IT’S been a long, gruelling road since Newcastle Thunder announced their intention to withdraw from League One in October last year.
Since then, chairman Keith Christie and those alongside him have fought tooth and nail to get Thunder to the starting line for the 2024 season – and they have made it.
However, following former owner Semore Kurdi’s decision to withdraw his investment, the club has been trying to create a budget that works for the long-term future of the club.
For Christie, that has been a determined effort with hard work still to be done.
“We’ve got a strong commercial plan as well as a financial plan that has been agreed with the RFL. Our budgets are manageable, they are restricted which creates parameters around what you can bring and spend which we realise,” Christie told League Express.
“We are starting afresh, we’ve got a great supporter base and some good commercial sponsors who have put money where their mouth is and that’s been a lifesaver for us.
“We’ve still got a lot of hard to work to do. We are just starting out new, the matchdays are important and then the commercial management through the rest of the season is important. If we don’t do that then we fail.
“We need to continue to engage with the LDRL, the women’s team and the local community rugby league groups and that we manage those relationships.
“The foundation at the Newcastle Rugby are still providing rugby league and we’ve got a relationship with them to create commercial revenues off the back of them – whether that’s retail or ticket sales.
“The north east community has to respond to us and hopefully we can provide a matchday experience that is suitable, that they can enjoy and then find value for money in.”
Of course, with Thunder securing a deal that will see them play at Kingston Park in 2024 will help that matchday experience, but Christie wants the club to remain at this venue for the long-term.
“It is just a year deal at the moment, we have been fortunate enough to exercise the viability of Kingston Park for the year.
“We don’t know what’s round the corner so there are a lot of parameters built around that. The ideal scenario is that we stay there.
“It’s got to be Kingston Park for me, it’s the best place for rugby in the north east. The facilities are second to none and it’s a Super League facility for me.”
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