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I heard Newcastle currently may have to play games at another stadium, I heard they owe debts to EAS. I found this article. Have a read
Knights threaten to leave Newcastle over stadium row
Greg Prichard and Matthew Kelly
April 1, 2009
League HQ
KNIGHTS chief executive Steve Burraston says it is possible the club will be forced to take the extraordinary step of playing home games away from Newcastle if their dispute with the Hunter Venues Authority over licence fees for the use of EnergyAustralia Stadium cannot be resolved.
"I would like to think that wise heads will prevail, but if they [the HVA] make it too hard for us to play there, or if we go to arbitration and they decide against us, then we might have to consider other venues," Burraston said last night. "We might have to look at relocating to Bluetongue [Stadium, at Gosford], or playing at one of those other stadiums that are prepared to pay teams to play at their venues, in order for us to survive."
Sydney venues ANZ Stadium and the SFS have deals in which they pay clubs to play some games at those grounds.
What were already difficult negotiations between the the Knights and the HVA exploded yesterday when the authority issued the club with a default notice for $792,000 in unpaid debts for the use of the ground.
Burraston said he realised the issuing of the notice had been made public when he was contacted for comment by the Herald, and he reacted by issuing a media release in which he said the Knights were "extremely disappointed to learn today that Hunter Venues has leaked details of a notice of default to the media".
The club boss also recorded a video message to assure fans the Knights would continue to try to reach a "mutually beneficial outcome" with the authority, and posted it on the club's website.
But the two parties are way off reaching an agreement at this stage, with the club claiming that if the authority was serious about which party owed the other money, then it would be the authority in debt to the Knights.
"We have the issue where we have invoiced the authority for some stadium maintenance we undertook, which they haven't paid, and we are also seeking compensation because part of the stadium, on the western side of the ground, isn't available," Burraston said.
Redevelopment work on the western grandstand area is not due to be finished until late next year. Burraston described the entry into the public arena of the default notice as a "breach of confidentiality", and said he could "only guess at what games are being played".
"We last met with the authority on March 23, and once the meeting had ended we walked out with the belief that we would still be negotiating for another two months before any action would be taken, by either side," Burraston said. "I don't know what has happened since then."
Authority chief executive Mark Zundans said the notice of demand stemmed from unpaid 2008 licence fee invoices that were issued in November, December and January.
"It was always our attempt to try and work our way through this but, at the same time, it's got to the point where we need to draw a line in the sand," he said. "They have indicated they may have sources where they could get the money, it's a matter for them."
Burraston said the Knights had a lease on the stadium for another 10 years but that because the club depended so heavily on money made from staging games they had to be very careful about the decisions they made.
"It obviously wouldn't be palatable to the people of Newcastle for the Knights to play anywhere but at EnergyAustralia," Burraston said. "And I would think that the Knights having been the only viable tenant the ground has had for 21 years would stand us in good stead. But it now becomes a month-by-month proposition. Nothing can change until the end of April, but at this stage I'm not sure what will happen after that."
Burraston said the drama would not affect the club's ability to pay its players.
Knights threaten to leave Newcastle over stadium row
Greg Prichard and Matthew Kelly
April 1, 2009
League HQ
KNIGHTS chief executive Steve Burraston says it is possible the club will be forced to take the extraordinary step of playing home games away from Newcastle if their dispute with the Hunter Venues Authority over licence fees for the use of EnergyAustralia Stadium cannot be resolved.
"I would like to think that wise heads will prevail, but if they [the HVA] make it too hard for us to play there, or if we go to arbitration and they decide against us, then we might have to consider other venues," Burraston said last night. "We might have to look at relocating to Bluetongue [Stadium, at Gosford], or playing at one of those other stadiums that are prepared to pay teams to play at their venues, in order for us to survive."
Sydney venues ANZ Stadium and the SFS have deals in which they pay clubs to play some games at those grounds.
What were already difficult negotiations between the the Knights and the HVA exploded yesterday when the authority issued the club with a default notice for $792,000 in unpaid debts for the use of the ground.
Burraston said he realised the issuing of the notice had been made public when he was contacted for comment by the Herald, and he reacted by issuing a media release in which he said the Knights were "extremely disappointed to learn today that Hunter Venues has leaked details of a notice of default to the media".
The club boss also recorded a video message to assure fans the Knights would continue to try to reach a "mutually beneficial outcome" with the authority, and posted it on the club's website.
But the two parties are way off reaching an agreement at this stage, with the club claiming that if the authority was serious about which party owed the other money, then it would be the authority in debt to the Knights.
"We have the issue where we have invoiced the authority for some stadium maintenance we undertook, which they haven't paid, and we are also seeking compensation because part of the stadium, on the western side of the ground, isn't available," Burraston said.
Redevelopment work on the western grandstand area is not due to be finished until late next year. Burraston described the entry into the public arena of the default notice as a "breach of confidentiality", and said he could "only guess at what games are being played".
"We last met with the authority on March 23, and once the meeting had ended we walked out with the belief that we would still be negotiating for another two months before any action would be taken, by either side," Burraston said. "I don't know what has happened since then."
Authority chief executive Mark Zundans said the notice of demand stemmed from unpaid 2008 licence fee invoices that were issued in November, December and January.
"It was always our attempt to try and work our way through this but, at the same time, it's got to the point where we need to draw a line in the sand," he said. "They have indicated they may have sources where they could get the money, it's a matter for them."
Burraston said the Knights had a lease on the stadium for another 10 years but that because the club depended so heavily on money made from staging games they had to be very careful about the decisions they made.
"It obviously wouldn't be palatable to the people of Newcastle for the Knights to play anywhere but at EnergyAustralia," Burraston said. "And I would think that the Knights having been the only viable tenant the ground has had for 21 years would stand us in good stead. But it now becomes a month-by-month proposition. Nothing can change until the end of April, but at this stage I'm not sure what will happen after that."
Burraston said the drama would not affect the club's ability to pay its players.