Newcastle Thunder Membership Update

Thunder advance planning, launch memberships and set new fans meeting date

Newcastle Thunder have announced that the next Supporters Update Meeting will be held in the 1877 Bar (East Stand) at Kingston Park Stadium on Monday 4 December commencing at 19:00. At the event, the volunteer group led by Chair Keith Christie, will update supporters and partners on the progress to date across fundraising, steps to gain acceptance into the BetFred League One competition, venue discussions, coaching staff and squad updates. There will also be more information about the volunteer roles that will need to be filled to give Thunder the best chance of being competitive in 2024.
 
The club have broken the next 12 months down into three phases.
 

• Phase One – Gaining acceptance into League One. New company formed, ownership transferred from Thunder Rugby Ltd (current owners), financial plan confirmed, RFL compliance satisfied.
• Phase Two – Pre-season and building the squad. Coach and support staff appointed, players signed, pre-season training commenced, home venue confirmed, volunteer roles identified and fixtures announced.
• Phase Three – The BetFred League One season. All matches completed in League Ones, Challenge Cup and 1895 Cup. Partnerships with Super League and Championship clubs developed, commercial programme implemented, 2025 planning commences.

 
Speaking about the progress to date and the fundraising efforts Chair Keith Christie said:
 
“An incredible amount of work has been undertaken so far in realising our goal to get a competitive Thunder team back on the field in League One for 2024. Can I thank all the volunteers who have stepped forward with offers of help, to our sponsors for their commitment to back the club, and to everyone who has committed to a Membership for 2024.
 
“We’ve identified three clear phases to the next season. We are very much focussed on Phase One and gaining acceptance to the RFL BetFred League One competition. Without this the next two parts of the jigsaw don’t happen. The most important part of this initial stage is ensuring the finances are in place and that’s why our membership programme is so important. We have hit 40% of our membership target in the first 5 days of launching which is a brilliant start. But there’s still more members that we need to attract, so we would urge all rugby league fans in the region and beyond to step up now and commit for 2024.
 
“We also have to start looking at Phases Two and Three of our planning as time isn’t a luxury we have ahead of the season start in 2024. Thoughts around coaching staff, players, venue, support staff and what match-days will look like are all advancing, but our focus first and foremost is getting the green light to compete. Without the finances confirmed we can’t and won’t start the 2024 season so Phase One is absolutely critical.
 
“Our thanks go to Semore Kurdi and the staff at Kingston Park who have been really helpful in the transfer of ownership to a new structure. We can share more information at the supporters meeting on Monday 4 December and we need another strong turnout to keep the momentum going.” 
Memberships are now available for fans to pledge to by clicking here. There are four levels of membership offering different levels of benefits with payments available on a monthly basis across the top two tiers. Crucially no payment will be taken until Thunder are confirmed to compete in 2024.