Bill Quinn to front next Networking session

Bill Quinn, chairman of our great Oldham Rugby League Club, has promised an insight into his career when he becomes the next guest speaker at next Monday’s fifth Roughyeds’ Networking session at Boundary Park.

These promotional get-togethers, attracting sponsors, potential sponsors, local and national companies and others interested in meeting like-minded business people for mutual benefit, shows the depth with which our managing director Mike Ford and commercial manager Kieran O’Reilly are working in order to take our once top-of-the-tree club back to where it once was, writes ROGER HALSTEAD.

It all began in February and there have been such meetings over breakfast in the Boundary Park Broadway Suite on the last Monday of February, March, April and May, featuring guest speakers of the calibre of George Ford, Mike’s middle son with nearly 100 England RU caps at fly-half, Paul Sculthorpe, Terry Flanagan and Robert Hicks, a top official at the Rugby Football League and a former full-time referee who has handled World Cup ties and more domestic finals than you could imagine.

Common denominator? They’ve all been successful and they all carry the ‘made in Oldham’ trademark. Bill can’t claim that, but as Roughyeds chairman, and a man who has done well in business, who better to give his thoughts to a gathering such as this.

As I say, Ford and O’Reilly do nothing by halves and their decision to invite our club chairman to follow the afore-mentioned rugby league personalities as guest speaker at next week’s session (Mon, June 24, 10am) is both a master-stroke and a great PR exercise rolled into one.

To start with Bill is always ’news’; always with something to say. More than that, he is a successful business man in his own right and as chairman of the Roughyeds is a money man who has put more than his head on the block.

At the age of 58 (that’s ‘58 years young’ he insists), he has promised an insight into his business career.

“I’ll talk about my fight with the banks, and the highs and lows of my business career, and I’ll give my opinion on business, finance and banks,” he told me.

Bill runs several businesses in demolition, finance, property, energy and sportswear.

He is the man with the money in this remarkable Oldham resurgence and the hopes and ambitions of thousands of rugby league lovers rest on the shoulders of this man and his advisors.

Says Bill:

“I’m loving every minute of it. We are way, way ahead of where we thought we would be. We have a vision and we are ahead of schedule. We are working hard on and off the field and so long as we continue to do that we will continue to move forward.

“Things are looking good.”