When Gus was appointed, I said I would give him time to try and get processes in place as well as to see what he could do about the number of fans at games. I believe IIRC that I said it should take him about 4 home games into his tenure for us to have an idea of his style of "management". We had a marrow win v the Welsh, followed by 2 narrow losses to Hudds and Hull, before the 4th home game v Castleford, which we drew.
By the time Castleford came calling, the guy and his HAND PICKED TEAM had reached for the panic button and were giving away tickets to the game.......they GAVE AWAY TICKETS TO ANYONE WHO WANTED THEM 4 MATCHES INTO THE SEASON.
I immediately pointed out my belief that he was struggling, way out of his depth and that he would drag the club down........fast forward to today and guess what?
The RFL either need to cut us loose or buy a majority stake-holding in us from David Hughes...they then need to re-negotiate a 3 year lease at the stoop, with the Landlords understanding that we will be looking elsewhere, but are open to staying if the next few years go well. They then need to thank Gus before calling the UK Border Agency and employ someone who has 60% of their remuneration based on performance into the position of Chief Executive Officer. The amount of money available to spend on players will be directly connected to the amount of money the club can generate.........Marketing and commercial activity will become as important, if not more than playing staff investment, with a 10 year plan in place, which is quantifiable, accountable, realistic and constantly revisited.
Failing this, I see nothing in the way of a future for the club in SL. Salfords owner is going to discover next year exactly what the expression "Rome wasn't built in a day" means.....he has bluster and bravado but very little in the way of a clear defined structure or strategic plan other than he want to control/own the ground and break the cap.....Warrington have built slowly....when I started following the Broncos I 2002 Wire averaged 6,270...Huddersfield in 2003 averaged 4,750, Wakefield 3,889, a number of what were mid table teams then have kicked on and grown their crowds, whilst London have dropped close to 50% in the same time.....
Thank you Mr Hughes, but enough is enough. Your failure to stand up to the RFL over the "neutral" challenge cup game and the CONTINUOUS FAILINGS of your CEO have pretty much left the club you're supposed to love at deaths door......thanks for the ride, but if you truly do want the game to grow in London, then hand the licence back to the RFL now....because if you do it after the season is over, then we are dead and buried!
