Continued success?

[Lofthouse Tiger]

Can I just ask why we are paying 60k in interest per year Robbo?

Who are we paying it to?

How much is/are the loans?

Who set the terms of the loan/interest payments?

It seems to me that we must either have a massive loan or we are paying ridiculous amounts of interest.

[RonnieGibbs'forearm]

Come on look where we were a few years ago.
A club sent down twice and Jack Fulton throwing money in to support a CEO who in my opinion was not up to the task.

Hence why I campaigned so hard to have things changed. Jack allowed things to go on too long because friendship clouded his vision in my opinion.
That's all the past. It left us 2.5 m in debt and now paying 60k a year in interest until we can repay that money.

What ever you think of the new team they have stabilised the club. I have not agreed with everything but that's healthy debate and being a "critical friend"............I still feel corporate Governance is weak.

As for comparing I can understand the view and I too lived through this period. My father sent a "wreath" when they Sold Alan H to the BOD.
However the numbers game is very different. The Sky figure is now well on the way to 2 million a year in cash.
That was never there and players were sold to balance the books.

I feel we could be a force for a few years. I would have liked a further signing but that's DP`s call ( we hope)......a big strong lad ( a fair few spring to mind from Cas).
Right now lets bask in the glory and the sensational season we are having. We may never see it again. It has been fabulous.

Robbo

That's the crux of it Robbo. If we are good enough to win the league in the manner we have, we have the best coach in the northern hemisphere, average gates up significantly, potential new ground and all the extra revenue streams that entails on the horizon, why do we still all say: we may never see it again?

[tigerfeat]

I have supported the club right back to the early 60's. Was looking at an old Cas and Ponty in the library the other day, which was shortly after our second successive Wembley win in 1970. Headlines were ''Castleford make £7,300 profit - the future is very rosy.'' 7,300 (approx) was a colossal sum in those days and with the terrific side we had then, it very much looked like the team could go on and be a major force for years to come. The result - we ended up selling around 5 of our best players, including 4 who had just been part of the last Ashes winning test team, and within the next year or two became ''just another team''

Around 1977 we had another team that won two cups in a season, and again it looked like we could be a continued force, and again we sold star players and became ''just another team''. In fact this has been a continued theme all the time I have been watching. We have had our moments of glory but have never been able to sustain being a top team for any length of time, in the way the likes of Leeds, Saints and Wigan have. Even Widnes had a real sustained lengthy period of success, that lasted almost 20 years starting from 1975. Both Hull clubs did through the mid seventies to mid eighties. Bradford too throughout a lot of the SL era. The sixties was our best time where we had a pretty good team all the way from about 1964 to 1970, but you would not call us a major force apart from the last two of those years.

To be honest all the time I have been watching the club in the past, I have never ever been really confident that we could be one of the major players for a sustained number of years, and there have been reasons for that. However for the first time I am now very confident that we can be a major player for a sustained period, or for at least 5 years. A team that is continually challenging for the major honours like Leeds, Saints, Wigan and even Warrington have done over the last few seasons. One of the big boys. What do others think?

Haven't gone through all of what you said, but I will.
What I do recall over those years was that Cas were consistently in the top flight along with only Leeds, Wire and Saints
Bradford, Wigan , Hull, Wakefield , Hull KR, Salford, Huddersfield,
Leigh etc. All did the relegation walk of shame before we did and don't forget the length of time all those teams waited for their trophies. Wigan were the most successful once they went full time and won lots of pots against part timers but went bust in the process, Hull and Huddersfield saved themselves with £1 million merger payoffs as well as free stadia while we got relegated from second bottom on the back of Wigan cheating the salary cap second time round.
We are a truly amazing club in the best Rugby League community in the world. Now is our time and our time has only just begun

Good words my friend were at the start of a great time hope i keep going a few more years to savour every minute of it ...

[Nu Shooze]

We have never seemed to have the wherewithal for a sustained push. My fear is that will continue to be the case if we do not get a new ground sharpish. The RFL are still very much into expansion and with Toronto likely to make SL next year and talks of a second Canadian club and English cities joining the game who knows where this will lead.

They're talking franchises again by 2020 and the longer we are without up-to-date facilities, the more vulnerable we are.

[drleftie]

We have never seemed to have the wherewithal for a sustained push. My fear is that will continue to be the case if we do not get a new ground sharpish. The RFL are still very much into expansion and with Toronto likely to make SL next year and talks of a second Canadian club and English cities joining the game who knows where this will lead.

They're talking franchises again by 2020 and the longer we are without up-to-date facilities, the more vulnerable we are.

Agree though they'd be hard pressed not to give us a franchise if we continue to play like we are.

[Robbo]

Can I just ask why we are paying 60k in interest per year Robbo?

Who are we paying it to?

How much is/are the loans?

Who set the terms of the loan/interest payments?

It seems to me that we must either have a massive loan or we are paying ridiculous amounts of interest.

The interest is paid to the Fultons on approx. 2.5 million of debt. Last accounts showed about 260,000 paid in cumulative interest. I don't think the rate is high but whether it should be taken is down to them.
robbo

[Lofthouse Tiger]

How many years has this loan been in place then? I take it the interest is in total over that timescale?

So the myth that directors put money in to a club without taking money out is not correct in this case?

You also said that additional shares given to the Fultons was not to repay any loans. I take it they could be sold on if they so chose to do so?

[Robbo]

How many years has this loan been in place then? I take it the interest is in total over that timescale?

So the myth that directors put money in to a club without taking money out is not correct in this case?

You also said that additional shares given to the Fultons was not to repay any loans. I take it they could be sold on if they so chose to do so?

That's a question for the club mate. Last year had several years interest hence the in excess of a 1/4 of a million pounds. The 60 odd was for last year.
The shares issued approx. 50,000 were at the Fultons request but my understanding is that they are cancelled when the debt is repaid. They paid par value so 5k for them.
What it did do is give them full voting control and stop people like me forcing EGM`s like last year.( My holding was diluted after the shares were issued............. Ian and his Sister in effect have full control on voting matters.
Ian explained this saying it was to protect his loan to the club ( which of course was passed to them when Mr and Mrs F died).

You ask
So the myth that directors put money in to a club without taking money out is not correct in this case?
I understand there are further outstanding loans to the ex CEO , that to date have not attracted interest or to my knowledge been repaid yet.
RW is still showing as a director but when he last actually attended a board meeting again has not been made public but my guess is well over 2 possibly 3 years.
Clearly until his loan is paid he seems to remain as a director in name.
All a bit messy and hopefully will get sorted if/when we can sell WR ( if indeed we do) to clear the loan.
If your question meant do they give it ? The answer as it stands is no.

robbo

[castleman]

We have never seemed to have the wherewithal for a sustained push. My fear is that will continue to be the case if we do not get a new ground sharpish. The RFL are still very much into expansion and with Toronto likely to make SL next year and talks of a second Canadian club and English cities joining the game who knows where this will lead.

They're talking franchises again by 2020 and the longer we are without up-to-date facilities, the more vulnerable we are.

I am a Cas lad who also watched Kenny Pye, Albert Lunn, Charlie Howard and co. as a youngster. I live in Canada now but I am still an avid Cas fan even though I cannot attend any of the games. I have, however, seen the Toronto Wolfpack play on their home ground. They will be a difficult team to beat in Toronto, but I cannot see them making the Super League any time soon. Playing in the Championship will be a different proposition from playing in the Kingstone Press League. They have had a lot of logistical problems with travel and have found it hard to sign players, and even though they have had great crowds I think next year they may find it difficult to sustain interest once they lose a few games and the novelty wears off. I am not downplaying the achievements of the Wolfpack organization – far from it, I think they have done a wonderful job. I am just saying that I don’t think that we can expect to see them in the SL anytime soon.