LEAN ON TITANS

TOUGH TIMES GIVE STRENGTH

THE Titans’ biggest weakness has turned into the club’s strength in the fight to stay alive during the NRL’s coronavirus crisis.

The club’s owners have vowed to keep the franchise afloat following the league’s decision to indefinitely suspend the 2020 season.

The NRL’s 16 clubs have already started cost-cutting measures, slashing staff and budgets given the competition will not resume before June at the earliest.

The Titans have long been the NRL’s paupers, operating on a shoestring budget in comparison to glamour clubs like Brisbane, who generated $52 million in revenue last year.

The Titans employ about 50 staff, less than half of the Broncos, and their shrewd spending has been viewed as the club’s achilles heel in the title hunt.

But with most clubs now relying on handouts from the NRL to survive, the Titans are well-placed to emerge from the game’s biggest financial crisis.

“Because the business has had to run lean for some time, this situation works in your favour,” Titans CEO Steve Mitchell said.

“We’ve been running very close to what’s a baseline resourcing expectation around an NRL club. We don’t have the geared-up resourcing the bigger clubs like the Broncos would have to deliver their programs right across Brisbane.

“We won’t have to make the same amount of deep cuts the Broncos might have to.

“We’re lucky we’ve got two wonderful owners in the Frizelle (Brett and Rebecca) and Kelly (Darryl and Jo) families. They’re great custodians of the club.

“We’re in constant dialogue and they’re steadfast in their belief in the organisation and its sustainability.

“That helps greatly. Armed with that, we’re confident we’ll work our way through this and the club won’t be going anywhere.”

The Titans have started the process of asking staff to take leave and Mitchell said yesterday morning they had yet to lay-off any employees.

But with little membership, corporate and game-day revenue coming into the business, it is likely the club will be forced to cut staff until the competition resumes.

“We’ll definitely need to make sacrifices. That’s everybody,” Mitchell said.

“We’ll adjust to our needs so we can get through. We’re seeing that across the country.”

The players were given days off yesterday and today.