SHEFFIELD Eagles have a long-term plan and don’t rule out a return to Super League in the future, says chairman Ian Swire. The club has made 13 new signings – most with experience in higher leagues – and looks to have one of the strongest squads in National Two Accountant Mr Swire reveals that the club has increased the playing staff budget but won’t be taking any financial risks. “Long term our goal is obviously to gain promotion and establish the club as a NL1 club and not be a yoyo club,” says Mr Swire. “If we can do that and establish a stable NL1 team then we would be able to set our sights higher and consider the possibility of Super League returning to Sheffield.” That long-term target will be approached with realism and the recognition that rebuilding of the Eagles will be based on hard work. Mr Swire says: “NL1 gets stronger every year and establishing the Eagles in it will be no mean task but is attainable. Increasing gates has to be a goal and hopefully that will happen with a successful team but the current business plan is not dependent upon increased match day revenues - that would be a recipe for disaster and many clubs have fallen foul of the assumption that spectator levels will massively increase for a winning side.” With the division increased to 12 clubs – including the return of a Welsh side in Celtic Crusaders – the battle for promotion is getting harder. Looking ahead to 2006 Mr Swire assessed the Eagles rivals.
He said: “The coaching staff have set their goals and are agreeing them with the players. As a board of directors we have not set any specific goals - obviously we would like automatic promotion but so would the other 11 teams in the division. Dewsbury, Swinton and Workington appear to be strengthening their sides as well and Celtic Crusaders are an unknown quantity but seem to have a lot of money to spend. It is unclear how Featherstone will adapt to NL2 but Keighley will be stronger with Barrow, Hunslet and Gateshead also threats. Blackpool and Skolars unclear at this stage.”
Mr Swire adds an “improvement on last season is essential as is being in the shake up at the end of the season”. New players have come in and the coaching staff has been remodelled following the decision of Howard Cartwright to retire. Mr Swire said: “We owe a great debt to Howard who played a vital role in rebuilding the club over the last six years. Howard will no doubt remain committed to the club as he is a shareholder and will be scouting the Yorkshire amateur scene for promising players. I want to welcome to Gary Wilkinson who has joined as Head Coach and Andy Hay who is returning to Don Valley in a player-coach role. With Andy Tyers and the rest of the backroom staff they will give Mark Aston a strong off-the-field squad.” Looking back on 2005 he admits that the squad lacked experience with the result a seventh place finish – outside the play-offs. He says: “We lost the core of our experienced side at the beginning of last season and attempted to replace them with promising youngsters. In hindsight that was probably a mistake, we misjudged the improvement year on year in the NL2 and the squad came up shortl We have learned from that experience and this year have brought in a large number of experienced players, many of whom have played at a higher level and wish to get the club back up to that level. We still have to operate within the salary cap requirements and we shall comfortably do so. It’s not a make or break bid to get out of the division - we have increased the player budget this season but only back to the levels of three years ago when we won the league and were cruelly robbed of promotion in controversial circumstances in the Grand Final at Widnes. “It is no consolation that as a result of our predicament the rules were changed the following season to automatically promote the champion side but we hope to gain from that change in 2006.” One success last season was the switch to playing most home games on Friday nights. That policy will continue next season with the hope that a stable ‘game-night’ will in the long term help boost crowds and bring back the fans who supported the Eagles in the Super League days. Mr Swire says: “The move to Friday nights has proved a financial success for the club, particularly from the corporate side, but also from the development side with teachers much more willing to bring school teams down on a Friday evening than on a Sunday afternoon. Gate receipts were comparable with the previous season despite some poor performances and we managed to play most of our games on the allocated date without the need for late movements due to clashes with other events at the stadium. Most of the players seem to welcome the Friday night games as well because most of them are working during the week and now have every other weekend off to spend more time with their families. “We need to keep up our community work so that people associate with the club and want to follow it through some bad times as well as the good ones. We have an incredibly loyal following at the club and we need to build on that.”
Although last season ended in disappointment on the field Mr Swire wants the fans to remember that the ‘new’ Eagles have survived six difficult years. The club has built a strong base – both financially and in its community work. He said: “The finances of the club are reasonably stable. We have to operate within our means and work hard in the business community to increase our income. We find that the award winning community work that we do attracts many businesses to the club who wish to be associated with our efforts to enrich the experiences of youngsters in the region. We don't pay lip service to our commitments as some other organisations may do and the feedback from the local councils and the schools and colleges is always positive.” If Mr Swire has one regret it is that the draw for the group stages of the Northern Rail Cup has not pitched the new Eagles squad against South Yorkshire rivals Doncaster, who in 2006 have adopted the new Doncaster Lakers name. “It’s a shame that we’re not playing Doncaster this season as it would have been a good opportunity to regain the South Yorkshire Cup after a few seasons in Doncaster. But I wish the Lakers well in pursuing their goals in their new stadium.”
He added: “I think the new signings have added a element of excitement to the close season. I can’t wait for the first games to see how the new players start to gel and look as a ‘team’. Sheffield is a great sporting city and the Eagles gave it one of its greatest days at Wembley in 1998. But we can’t live on memories – we are looking forward to 2006. Let’s raise a glass to Sheffield Eagles in the hope that 2006 is a vintage year.”
