Thursday afternoon turned out to be really disappointing when the news came through that we had failed to be awarded the spare place in the Championship. Over the next couple of days, I personally went through a range of emotions from disappointment to frustration to acceptance to finally a determination to keep up the hard work and to take the club forward.
The process had been rewarding in that it had allowed us to reflect on the great work we had being doing and the plans we have in place for future progression. Sometimes a business needs that sort of analysis. Our bid was very thorough and comprehensive, and I won’t lose any sleep over the quality of the application, but the RFL have their reasons for choosing Newcastle.
I honestly believe that if the RFL had simply analysed the current strengths of the club we would have been awarded the place. We have higher crowds, we have more of a digital presence on the RFL’s own platforms, we have stronger community clubs with there being a constant flow of players to the professional game, including the very highest level.
What Newcastle did have was a lot of potential and it seems that potential has won the day. There can be no denying that they are also doing great work in the community and growing the game with strong foundations. Added to that is a governance set-up that takes advantage of structures in place from the Newcastle Falcons and they also appear to be financially sound, so also ticking that important box.
The RFL clearly still have a strategy to grow the game and to expand geographically. For me, I am very much in favour of expansion but that should not be at the detriment of the current clubs. The RFL introduced a Return on Investment model that rewards clubs for helping to grow the game. More crowds, more digital and media presence, work in the communities, especially increasing participation, strong governance and sound financial management will all be rewarded. I’m not too sure how much more the governing body can do. They have given financial encouragement for clubs to run in a sustainable way and it is now up to the individual clubs to put strategies in place to maximise that RFL income by doing all the right things. Certainly, our growth strategy is intrinsically linked to the RFL’s aims and is helping to focus the club.
The clubs below Super League are responsible for their own growth and Barrow Raiders aren’t looking for any preferential treatment. What we would like to see is that our income and crowds grow exponentially on the back of the great community work we are doing, the participation levels throughout the area mirror that growth and the level of interest throughout the Championship merits crowds at every ground of a few thousand with broadcasters becoming really interested in our product.
If we can master that then it becomes a lot easier to then begin to expand with those solid foundations in place. What would be frustrating was if the RFL just stuck a pin in a map and fast-tracked an expansion team to the detriment of all those clubs trying hard to promote and grow the game. To some degree Newcastle have shown the way with those solid foundations and community work. Not being promoted hasn’t changed our goals and we will continue to strive to achieve all those targets inspired by that Return on Investment model.