Investors ready to put cash into Bears: Florimo
Adrian Proszenko | July 12, 2009
CENTRAL COAST Bears have already received interest from potential backers after releasing an investor document during the week. The Bears have held preliminary talks with interested parties as they ramp up their bid for readmission into the NRL for 2013.
"Even after all the drama that the game has gone through, we're finding there are still people in the market interested in investing in the game," Bears chief executive Greg Florimo said. "We've had a positive response since going to the market, people want to talk to us."
The investor document - obtained by The Sun-Herald - provides detailed financial projections, an outline of the club's management structure and demographic information on the region the Bears will represent. It also contains supporting statements from some of sport's most influential names including Wayne Bennett, Andrew Johns, Peter Sterling, Wally Lewis, Shane Webcke, Wayne Pearce and the Nine Network's sports boss, Steve Crawley.
"The people of the Central Coast and north shore of Sydney deserve their own team and I am 100 per cent behind the push for the Central Coast Bears to be granted an NRL licence," Bennett said in the document.
The Bears held a function in the Sydney CBD on Thursday night to provide an update on the latest developments in their bid to re-join the competition. About 300 fans, potential investors and league identities heard Florimo and coach-in-waiting David Fairleigh outline their vision for the club. The event also doubled as the official launch of the club's membership drive.
"It's very exciting to be able to build the culture of a football club from the ground up," Fairleigh said.
"This will be a team which North Sydney and the Central Coast will be able to call their own."
Wests Tigers forward Chris Heighington has already been touted as the first signing and captain for the Bears. And The Sun-Herald can reveal that Queensland and Australian halfback Johnathan Thurston, the game's best player, is next in their sights.
"You couldn't get a bigger name in the game and he's playing the best football of his career," Florimo said. "Someone of Thurston's ilk adds an incredible amount of credibility to the football club.
"He brings a level of maturity that we're looking for as we move forward. Having someone of his calibre would be a fantastic drawcard to an emerging team.
"We intend to talk to Johnathan firsthand about our intentions and make it known that we want him to be, alongside Chris Heighington, one of our marquee signings."
