BY JOHN DAVIDSON
Mason Caton-Brown says his consortium bidding to relaunch Salford Rugby League club wants a clean break from the previous club’s administration and wants to build “something that’s sustainable and what people can be proud of”.
A former Red Devils winger, Caton-Brown is fronting ‘The Phoenix Bid’ group that has applied to the RFL to take over the previous license and operate a new Salford club in the Championship next year. The group includes Salfordians and businessmen Malcolm Crompton, Paul Hancock and tech entrepreneur Ashley Washington.
Part of their plan is to run a part-time outfit in the Championship next year and play out of the CorpAcq Stadium.
“We want to be separate from the previous [Salford] owners,” Caton-Brown told rugbyleaguehub.com Long Reads.
“We just want to have a clean start. Our main agenda is about the community and the club and the fans.
“We want to build something that the city can be proud of, the club can be proud of. Not just a big gamble on a big loan like they’ve had in the past. We want to build something that’s sustainable and that people can be proud of.”
Caton-Brown played for Salford from 2014 to 2016, making 35 appearances. The 32-year-old has lived in the city for several years and wants to preserve rugby league’s 152-year history in the area.
“I moved to Salford when I was 21 and the city and the club welcomed me with open arms,” he said.
“I was a bit tentative at first, but I really enjoy living in Salford and it made me who I am today.
“When I saw the club was at risk of going under, I thought what could I do to be part of the solution. And I got involved in a new consortium, initially it was me and Paul Hancock, and that was about a month ago and it’s taken off.
“We’ve got a big group and have got a lot of things done. We’ve got a group of people who have committed capital, and it’s not just for next year but it’s for ongoing years. It’s a long-term commitment.
“The most important thing is it’s from Salford fans, who are from Salford. It’s a strong group – we’ve got commercial directors, managing directors, people who have done well for themselves and feel like they’re should be a club in Salford and want to preserve that history and be a part of it.”
Hancock is the owner of the businesses P.H Gas Services, Pete’s Installations and Pete’s Plumbing Supplies. Crompton is from Salford but lives in Australia, while Washington is the CEO of the company behind the lifestyle shopping app Shocal.
Salford have been pencilled in to start the new Championship season on January 17, giving whoever wins the license just a month to build a roster and staff. But Caton-Brown is confident his group can get it done, if successful.
” We’ve had conversations with coaches, players, staff, but until we get the bid confirmed and the green light there’s not much we can do in terms of making things concrete,” he said.
“We’ve also had talks with sponsors, kit, we’re doing a lot of work at the moment. It’s really picked up.
“We spoke to the council to find out if they wanted Salford to play at the stadium again. And we’re both in line with that.
“Obviously, nothing can be concrete yet, but the council has its intentions to keep Salford playing at the stadium.
“It’s obviously very sensitive, we’re one of several consortiums bidding, but to have an agreement in place is not really possible because we don’t have the green light, but we have that understanding that the council will agree to have Salford play at the stadium.”
Salford Red Devils were liquidated a fortnight ago after ongoing financial issues.
Caton-Brown described the destruction of the club as “a nightmare”.
“I’ve been in this situation before at London Broncos, when I first started,” he admitted.
“It’s horrible for the players, for the staff, for the fans, it’s even worse. It’s a horrible situation all round.
“I spoke to Paul Hancock and we want to be part of the solution to get this off the ground and to get this preserved – there needs to be a club in Salford and it needs to be led by the right people.
“I think we’ve got the right vision in place and hopefully if it’s successful we can build something really amazing for Salford.”
