The GLRU recently held a meeting with their Sponsors MTN and Discovery Health following the demise of their equity partnership deal with Guma TAC.
Despite a distinct lack of communications to the media over the last week from the GLRU regarding the talks with the sponsors, recent communications indicate that MTN are still on board as an investor in the Johannesburg based Rugby Union.
The GLRU announced earlier today, via a media communication saying the following:
“Please be advised that for the duration of the 2011 Absa Currie Cup, the Golden Lions Rugby Union’s teams are to be referred to as:
Senior Team – MTN Golden Lions
U/21 Team – U/21 MTN Golden Lions
U/19 Team – U/19 MTN Golden Lions
Attached, please find the MTN Golden Lions logo for the Currie Cup season. Please use this logo going forward for the remainder of 2011.”
Whilst it would appear that the communications giant is still on board (at least for the duration of the Currie Cup), no mention is made of Discovery Health’s ongoing participation with the embattled union, who are due to present their Currie Cup squad to the public and media at a function to be held at the Sunnyside Park Hotel in Parktown, Johannesburg tomorrow, Wednesday 13th July 2011.
The ongoing participation of MTN can only be viewed as a positive point for the GLRU who have been accused of being “bankrupt” by former would be equity partner Robert Gumede in communications leaked to the media.
The GLRU have publicly denied that they are in dire financial straits as alleged by Gumede, but have continually refused to speak openly to either the media or their supporters on the matter, stating rather that they would be concentrating on preparations for the upcoming Currie Cup.
Whilst this may well be so, one has to ask how all of these shenanigans and hanging out of dirty laundry in public has affected the players. With the greatest will in the world, when one reads in the National press that one’s employer is bankrupt, it has to raise questions in even the minds of the most loyal of employees, irrespective of the type of job one is in.
As a devout Lions supporter I sincerely hope that the team have been cocooned away from the majority of the mud slinging, and that when the whistle blows on Friday evening they stand up and make a point.
Only time will tell.
Got to be good news for Mr de Klerk and company.
If only they would be a bit more forthright and open with everyone.
“How To Win Friends And Influence People” should be compulsory reading for all Exco’ members at the Coke Tin IMO!
Now PLEASE give those Pumas 50+ points on Friday evening and gain a good old fashioned dose of revenge for the last Currie Cup game you played.
To give teams a hiding is a wonderful feeling! Please start getting used to it.
After a great deal of scouring the net, I eventually found some news re Discovery’s involvement with the Lions. This from Beeld’s website:
“Die Goue Leeus Rugbyunie (GLRU) se vernaamste borge bly voorlopig in plek, maar is nog vaag oor hul langtermyn-betrokkenheid by Leeus-rugby.
Die GLRU en sy borge het vroeër vandeesweek samesprekings gevoer nadat ’n geskil tussen die unie en GumaTAC as sakevennoot tot ’n skeuring gelei het.
GumaTAC beweer hy was in ’n groot mate verantwoordelik vir die sluit van ooreenkomste met Discovery en MTN op grond van sy verbintenis tot transformasie in rugby.
Volgens Jody Foster, hoof van borgskappe van Discovery, is die maatskappy steeds by die GLRU betrokke.
“Discovery se verhouding as topprestasie-vennoot met die Goue Leeus Rugbyunie bly behoue,” het sy in ’n media-verklaring gesê, maar ook laat blyk dat dit nog lank nie die einde van die huidige sage is nie.
“In die lig van die bestuursveranderings (by die GLRU) is ons egter besig om met belangegroepe in Leeus-rugby te skakel om ons pad vorentoe saam met die klub (sic) te bespreek.””
Great pity the Lions didn’t share this info’ with all of the media.
Seems like I’m talking to myself here, so i think I’ll get off home and see if anyone managed to overcome their need for a full frontal lobotomy and thought to record the Craven Week game(s), or just wondered how to watch both 7de Laan and Binnelanders at the same time!
Goodness, the joys of inter-culture marriage!
Scrumdown, I work for one of the sponsors, and even there, the comms have been silent.
@ Lion4ever:
Do Kevin and Manie not realise that every day that goes by without comm’s from the Union is a day that more and more people assume (rightly or not) that there is real substance in the rumours of bankrupcy etc?
For years now the Lions have had a poor PR habit of pulling into Laager and ignoring everyone when things are not running smoothly. It certainly does not induce trust in the leadership abilities of those at the helm.
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