The Bears may well have been the only party interested in buying the asset the NRL has been trying to sell for a while now.
nope
http://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au...k=7f1ada12bee15dcbb342623aece95d23-1489450827
Gold Coast Titans director and white knight Darryl Kelly doubts North Sydney Bears takeover bid
EMMA GREENWOOD & DEAN RITCHIE, Gold Coast Bulletin
March 14, 2017 1:00am
GOLD Coast Titans director and white knight Darryl Kelly has rubbished resurfacing rumours the North Sydney Bears are preparing a takeover bid of the Titans to rejoin the NRL.
The Bears – led by general manager and former Test star Greg Florimo – are reportedly preparing an audacious $7 million bid for the Titans and have opened top-secret dialogue with the NRL about acquiring the Titans.
But Kelly, who poured millions into the Titans before the club was taken over by the NRL in 2015, remains committed to becoming an owner again when the league puts the club up for sale and said the NRL
“There’s no way, in my belief, that the NRL will sell to an entity that’s not Gold Coast-based,’’ Kelly said.
“They understand the impact on the fans and the community, and they’re not prepared, after all the work that’s gone into re-establishing the Gold Coast Titans name, to throw that away and start again.’’
Reports emerged more than 12 months ago about the Bears’ interest in the Titans, with North Sydney then looking to take several games to Gosford on the NSW Central Coast.
It is understood the proposed buyout would include the new club playing three games a year in NSW, with two of those likely to be at the Bears’ latest home, Gosford, and the other at the club’s spiritual home, North Sydney Oval, as part of an NRL retro round.
The remainder of the home games would be played at the Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.
“There is interest from Norths,” one source, who declined to be named, said.
“I think they are just waiting for the NRL to say they’re ready for the sale process to start. Norths are waiting for the green flag to be dropped so they could get their bid under way.”
No official application from the Bears has been lodged with the NRL.
While the NRL has long said it is not interested in being a long-term owner of the club, it is not yet for sale, with the league keen to offload the Newcastle Knights before putting the Titans on the market.
It is understood that will happen this year though.
As soon as that happens, Kelly will be at the front of the queue.
“The Titans aren’t up for sale at the moment, to the best of my knowledge, and I’m sure I’ll be the first or second one to know about it,” Kelly said.
“There’s been no indication from them as yet about the timing and obviously they’re aware that I’m still sitting here waiting for the information.’’
Kelly, who is understood to have lost more than $5 million when the club was put into voluntary administration, has been unshakable in his belief in the Titans and willingness to buy back into the club.
Just days after the NRL took over in early 2015, Kelly flagged his intention to become involved as an owner again and he has been working behind the scenes to encourage other locals to join his bid.
“I’m still in discussions (with other locals) and we’re still building a model around what we believe will be a viable business to sustain the Titans moving forward,’’ he said.
“It’s not just a matter of buying the football club, it’s a matter of having a sustainable business model that will support them going forward.
“I won’t go into it again unless I think we can build other income streams to help support the football club because that’s what’s been the downfall of all the other proposals that have been around.
“I don’t want to be part of that again.’’
Some NRL officials are concerned about another possible change of brand for the Gold Coast who, since their inception in 1988 have been known as the Giants, Seagulls, Gladiators, Chargers and now the Titans.
“I’m not sure the NRL has an appetite for another name change for Gold Coast,” a source said.
Those comments were echoed by Kelly, who said community involvement would be the “No.1 priority” for the NRL.
“Just going on the comments on (the sale of) Newcastle, it was all about having the right community-based model and also being sustainable,’’ he said.
“It can’t move from the Gold Coast, they’re committed here now, there’s no doubt about that.’’
