Barrow finances

[Pen-Y-Bont Crusader]

 

[Celtic Roosters]

What a shock? Who's next?

[Archie Gordon]

This is the strategy playing out. They've told us enough times now that SL owners are the only priority. 

[gingerjon]

8 minutes ago, Archie Gordon said:

This is the strategy playing out. 

£1.2m Ashes profit so that club 14 can be competitive in Super League is more important than anything that happens outside SL.

[The Rocket]

Talk about hand-to-mouth. 

[Archie Gordon]

5 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

£1.2m Ashes profit so that club 14 can be competitive in Super League is more important than anything that happens outside SL.

Indeed. And how triumphant they are after R1 - they've already called it a raging success.

Edited February 17 by Archie Gordon

[gingerjon]

Just now, Archie Gordon said:

Indeed. And how triumphant they are after R1 - they've already called it raging success.

Under Wood's RFL we have lost Fev and Halifax. They did nothing but watch when it came to Salford, and we really don't know how that pans out. Now we have Barrow for whom a trip to London might mean bills can't be paid.

It's not a great record for the short period but at least they wrote 144 recommendations and had some close games on a single round of Super League. That's the real win.

Worrying times for Barrow.  It is odd how London appear to have nothing but home games for a long period and they have nothing but the opposite.

[St Reatham]

Whatever happened to one home game, followed by one away game?

[Just Browny]

Just now, St Reatham said:

Whatever happened to one home game, followed by one away game?

It was recommended. We need to wait for the delivery plan.

[gingerjon]

1 minute ago, St Reatham said:

Whatever happened to one home game, followed by one away game?

We got a much better system recommended by Martyn Sadler

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Hornets have this problem every season. We have to go on the road for about 2 months so the football club can re-lay the pitch. 

[St Reatham]

I wonder how many more clubs are in a precarious position due to the fixture format?

[gingerjon]

Just now, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Hornets have this problem every season. We have to go on the road for about 2 months so the football club can re-lay the pitch. 

It's been a thing for London as well. I guess the issue is more when you don't normally have it plus then an away fixture in a cup that brings in no money but costs a fair bit.

[phiggins]

9 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

Under Wood's RFL we have lost Fev and Halifax.

This is an odd statement. The damage at those clubs was done before any changes to the RFL leadership. Same for Salford. 

[headtackle]

Its not good but the fixtures have been out for a while now so not entirely unforseen.

Am assuming the club produce a cashflow statement for the owners and lenders which presumably will show a glut of home fixtures and a cash inflow at some point after 2 months on the road. 

[gingerjon]

Just now, phiggins said:

This is an odd statement. The damage at those clubs was done before any changes to the RFL leadership. Same for Salford. 

It is entirely true.

He's been in charge, with his little giddy helpers, for a year now.

In that time, we have lost those clubs.

The reason for him being there was the urgent need to fix things.

But he, and his friends, have fixed nothing. Nor, being blunt, shown any understanding of even what needs fixing, in what order, or how to do it.

But, lads, what a great first round we had.

[OriginalMrC]

And yet not so long ago Barrow were claiming to be one of the most sustainable clubs outside Superleague. When will club owners learn basic economics? 

[Expatknight]

Just now, gingerjon said:

It is entirely true.

He's been in charge, with his little giddy helpers, for a year now.

In that time, we have lost those clubs.

The reason for him being there was the urgent need to fix things.

But he, and his friends, have fixed nothing. Nor, being blunt, shown any understanding of even what needs fixing, in what order, or how to do it.

But, lads, what a great first round we had.

It isn't the fault of the RFL that club owners cannot run their business, pay the tax they owe, wages etc, that is down to them. And I am not a fan of those in charge at the RFL, but to lay the blame at their door is disingenuous to say the least.

[Damien]

Again though the crux of this for me is that Championship clubs need to cut their cloth accordingly. It's not that long ago that Barrow signed the likes of Tee Ritson and Joe Bullock. Sure we can all blame the RFL and the 2 months without fixtures is a joke but this situation isn't just down to that, it may be a symptom but it's not the cause of this and the issues we have seen at other clubs.

I do think the game needs a major reset of what the Championship, its purpose is and the money that is involved.

Edited February 17 by Damien

[Simon Hall]

They should probably forgot the overnight stay in London if they're struggling for cash. Can't be getting the begging bowl out for jollies, save that for the tax bills.

[gingerjon]

11 minutes ago, Expatknight said:

It isn't the fault of the RFL that club owners cannot run their business, pay the tax they owe, wages etc, that is down to them. And I am not a fan of those in charge at the RFL, but to lay the blame at their door is disingenuous to say the least.

Indeed. There is a responsibility on the clubs themselves alongside the mixture of support and sanction that the NGB should deliver.

The RFL under Wood are failing and here we have another warning sign. They need to react to what looks like endemic issues across the whole game with more than a badly written splurge of contradictory recommendations.

[dufftown1]

Lower league RL gets screwed by a few clubs whose focus is not being in the lower league.

Its priority is getting out of it and so nothing happens to improve it.

Theres a potentially great product in the championship but the one thing it absolutely isnt, is SL but worse. 

I have no idea what the current expectation of success here is, and how they expect to get there. 

[Tommygilf]

Barrow Raiders’ board of directors would like to put out an appeal to help fund an overnight stay to give the team the best possible preparation for the 1895 Cup tie against London Broncos, and communicate financial concerns relating to the lack of home fixtures covering a two-month period.

Barrow Raiders were given the worst possible draw when they were pitched with London in the 1895 Cup preliminary round.

The test will likely be the toughest possible on the field, but we feel that it is a winnable game and could be the start of the journey to cup success.

It is normal practice for the team to give themselves the best preparation with an overnight stay before our fixtures in the capital, but financial concerns mean we must be prudent and travel in one day if a sponsorship backer cannot be found. 

We are looking for a figure in the region of £5,000 to cover the costs of accommodation, meals and increased coach costs due to the overnight stay.

For this, we can offer the sponsor to join us travelling and staying with the team, and boardroom hospitality with the directors, hosted by our friends from the Broncos. We can also look to give maximum publicity and add some hospitality or matchday sponsorship packages to suit, to cover some of our home fixtures. If you can help, please contact our club secretary: karen.barrowrlfc@outlook.com

With only one home league fixture covering the whole of February and March, the club were already entering this period with some financial trepidation and were hoping for a home draw in the cup or a chance to rearrange our extra home fixture with Doncaster.

The fact that Halifax, who were our only home opponents, have now been liquidated, adds to our concerns, and we fear that we will not have the cash flow to survive this two-month period.

If Halifax are not resurrected, we would hope that there is some form of compensation from the RFL, using the distribution that would have gone to the Halifax club. 

To allay some concerns, the club is fully up to date with players wages and pensions, HMRC and Inland Revenue, all invoices, debt repayment plans, and we have a cash buffer in the bank that would be adequate in normal circumstances.

No home fixture in a two-month period is not normal. We want to reiterate that if we had a balanced home and away fixture list, then we would not have cash flow concerns, but exceptional circumstances have put us in this concerning situation.

We feel for all the supporters of Halifax, but there is now a ripple effect, and our bank will not entertain an overdraft citing a policy of no credit to sporting clubs due to issues across a range of sports.

More generally, throughout this challenging period, our supporters can play their part by supporting some of our initiatives.

We are hosting Brad Singleton’s testimonial on Saturday 28 February, as a Barrow All Stars team face the Rugby League All Stars. Whilst all gate receipts will go to his fund, the food and beverage sales will help the club.

We have our monthly fundraising 50/50 raffle drawn on Friday, with a current prize pot in excess of £800, which will rise with every ticket purchased.

The Friends of Barrow Raiders are hosting a Family night from 5-8pm in the MKM Marquee on Saturday night, and again bar sales come the way of the club.

And on Friday 6 March, we are hosting the superb band Soul of the North, with tickets priced at £10. 

Any help that our supporters can give will be greatly appreciated. We want to be transparent before we encounter issues, so that we can all rally round to provide support in what is certain to be a tough period.

We would also be grateful for anyone who could provide a loan to the club that can be repaid at a mutually agreeable time to suit the club and the lender.

[Archie Gordon]

30 minutes ago, Expatknight said:

It isn't the fault of the RFL that club owners cannot run their business, pay the tax they owe, wages etc, that is down to them. And I am not a fan of those in charge at the RFL, but to lay the blame at their door is disingenuous to say the least.

Wind back 12-18 months and tell that to those plotting the Spring '25 coup. You might as well be talking about Salford and Johnson's RFL. If you remember, *that* required a coup, no less.

[The Blues Ox]

Is everyone reading too much in to this?

This to me appears to be more a case of it been a hell of a long trip from Barrow to London and it is a lot to ask of part time players to make that trip in a day so makes sense to make a weekend of it. Now it might be a bit cheeky asking people to cough up to support that weekend as the club will not have budgeted for it but surely the RFL should allow some sort of travel allowance for instances like this. That is not even looking at the player welfare issue.