Last updated 04:53, Wednesday, 19 March 2008

EVERY cloud has the proverbial silver lining and we sincerely hope that proves to be so for troubled Whitehaven Rugby League Club.

Alan Irving of the Whitehaven News

The sudden resignation of four directors – the “old guard” of the Board and a gang of four who have always given their all for the club they love – has served only to fuel speculation that our club has a steep financial mountain to climb, more fact that speculation, I believe.

There is light in the Recreation Ground tunnel but all the positive cliches in the world won’t disguise the fact that the new Board faces a big financial loss for the last couple of years and that a cash lifeline is needed to give Gordon Grace and Co. breathing space to plan positively for a long-term future in this the 60th anniversary year.

The retired Royal Navy Lieutenant Commander could be cruising round the Med now if he wished and wouldn’t be filling the chairman’s hot seat if he didn’t see a future.

Certainly after my face-to-face interview with him this week, I left feeling a lot more, if not wholly, reassured that a serious situation is recoverable before any real financial rot sets in.

But, be warned, the clock is slowly but surely ticking.

What’s needed now is not only hard work and boardroom savvy but the quick financial fix for Haven to get back on course.

The accounts won’t make happy reading. My information (see page one) is that Messrs Grace, Richardson and Graham will have to tackle a financial loss running well into six figures but all will be revealed officially to the shareholders at their meeting in April.

Important questions will have to be asked and answered honestly, such as ‘how has the club got into this situation’. Clearly, there is also the matter of accountability, but more questions than answers at the moment.

Grace, and the two lieutenants at his command, are under no illusions about what they’ve taken on but all three are fully committed to the cause and moreover to succeed – in other words no talk of an anniversary year burial but rather of a community firework celebration with the community.

So between now and then (August) the wolves will have to be kept from the door, for the last thing anyone wants to see is Haven falling into the same financial trapdoor as neighbours Workington, who lived the Super League dream but clearly spent too much on good players to enjoy the experience for only one season.

With the best intentions, Whitehaven may well have followed suit in trying to meet the club’s ambitions and not least the high expectations of fans while competing on a far from level playing field.

Hence, the equally sudden departure of John Duffy to Widnes – ironically a rival club so broke and bust one minute that the Vikings have to virtually sell a whole team, Mick Nanyn included. But then they are back in business again for 2008 by virtue of another veritable Sugar Daddy who has enabled Haven’s former popular coach Steve McCormack to bring Duffy into a brand new team!

Whatever the pros and cons of Duffy’s departure – officially it was for personal reasons – the fact is that he was one of Haven’s best paid players, if not the best, and the move will clearly save Haven a lot of money.

But, by the same token, Duffy was the half-back who has called most of Haven’s shots as a good all-round footballer and won’t be easily replaced but thankfully, with Leroy Joe rolling back the years, there will be a lot on the shoulders of the Kiwi maestro, and there is a chance for young Liam Finch and Marc Bainbridge to win their spurs. And, of course, Carl Rudd always seemed to take more responsibility in Duffy’s absence.

It’s hardly a situation to Paul Crarey’s liking and it’s another early test of his coaching mettle.

Worried fans, inevitably, are starting to ask the question: “Will Duffy be only the first to go out of necessity?”

I hope there won’t be any more bombshells but the next few weeks may provide the answer.

Meantime, Crarey knows full well that his side must put Boardroom affairs to the back of their mind and deliver results. It’s all a matter of confidence on and off the field.

Duffy-less Haven performed well at Keighley to qualify for the next stages of the Northern Rail Cup, now the players must make sure there is no slip up on Saturday when they travel to Leigh Miners in the Challenge Cup.

A good Cup run, or two, couldn’t be more important while we await salvation round the corner – perhaps even nuclear – rather than the dreaded prospect of rugby starvation.