Always a Wasp

Quote from: NellyWellyWaspy on March 04, 2024, 01:46:29 PM

Quote from: Neils on March 04, 2024, 01:01:01 PM

Coventry comments reported -

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/todays-rugby-news-fallen-english-28746693

And, just remember folks, Coventry never went bust and got demoted to the bottom most league. Oh, wait, they did go bust? Did they get kicked to the bottom? No. Short memories, people in glass houses.

Meritocracy my @r5e. Anywhere money is involved, there will be sharks and speakers of untruths.

Coventry entered administration, and were rescued a month later, paid off their rugby debts, retained their squad and were hit with a points deduction that relegated them.

Wasps went into administration, were relegated and were given opportunities to find alternative funding. They failed to do that.  They made every employee unemployed and wrapped up.  They were then given a considerable period of time to find alternative funding with a place in the championship open and waiting for them. They failed again. The club that once was is completely dead and has been for several years.

The situations are completely different. If coventry had not found their funding and gone out of existence they would have been forced to start from the bottom. If Wasps had found buyers and funding on the two separate occasions they were given opportunity to do so they'd be playing one division down from where they were when they went into administration, which is the same punishment dished out to coventry.

Which one of Coventry Rugby's times going bust are your commenting on, I understand they have done it more than once?

Additionally, you are missing out a major point in the Wasps administration, that was the fact that people were clambering for Wasps to go to the bottom as soon as they entered administration, something that didn't happen to Coventry.
I also say that if it wasn't for Wasps coming to Coventry, Coventry RFU wouldn't be in the situation they are now. Their support increased after Wasps arrived, which has helped them to build. People also need to remember when Wasps arrived in Cov, Coventry RFC were in National League 1, not the Championship.
I've lived in Coventry for almost 35 years and I went to watch Cov at Coundon road a few times but stopped going as a casual fan as it was a terrible watch, and have actually never visited The Butts, and never will. Their attitude and glee at the demise of Wasps was completely unacceptable.

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Just seen that Harry Mallinder is also joining the gateway, he is looking at a kicker/punter position.

What happened to him at Saints? He was the next big thing, but I see he ended up in Japan. That obviously didnt work out.
Would be sad if a player that talented ended up  "just" kicking in the NFL.

That said, he's probably more likely to succeed as a kicker than LRZ. Far less complexity involved

Looking at the saints forum, it seems injuries were his downfall.

Dobby doing well at Pau as well, seems to be quite a regular starter and a typical run from him for a try as well at the weekend.

Seen Chiefs fans on Twitter claiming the good news that the groups loans have dropped by over ?20M, they may be less happy when they see I've pointed out that reason for that being there was ?21M of loans against the Hotel, they no longer own, hence removed from the accounts, which also accounts for the ?31M drop in fixed assets belonging to the club.

What is interesting is that they have repaid ?1M of the Covid loans, but the Sport England loan which is supposed to be paid back quarterly is at the exact same amount as it was last year!

I assume the purpose of these legal proceedings is for Derek to recover that 8 figure sum.

I'd like to understand what the claim is actually against and what any winning funds would be used for, as looking at the reports this is Derek vs the legal advisors, not Wasps vs the legal advisors, and it's for a sum of 100M+, whilst the reports state that Derek had loaned 20M to the club, so is Dereks claim actually 20M plus the 2M, plus it seems future profits from the new Hotel, and therefore remaining 80M-ish (taking a win as the scenario) goes where, the creditors, back to Wasps??? From the report the assumption of that 100M claim is around 67M against the value of Wasps, if he were to win the whole amount does that 67M go to Derek to do what he wants with, which I can only assume wouldn't involve Wasps, or am I being to cynical?

Or, being even more cynical, is the 100M+ an opening salvo in the negotiation tactics to allow Derek to recover his 22M+?

Quote from: westwaleswasp on December 06, 2023, 10:44:33 PM

There is inherent danger in the Falcon's approach. Depends how many fans they lose through the door. If they drop say 1000 of the more casual/selective fans, how does that hurt? If 500 season ticket holders drop to pay as you go, and next year is as bad, and they don't go, what then. They have already lost 3 home games and are in this position presumably due to cash, which they could end up losing. Plus NUFC are doing well, and people's wallets are empty.
People will support a losing team, of course. A Tigers team losing 1k fans in a bad season isn't the end of the world, but for smaller clubs. Ouch.

Indeed, a no win situation. They dropped ST prices massively this year in an attempt to pull the cash in up front, but they ended up with less, not more ST holders.

As you say, they are losing the pay as you go business. Times are very hard in Newcastle, and cash is short. I think this would have happened whether or not they cut prices, whether or not they cut the squad salary bill, and effectively reduced the quality of the team. I think it would have happened even if they were half way up the table. There simply isn't the spare money in the local economy on Tyneside. I cannot imagine that things are much better at Sale.

Their sugar daddies are committed to keep their respective clubs 'going' until the last match. That means paying bills and salaries only when they have to. At some point, the taps will be turned off. I expect the players will play their last game only to find they don't get paid for that. The same goes for ground staff and suppliers.

The only question is, which of the 10 sugar daddies will turn off those taps towards the end of this season? Not just one I suspect, but Falcons must be a sure bet right now.

I do not relish this prospect, other than to recognise that it might make a Wasps return a little easier, and might see all the fat cats at the PRL and RFU go.

Some intriguing comments on the Rugby Pod this week around the finances at Newcastle and the rumours that the Falcons owner wants to do a Warriors by having the club slowly disappear and then to have the land for development/to sell, that was from Goodey. There was comment, I think by Jim, that some of the players are on effectively zero hours contracts.

It really does seem to be in a bad place.

Still have BT Sport or TNT as it is now I believe, however, I can genuinely say I haven't watched it in about a year, it comes as part of my Virgin Media package so was never an extra anyway.

All good points made, everyone.

To add onto the social media aspect, Leicester Tigers, the most recognisable club in the English game, hasn't even broken the 167,000 mark on "X" (Twitter). Saracens haven't managed 123,000. Quins are on 127,000.

To put that into context, as of July this year, the lowest number of "X" followers in the Premier League is 174,000 (Luton).

How can social media be such an important factor in rugby union when there are clubs in EFL League 1 with more followers than the top rugby clubs? This is a rhetorical question, of course hehe.

To put the above further in contex, here are the numbers for the old 13 team league, remembering some of these clubs haven't existed for 12 months or more.
Also some of the equivalent football teams, anywhere with a decent football team is mind blowing the difference.
The drop for the Championship rugby teams is huge vs the Prem.
In the list below, Tigers down to Exeter all have more followers individually, than the whole of the Championship combined.
 
Tigers         167,000             Leicester City            2.7M
Glaws         142,200             Glaws Cricket            80.2k (no real football team)
Saints         128,700             Northampton Town    94k
Quins         127,100             Chelsea                     25.3M  (Brentford probably closer but have a mate who supports Quins & Chelsea)
Bath          126,900              Bath City                   20,500
Exeter        125,200             Exeter City                 91,400
Sarries       122,300             Spurs                        8.8M  (I think they are the closest Pro football team)
Wasps       114,000           Coventry City             178k
Bristol        104,100             B City                       218k          B Rovers -        110,900  (City share the stadium)
Sale           68,100              Man U                       37.2M        Man C             17M  (United probably closer)
Irish         58,300              Brentford                   349,400
Worcester  58,000            Worcester City            16,400
Falcons        54,300             Newcastle                  2.7M


Championship teams

Pirates                17,600
Nottingham          14,700
Bedford               14,400
Ealing                  12,700
London Scottish    12,200
Coventry             12,100
Doncaster            11,800
Hartpury              10,600
Caldy                   6,700
Cambridge            6,218
Ampthill               5,933