Unlike most RL clubs HKR have actually spent millions on their stadium.

This story says it all about what it takes to succeed (survive) in SL and the knife-edge many clubs are walking to make that a reality. Speculating to accumulate is obviously the only way forward for anyone that wants to make a mark in any business, but its also 50-50 as to whether your club (business) survives these days. Says as much about the sport and its governing body for me, as it does the clubs/businesses trying to work within the system.

hull kr have been a fantastic addition to SL and have achieved more than clubs thatve been there for longer like wakey

SL needs as many competitive teams as possible

i hope they continue their ground improvements and crowd base

The extension to the East Stand will create more space in the North stand for away supporters meaning less will need to use the South stand. Although it wont create thousands more at Craven Park every little helps!

When you look at the likes of Matt Cook, Josh Hodgson, Mike Ratu all coming in replacing the likes of Ben Galea, Ben Fisher and Jake Webster in time their contracts will be much much smaller yet they have a year to learn off these players at least.

If we do let Cooke go at the end of the season then I would suggest another top signing would just take his wage anyway as there are no amazing youngsters coming through for that position so I dont feel Cooke is going due to financial reasons I just think the club feel their money could be better spent on someone more consistant and to Justins fancy.

If we are losing 450k a year it is interesting to find out just how we are going to repay 2m within a year? I am not very business minded so there is probably a very simple explanation to this but I just hope that we will reduce these debts and not incure any future debts of a similar number!

As stated though this competition needs clubs to be competative and the only way to do this is to speculate and keep your fingers crossed you make the money through the gates and other ways.

an oligarch huh?

wheres ancient greece when you need it.

[iHudgell has previously hinted that board members have been prepared to underwrite the debts and fund investment in the playing squad.[/i

Like most clubs in the NRL and SL they are being underwritten for losses currently by external funding sources. Hopefully we can get to situation in the not too distant future where our income and expenditure are closer together and we don't rely on rich fans digging deep. Our shirt this years has more sponsers than I've ever seen and hopefully another succesful year on the field and the East stand extension will see our gate taking going up.

Some clubs are losing alot more than us and the RFL needs to take a hard look at long term sustainability of SL given that most clubs are losing significant amounts.

NRL clubs lose an average of $2 - $3 million each before outside backers

only 2 nrl clubs make profits

sporting clubs generally lose money. the question is do clubs have adequate sources of external income

if club directors put money into a club as loans then the debts of a club arent really like proper debts to the taxman etc

how many clubs in SL are viable without a backer

In what way? I await your typically ill informed nonsense, it\s always worth a laugh.

1. ground improvements - nil. vs what Hull KR
2. falling crowds

a typical example of a club who waste the RFLs limited money

just read the link

seems like a beat up to me

the bit about debts being paid in a year is just a reading off the balance sheet of current debts.

yeah the guy who wrote the article did accounting 1A at uni, well done champ.

i could write a better article in 5 mins, and people are paid to write garbage like this

I seriously reckon Morgan had little, if any input into the signing of Cooke. The whole thing reeked of Hudgell & Lakin concentrating more on causing FC harm than acquiring a tangible benefit for HKR.

Unfortunately these things happen at a lot of sporting clubs, whose chairmen and directors may be very successfull businessmen in their own right but have a habit of leaving and business sense in the club's carpark

If Morgan had a part or not Cooke was a big part in us staying up in our first year so for that alone he has been worth every penny. Plus the grief it caused our slack jawed neighbours was priceless!

The story is nothing new, that info was out three weeks ago and the HDM are just keeping up to their usual standards of reporting.

Didn`t the Aussie clubs make a big profit from their `Leagues clubs` at one time? Do they no longer have all the `slots` to make a mint from?