, I don't see how they could have touched even half the amount they were given, so there will be some cash left over. Whether it's enough to get them to the end of the season remains to be seen.
As for Hughes still paying for things? Who knows. He has a history of dummy spitting and then backing down, but my gut says he's gone. 

It is just so frustrating that if he had listened to the chorus of people who gave him free advice and offered their services over the years, taken the offered marketing assistance from the RFL and not proved that he is absolutely ###### at hiring people on key positions, then IMG wouldn't be a problem. All London needed to be self sufficient was 10,000 fans, but instead Hughes bet it all on "a winning side will attract the fans" and failed miserably at that as well.

Neil Hudgell wrote a piece a few years back about the need to get to 10,000 to be self sufficient. I think it was about 2016....so 8 years ago when they were averaging 7,800. Fast forward and they're now 9,900. To put it into further perspective, I believe that when HKR came up to SL in the year Hughes took sole charge of the then Quins RL, they had an average of about 6,500 and London 4,500. 

Only once club has made progress in the right direction and it ain't London. 

A lot have people have said that "if Ian Lenegan had stayed......." but I have no doubt that Hughes would have messed up that relationship as well. We have a string of ex-landlords who have been happy to see the back of us and that is 100% down to his aloofness.

[JonM]

So the post this week says they have 11 signings,  the 6 original training trialists "which are going really well are bedding well into the team", 8 new trialists as well as ongoing recruitment for permanent signings. Sounds like they expect to at least make the Challenge Cup game against Goole.