CLUB MESSAGE & CORONA VIRUS UPDATE

Coventry Bears Club Update: Corona Virus

On Tuesday we shared a call with other clubs and the Rugby Football League regarding the current Corona Virus crisis. Much was discussed around these challenging times but in particular a number of things were the focus of the conversation:

1. The impact on players, staff and sustainability of club’s as businesses.

2. The impact on the playing season.

3. The impact on our supporters and the general public.

Impact on our Club

At this point our club are fortunate to be in a strong position to deal with the current situation. We are a part time club with sessional staff and players who are paid on a match fee basis. The same cannot be said for many other clubs not just in Rugby League but in all of professional sport and we are all working together to support each other in this difficult time. Please be assured that Coventry Bears are in a positive cashflow position, we have zero debt and have virtually no fixed costs, therefore we will survive this crisis and we are fortunately a very sustainable business.

We have suspended training for the foreseeable future and are working with players to stay fit and healthy and given them time to look after their friends and family and take the further advice of their full-time employers if they have full-time jobs.

We also have medical staff who work for the NHS and are under new pressures so have now also allowed those staff members the time they require away from the club to deal with their commitments to the public.

Playing Season and Supporters

At present the season has been officially suspended until at least April 3rd and we will keep everyone updated on the evolving daily situation in regards to this. We do not know the expected duration of this crisis and therefore all options are still being considered, for example, delaying the season, shortening the season, etc.

We would ask all supporters, season ticket holders and sponsors to have patience at this time and focus on their health and well-being and stay safe in these challenging times. 

As soon as we know anything more this will be officially released by the Rugby Football League and then we will let everyone know. Please get in touch if you need to and please stay safe and look after your friends and family.

We will also be keeping as active as we can with social media in coming weeks and would ask all friends of the club to please keep engaging with us in this time of stress and uncertainty for everyone across the nation.

Thank you, 

Alan Robinson and Debbie Watson

Coventry Bears Directors

latest government advice on Cov-19 can be found here