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BACK off — that’s the message from the Gold Coast Titans as the North Sydney Bears prepare to make a bid for its ownership.
The
Gold Coast Bulletin yesterday reported Darryl Kelly was keen to buy back the club, despite losing more than $5 million in his first stint as an owner.
Moments before yesterday’s season launch — a breakfast and dolphin show at Sea World to support the claims that the Titans are entering a clean, new era — Kelly said he had long known of the Bears rumours but had not been approached by any member of the consortium.
He is keen for the club to retain its identity as the Titans and wants others in the community to help him put it in the hands of Gold Coasters.
An industry source indicated the Titans had been giving priority to stabilising the club in the past 12 months, ahead of attracting a buyer.
“Now they need to get Gold Coasters to put their hands in their pockets to own their club,” they said.
Gold Coast Titans player Luke Douglas. Picture: David Clark
News of the ambitious plan to rebrand the Gold Coast club to be known as the Bears broke yesterday.
The Bulletin has learned the Bears have held several discussions with the ARL Commission — rugby league’s governing body in Australia — in recent months regarding a takeover as soon as the 2017 season.
The Bears already have a presence on the Gold Coast, owning the Tweed Heads Seagulls’ Leagues Club.
Yesterday marked a year to the day the NRL took control of the Titans after the struggling club went into administration and the anniversary was marked by revelations of the Bears’ ambitious merger plan.
However, after a rebuilding phase that has seen “incredible progress”, Titans boss Rebecca Frizelle declared they would not give up their identity without a fight.
The Gold Coast Titans players at the club’s season launch at Sea World. Picture: David Clark
“Everyone at the club is totally focused on building a club that the people of the Gold Coast can be proud of,” she said.
“The issue of ownership will be addressed at some point in the future but the clear view of the current board is the club must be owned by a local consortium in the best interests of the Titans and the Gold Coast community.
“Unfortunately, this constant speculation about rebranding just sucks the momentum out of everything we are trying to achieve”.
The Bears brand, which carries sponsors, is thought by its backers to have far more appeal and support than the Titans, a brand which has repeatedly been plagued by scandals in recent years.
The bid would maintain the current structure in place, with the likes of Titans chief executive Graham Annesley and new chief operating officer Brian Canavan highly regarded.
The Bears are expected to release more information about their bid tomorrow.
When asked about the possibility of the Bears buying out the club, Annesley said any interest in the club would be perceived as positive.
Titan Ashley Taylor. Picture: Jerad Williams
“It’s not the first time that rumour has come to the surface but again, if it’s true, it’s good news that there are people who are interested in the club and see it as a valuable proposition,” he said.
Despite reiterating its desire to sell the Titans, the NRL moved to assure no decision was about to be made on the club’s future ownership.
“The NRL has had very preliminary talks with several parties which have expressed interest in the Titans but those talks are still in the very early stages,” a spokesman said.
An NRL source who requested anonymity went one step further, claiming it was purely a stunt by the Bears to “promote their cause and keep their brand alive”.
“Similar stories were leaked to the media by sources close to the Bears some months ago,” they said.
“The NRL has invested heavily in the Titans brand because it believes the Gold Coast can sustain and deserves its own stand-alone team.”
