Mr H was and is the only game in town for Broncos for several seasons. Where we are now was inevitable, only the timing was in doubt. Many teams are built on similarly shallow foundations and many are at risk. Many may have to cut the wages and standard of their squads which will lead to smaller tv deals- an anti-virtuous circle.
DH’s money allowed fans to have a bit of fun and for that he should be thanked but now sadly it’s done.

I wonder if the Covid situation is where our fate was sealed. The termination of the 2020 season spaffed our parachute payment down the toilet. The 2021 season was a mess - 7th with a full time squad was pony. Did he feel after he treated staff right over lockdown (as I understand) that they were all a bit quick to do one. The complete loss of momentum and pitiful crowds when they were allowed back was depressing.

There can be no excuses for the move to Plough Lane with a PT/L1 squad. it was the perfect example of a last incompetent throw of the dice and of someone who wasn’t getting good objective advice or not taking it. As I said at the time if he’d wrote down what he planned to do and had shown it to a grown up they’d have explained why it was total pony. It’s like he guessed what would be enough for IMG and assumed they’d just accept it rather than stick to the criteria they had developed (sh xx as some of them were). Let’s be honest Last year was going nowhere until we bought a couple of players late doors, Fev collapsed and we were in SL on the back of a string of away games that almost none of us saw. Then the brutal announcement came that IMG weren’t playing games and we’ve blundered through another sub par season albeit one where the side developed from poor to competitive but again the damage for crowd growth was holed below the water line in our 1st few games now. One positive is we no longer need to worry about crowd growth.

In fairness to him and his family he’s probably given up enough of his money the situation isn’t going to change London and rugby league aren’t really viable.

The next couple of weeks will be a daily litany of players leaving and then we’ll hear from love rugby league or Matthew Shaw that the club has folded. Sad.

On those occasions when i have been successful, I was always wary of the thinnest of lines between arrogance and self confidence and admit to having crosses it a number of times. What kept me (and still keeps me) grounded was the times i wasn't successful or made gross errors when I then had ro bw himble and accept defeat and or advice/help.
Hughes biggest problem was he wouldnt take advice from anyone, even The RFL. He would insteas double down on his errors and towards the end became more beligerent. 2 unexpected MPG wins which were 100% luck more than planning gave him a warm fuzzy feeling of success, but now his mismanagement of the important things has been laid bare doe all to see by IMG, he does that most arrogant of all things.....he walks away.
Instead of changing back to the broncos name and leaving the Stoop, if he had instead remained QuinsRL at TW2 and even just employed the sicial media from 2024, we would have scored much better than we did in the gradings. NOBODY ELSE IA TO BLAME.

I am actually very sad today, DH's money was papering over the huge cracks, and it was well known that without the huge financial support that DH was providing, RL in the capital was toast. Well gentlemen, we are here and we are now toast.

When Ian Lenaghan arrived in 2005, for the first time I was hopeful that there was a strategy being put in place to back up the millions that was being pi55ed down the toilet each year. I could see that there was enthusiasm from the marketing, selling the product to London. We took out advertising space in the Evening Standard, we were at train stations during the evening rush hour, everybody was shoulder to the wheel. Yes there were issues, but it was the period where I thought RL in London was turning the corner. Most of all, we were a happy bunch.

IL was forced to drop us after he acquired Wig*n, back to the DH show we went. The bad habits started to come out again. Same amount of money, but no strategy on how to invest it into the future, instead short termism and unrealistic goals in the most part. The viscous cycle started.

I saw the start to the end when Gus Ma*kay was brought in. If you think about it, the most London Bronco supporter I knew (Paddock Punter), Nigel went to every game home and away (1st team, Reserves, Academy). In my view he was the most loyal and ardent fan any club of any sport could have. Gus some how managed to massively offend him, took a stand that he wanted new fans without taking the Paddocks of the club into consideration. It was blind arrogance.

From there, When I came back from Australia for a year in 2011, the club I knew when I left was a shell. The enthusiasm left, the real hard core of supporters were alienated and had left they didn't care, and as such soul of the club was ripped out. But don't worry, DH was paying the bills and hiring total e to 'run' his hobby horse.

That was the problem, when IL left in 2008, we then started to witness this very slow, nasty and very expensive car crash, and there was not a lot we could do about it. Unfortunately we are all collateral damage, that's why I am sad today.

See you at the Scholars!

Yep, it all started to go wrong when Hughes was left to his own devices. He has made some terrible decisions, ed a lot of people off and employed some total buffoons to supposedly run the club.

A trip to Toulouse it is then. I hope that it is not too early in the season.

Alas. My trips to blighty are now enshrined in early July meaning I will probably never get to see the Broncos at the feted mecca that is Plough Lane, regardless of what division we are in

It is at least several steps up from a trip to Wakie or Cas. Certainly February in Perpignan is a thing to avoid but at least there is more to do in Toulouse.

I agree Deadcowboys1, Toulouse holds far more of an attraction for me than either Castleford or Wakefield.

They’ve opened a Wetherspoons there? Good to know!

A Weatherspoons in Toulouse?? Sacre bleu !!

All day Croissant doesn't quite have the same ring to it.

Could Sammut do a job for us at 38? Not sure it would be that difficult to get a transfer to the LFB.

The alternative looks to be a 15 year old kid so I would say so. However there will be reasons why he went to Barrow when we went PT so I suspect he’s at the stage now where he needs to be up North. He’s still in good shape so I’m sure someone will step in for him.

If I had to guess the ex broncos we have in our sights, subject to the massive hurdle of actually having any money I’d say Hindmarsh, possibly Hodson, Christian Gale (went to Skolars and then to Aus), J Jones.
However I think if we can up the number of retained experienced players from 2 to say 6 or 7 we’ll have done well because I think we are coming up short on that 350k.

3 sausages in a croissant. The continental alternative to the gut buster.

Good to have Sid back for 25. If there is a 2025 of course.