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I will be voting “no”

Update: Acquisition approved in a landslide vote. Click here for details [1]. End Update

Yesterday in the mail I received a letter from the Canberra Raiders Leagues Club advising me that they would like to purchase the West Belconnen Rugby League Football Club. The letter from Craig Potts, Secretary and General Manager of the Canberra Raiders Sports Club, is clearly arguing in favour of the purchase. Mr. Potts does spell out some of the issues with the purchase, but seems to gloss over them by stating that the two clubs have “strong ties with the Rugby League community”.

Letter from the Canberra Raiders Leagues Club - Page One [2]
(click to enlarge)

Letter from the Canberra Raiders Leagues Club - Page Two [3]
(click to enlarge)

The West Belconnen club has debts in excess of $4 million and it looks like their assets would barely cover these debts…so in order for the purchase to be worthwhile, the Raiders would need to invest even more money in turning the business around very very quickly, and somehow win patrons back from the Magpies club which seems to be the dominant club in the west Belconnen area.

Quite frankly, as a financial member of the Canberra Raiders Leagues Club, I can not support this acquisition. The club which is proposed to be bought is in severe financial trouble, and for it to be turned around, the Raiders club would need to spend a lot of money, and the public would have to decide to spend more money. In the current financial climate, I don’t see this as wise or likely respectively.

I will be voting “no”.

Samuel

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#1 Comment By davky On January 18, 2009 @ 3:20 am

I really don’t understand why WBLC is performing so badly… They have spent a motza on doing the club up (and it wasn’t too shabby beforehand either).
I find it to be a nice, modern, calm and relaxing environment for a drinky-poos or two.
The nearest rival, the Magpies, I find to be a bogan-filled cesspool of sluttery, drugs and alcoholics.