What does the future hold?

[Lofthouse Tiger]

Just reading and hearing comments from people regarding the clubs future, where do you seriously believe or think Castleford Tigers will be?

Will the new ground ever happen? What happens if it doesn’t?

Will the current crop of owners/directors still be in place?

Why are we seeing shareholders/supporter groups frozen out? They all work to put money in to the club and the club gladly take it.

Will DP still be our coach? The above questions could make things difficult in the long run.

I doubt anyone has the answers at this stage but what do we all think? I don’t believe anyone wants anything but success both on and off the field but what are your thoughts and/or concerns?

[SWISS TONY!!]

Think DP said this was his last contract didnt he when he signed the extension? Then he wants to retire

[Mucky1978]

No new ground meaning we will be kicked out of super league within 3 years.

They will sell but make a loss.

Not sure in the 3rd question.

Will leave in 2 years along with most players.

Think we will be in a 2nd super league with Waki Fev Batley York Dewsbury etc

[Lofthouse Tiger]

Can’t say I have heard that one Swiss.

[Nobody]

No new ground

Think owners / directors are banking on new ground and will sell up when it doesn't happen.

Think Daryl will stay unless England job becomes available.

When all these new big city clubs come in and get up on their feet, Cas will no longer be in the top flight of rugby league.

[Lofthouse Tiger]

Ok does anyone believe we will be back with franchise clubs? Looking at Toronto, Ottawa and the rumours of New York will we see the demise of clubs like ourselves, Wakefield and Featherstone?

If we look at how Toronto have started can other major cities do any better? Where will these new clubs get their players from? Do these clubs hold a threat for Castleford in the next 5 years?

[classycas57]

No no ground. We will still be in super league no problem. Looks like we will after give the old girl abit of TLC.

[Piquad1]

Interesting reading other fans comments but to be honest with my opinion I don't know because I don't know how can we as supporter's answer questions when the club/ directors/ and them in the know keep tight lipped about every issue. It's time the club started communicating with the loyal fan base it has got. It's becoming like a game of cluedo. And yes Professor plum did it in the greenhouse with a spanner.

[Tigers1926]

The ground. I think we should have just updated the old girl instead of chasing something which was most probably never going to happen. How much would we have spent by now if we hadn't chased the new ground? Do one stand up each close season, and we can still call it down't lane You cannot have a TransAtlantic league, end of. They should get their own league's up and running 1st and a flow of homegrown players. That is why these clubs will NEVER replace Cas, Fev, Wakey etc. If they are forced in at the expense of such clubs they will lose the support from the areas replaced. As for the directors, we as a club should be searching for new investment all of the time and asking some of the current directors, owners etc some difficult questions. We are not a big city club, but as a club we put some of those to shame. DP can stay for as long as he wants in my eyes, as you cannot beat a homegrown coach. I think the RFL have mislead some of these overseas clubs and some of those at the RFL should take a long hard look at themselves. So to recap, do the old girl up, don't let anymore TransAtlantic clubs in until they have strong league's over there, invite anyone who wants to invest in the club and let DP do what he wants to do, and have a clear out at the RFL. Like most who are on the club's forum I really care about this club and it just wants a spring clean. COYF

[mdean]

Some very salient questions, most of which I think will be answered by the new TV deal directly and indirectly. Not specific to our situation - but more broadly. I think we are all agreed the ground ship has sailed.

If the money drops and we don't get congruence on a new commercial direction - Season Pass or something like they do in NBA etc - then I think it is heading back to pre-Sky days personally and that takes care of the ground, coach and players question immediately. No - No and not applicable.

I said on another thread, the Ottawa one I think, the game has to decide what it wants to be, when it does then it can have a vision. But while the people who divide up the money vote on what is best for them, not the game as a whole, it is never going to develop.
We are an exemplar of the messy logic - if we were kicked out in favour of a global - NYC, London, Toronto, Rome..... etc competition, then I would see that logic - it is a license, a franchise like the MLS and then goes on a world stage to develop - fine. (I say fine, but you get my point)
Alternate, it is a local competition largely with 2 competitive divisions, home and away rounds, 2 up, 2 down, play-off for a GF - then fine too.

The mess is it is neither, both, all etc..... as we have now. I think personally regardless of where we are in a league or even if we top it again, we have missed the boat in the modern commercial world in our old ground - we never moved on, failed to recognise that sport is a business of which 25% is on the field, it is the end to end proposition in the modern world where commercial attraction and footprint is greater. Toronto Raptors is a great example of that, how well they performed commercially even though they were average for many years (25+) and were never close to winning anything - but their presence, footfall and commercial attraction was massive.

[Lofthouse Tiger]

Interesting reading other fans comments but to be honest with my opinion I don't know because I don't know how can we as supporter's answer questions when the club/ directors/ and them in the know keep tight lipped about every issue. It's time the club started communicating with the loyal fan base it has got. It's becoming like a game of cluedo. And yes Professor plum did it in the greenhouse with a spanner.

I know this and said so in my post. This is why I said what do we think will happen based on what is happening just now.

What we would like and what will happen are different so my question was what do you think will happen.

[HuddsTigers]

Thought it would just be easier to answer your questions as you asked them:

Will the new ground ever happen? What happens if it doesn’t?

New ground wise, I remain optimistic that this presents our best shot at getting one. The retail world is no doubt changing but the vision for Axiom is totally different to existing retail malls. This is an experiential opportunity, which combines retail with outdoor pursuits and interests. Glasshoughton is arguably/will be the epicentre of activity between Castleford and Pontefract in future, particularly with the new swimming pool and Ponte Park on the doorstep, as well as Prince of Wales being done up.

Therefore, the footfall opportunity is much more significant to retailers than ever before and there will always be a requirement for physical store demand for days out, product testing, and face-to-face solutions. A lot of brands will be in historical buildings or locations that no longer fit the purpose of the business so this presents a chance for them to update that and get with modern times. It still requires enough people to buy into that vision and there are always hurdles - even more so with latest happenings and Brexit.

In terms of what happens if it doesn't for the foreseeable future, we move to the next plan, which is looking at how we can progressively update Wheldon Road. I believe this will only be actioned at the end of 2021 once we know what the financial situation of the club is going to be with a new TV deal. We still remain in the enviable place of having our own asset and not at risk of being kicked out. Personally, for me, I think the best option is to look at selling land around Wheldon Road, potentially even the training pitch too to free up cash and using that to do up the ground. I also wonder if some partnership could be struck with Axiom for them to fund upgrades that can be taken to the new stadium as a temporary solution, on the proviso they remain optimistic it gets built. However, I think this needs to be organised with a public forum where all stakeholders: directors, sponsors, shareholders, fans come together and determine best course of action to take as it's going to require a joint effort and resource.

Will the current crop of owners/directors still be in place?

As much as Ian Fulton gets some bad stick, I don't know the guy personally but I do feel that he recognises how much the club meant to his dad and wants to keep his legacy going.

In terms of the other Directors, they have the club at heart and are all current sponsors of the club. I don't see any reason why they would step down or walk away. IF still has a vested interest in the club given the debt we're in so unless we pay him back in full, there's no reason for him to walk away.

Why are we seeing shareholders/supporter groups frozen out? They all work to put money in to the club and the club gladly take it.

No idea regarding shareholders but that's for the club to answer. I don't think the Supporters' Club has been frozen out - they still have an ongoing relationship and the SC is still raising funds for the club.

Will DP still be our coach? The above questions could make things difficult in the long run.

DP has continuously said that he wants to be the first coach to lead Cas out at a new stadium, and also to win a major trophy (GF/CC) with Cas. I think he'll stay on coaching. He's only a spring chicken at 54 still. I guess the question for him is how long the fire keeps on burning. I think he'll probably sign a new contract until he meets the objective of winning something since the stadium is something he can't control. Think he'll have an eye on the GB/England job after that if SW isn't in it then.

[HuddsTigers]

I will also add that no matter what happens in the future, or wherever we play, there will always be a Castleford RLFC.

[nottinghamtiger]

If the sport reverts back to a licensing model, we’re gone.
The club has been negligent in allowing our current facilities to fall into such a state. Key investment should have been made year-on-year, as it’s now going to cost too much to bring our stadium up to any required standard.
Those responsible for securing the future of the club have been fixated on the future and perilously ignored the present.

[HuddsTigers]

If the sport reverts back to a licensing model, we’re gone.
The club has been negligent in allowing our current facilities to fall into such a state. Key investment should have been made year-on-year, as it’s now going to cost too much to bring our stadium up to any required standard.
Those responsible for securing the future of the club have been fixated on the future and perilously ignored the present.

Facilities were not the only licensing factor. This needs to be understood - the media whipped this up a lot as a stadia issue but it was bunkum.

Average attendances superior to a lot of clubs
Financially better than a lot of clubs (profits, debts)
Onfield performance a lot better than around 6/7 clubs.


This was the criteria last time:

Football activity
1. First-team success (top eight finishes in each of the last three years);
2. And development of juniors (number of scholarships, performance of Under-21 and Academy teams over the last three years).

Financial performance

3. Turnover (at least £4m per annum);
4. And solvency.

Facilities

5. The capacity of the stadium (more than 12,000);
6. And its quality (meeting the standard of a premier sporting competition according to a strictly defined criteria).

Attendances

7. The size of the average crowd (at least 10,000 or more);
8. And how the average crowd is measured against stadium capacity (fills at least 40% of capacity).

Rulebook criteria
9. Whether the existing rules and regulations have been adhered to by a club.

Geographical criteria
10. Clubs more than 20 miles from any other Super League club will be awarded a point.

We definitely tick off 1, 3 (turnover is now £5m a year I believe), 4 (profits made), 8 and 9.

For the last franchise applications, I believe we upped the capacity to 12,000 to meet this to get 2 too. We do well for scholarships but not sure if kids have done well or not. Either way, 5-7 points would get us a grade B licence.

Licensing applications will have to move away from stadia to performance financially, commercially and in terms of attendances/community engagement, all of which are going to be vitally important to the sustained health of the game.

[tigerfeat]

1) Don't think there will be a new ground

2)I don't want to get in the argument again about IF I think he will stay at Cas anyway and do the best for the club

3) Don't know ...I've heard some things that don't seem right or fair but it's hard to get the truth there seems to be a seige mentality we could do without but like i say dont really know
4) Why on earth would the Coach want to pack it in hes in his prime for a coach hes not got the major trophy wins on his C.V but i still think hes one of the best coaches in the world and believe he will stay at Cas

5) I dont think we will go back to no relegation there will be some kind of jeopardy but with rugby league you can never be sure because of the stupid decisions made in the past
The way we would drop out of super league is if Coach Powell left we made a bad choice in his replacment and finished bottom one year

[nottinghamtiger]

If the sport reverts back to a licensing model, we’re gone.
The club has been negligent in allowing our current facilities to fall into such a state. Key investment should have been made year-on-year, as it’s now going to cost too much to bring our stadium up to any required standard.
Those responsible for securing the future of the club have been fixated on the future and perilously ignored the present.

Facilities were not the only licensing factor. This needs to be understood - the media whipped this up a lot as a stadia issue but it was bunkum.

Average attendances superior to a lot of clubs
Financially better than a lot of clubs (profits, debts)
Onfield performance a lot better than around 6/7 clubs.


This was the criteria last time:

Football activity
1. First-team success (top eight finishes in each of the last three years);
2. And development of juniors (number of scholarships, performance of Under-21 and Academy teams over the last three years).

Financial performance

3. Turnover (at least £4m per annum);
4. And solvency.

Facilities

5. The capacity of the stadium (more than 12,000);
6. And its quality (meeting the standard of a premier sporting competition according to a strictly defined criteria).

Attendances

7. The size of the average crowd (at least 10,000 or more);
8. And how the average crowd is measured against stadium capacity (fills at least 40% of capacity).

Rulebook criteria
9. Whether the existing rules and regulations have been adhered to by a club.

Geographical criteria
10. Clubs more than 20 miles from any other Super League club will be awarded a point.

We definitely tick off 1, 3 (turnover is now £5m a year I believe), 4 (profits made), 8 and 9.

For the last franchise applications, I believe we upped the capacity to 12,000 to meet this to get 2 too. We do well for scholarships but not sure if kids have done well or not. Either way, 5-7 points would get us a grade B licence.

Licensing applications will have to move away from stadia to performance financially, commercially and in terms of attendances/community engagement, all of which are going to be vitally important to the sustained health of the game.

We all know the RFL will manipulate the criteria to meet their own priorities. At the moment, that’s growing the game into other countries so that the likes of Ottawa and New York gain a place.

[Casmania]

If the sport reverts back to a licensing model, we’re gone.
The club has been negligent in allowing our current facilities to fall into such a state. Key investment should have been made year-on-year, as it’s now going to cost too much to bring our stadium up to any required standard.
Those responsible for securing the future of the club have been fixated on the future and perilously ignored the present.

Facilities were not the only licensing factor. This needs to be understood - the media whipped this up a lot as a stadia issue but it was bunkum.

Average attendances superior to a lot of clubs
Financially better than a lot of clubs (profits, debts)
Onfield performance a lot better than around 6/7 clubs.


This was the criteria last time:

Football activity
1. First-team success (top eight finishes in each of the last three years);
2. And development of juniors (number of scholarships, performance of Under-21 and Academy teams over the last three years).

Financial performance

3. Turnover (at least £4m per annum);
4. And solvency.

Facilities

5. The capacity of the stadium (more than 12,000);
6. And its quality (meeting the standard of a premier sporting competition according to a strictly defined criteria).

Attendances

7. The size of the average crowd (at least 10,000 or more);
8. And how the average crowd is measured against stadium capacity (fills at least 40% of capacity).

Rulebook criteria
9. Whether the existing rules and regulations have been adhered to by a club.

Geographical criteria
10. Clubs more than 20 miles from any other Super League club will be awarded a point.

We definitely tick off 1, 3 (turnover is now £5m a year I believe), 4 (profits made), 8 and 9.

For the last franchise applications, I believe we upped the capacity to 12,000 to meet this to get 2 too. We do well for scholarships but not sure if kids have done well or not. Either way, 5-7 points would get us a grade B licence.

Licensing applications will have to move away from stadia to performance financially, commercially and in terms of attendances/community engagement, all of which are going to be vitally important to the sustained health of the game.

The club made a loss in 2018 (latest accounts) and this is expected to be the same in 2019.

[Tamworth Tiger]

If the sport reverts back to a licensing model, we’re gone.
The club has been negligent in allowing our current facilities to fall into such a state. Key investment should have been made year-on-year, as it’s now going to cost too much to bring our stadium up to any required standard.
Those responsible for securing the future of the club have been fixated on the future and perilously ignored the present.

Facilities were not the only licensing factor. This needs to be understood - the media whipped this up a lot as a stadia issue but it was bunkum.

Average attendances superior to a lot of clubs
Financially better than a lot of clubs (profits, debts)
Onfield performance a lot better than around 6/7 clubs.


This was the criteria last time:

Football activity
1. First-team success (top eight finishes in each of the last three years);
2. And development of juniors (number of scholarships, performance of Under-21 and Academy teams over the last three years).

Financial performance

3. Turnover (at least £4m per annum);
4. And solvency.

Facilities

5. The capacity of the stadium (more than 12,000);
6. And its quality (meeting the standard of a premier sporting competition according to a strictly defined criteria).

Attendances

7. The size of the average crowd (at least 10,000 or more);
8. And how the average crowd is measured against stadium capacity (fills at least 40% of capacity).

Rulebook criteria
9. Whether the existing rules and regulations have been adhered to by a club.

Geographical criteria
10. Clubs more than 20 miles from any other Super League club will be awarded a point.

We definitely tick off 1, 3 (turnover is now £5m a year I believe), 4 (profits made), 8 and 9.

For the last franchise applications, I believe we upped the capacity to 12,000 to meet this to get 2 too. We do well for scholarships but not sure if kids have done well or not. Either way, 5-7 points would get us a grade B licence.

Licensing applications will have to move away from stadia to performance financially, commercially and in terms of attendances/community engagement, all of which are going to be vitally important to the sustained health of the game.

Thanks Hudds. That’s really helpful

[duke street 10]

Am i right in thinking we don't know if we are making a profit over the last two seasons?