Rob Burrow’s dad begs for government support; plus eye-catching Castleford off-field recruitment

James Gordon 09 Nov 2021 7:30 AM

Rob Burrow family anguish over MND funding snub

The story of Rob Burrow transcends rugby league and his proud dad Geoff has taken the battle to Parliament.

MND research was left out of a public spending review by Chancellor Rishi Sunak, after they asked for £50m support.

Describing his family’s anguish, Mr Burrow wept and said: “If the MPs had to live one day, or one week, as a family, with somebody with MND, they’d do something. Please do something.”

Off-field recruitment at Castleford

Interesting to see that Castleford are recruiting for a Head of Fan Engagement.

With central funding cut, clubs now have to get out there and improve their marketing offering.

The full-time role has a negotiable salary.

The job description includes: “As part of our expansion plans, we are looking to recruit a Head of Fan Experience to help us deliver a first-class match day experience at the Mend A Hose Jungle.

“The role will encompass building the profile of the Club by looking for ways to improve the fan experience both on and away from matchdays.

“The successful candidate will be expected to grow the number of memberships, market and enhance the overall matchday experience and be comfortable analysing data.”

More Championship moves

Championship clubs continue to announce moves in the market.

London Broncos have brought in Australian forward Rob Tuliatu as they continue their re-build.

Former Warrington youngster Cole Oakley has moved to Halifax, who have in turn lost Connor Robinson to League 1 side Doncaster.

Newcastle have landed a key retention by keeping half-back Jake Shorrocks.

Marketing matters

If you’ve not seen this thread on Twitter over the weekend…

Marketing matters more than the product.

Don't believe me?

Here's how Jon Spoelstra tripled sales marketing a product nobody wanted — the NJ Nets 🏀👇

— Joe Portsmouth (@joe_portsmouth) November 6, 2021

We’ve broken it down and related it to rugby league. Hopefully we see marked improvement all round.

Fan activism

On the subject of improvement, so-called rugby league ‘activist’ Andrew Foster is the latest guest on the Think Fan Engagement podcast.

🆕🆕The latest Fan Engagement Pod is out, this week it's with activist & Rugby League fan, @andrewfoster101 https://t.co/QRKlTQo8hY

Listen, like, subscribe via your fave podcast app#fanengagement #sportsbiz #RugbyLeague

— Think Fan Engagement (@ThinkEngagement) November 5, 2021