Crusaders Fans Asked To Vote For New Club Name

Crusaders fans have unanimously backed plans to put forward a bid to enter a team to play in next year’s Cooperative Championship 1 at an open meeting held at Wrexham’s Racecourse Ground on Thursday night.

If approved their bid is approved by the Rugby Football League, the club will either be known as “Glyndwr Crusaders”, “Cambrian Crusaders” or “North Wales Crusaders”.

The Crusaders Supporters Club and Save The Cru who are both forming the new club are asking fans to vote online for the new name.

The fans decided almost unanimously that the Crusaders name will remain even though it is a brand new club but were undecided on the prefix so they decided to throw it open to the wider majority.

Fans can vote for the new name online by clicking here, the deadline for voting is 11am on Friday 7th October.

Around 120 Crusaders supporters attended the meeting, as well as Wales Rugby League President Mike Nicholas and Chris Thair from the Club Support department of the Rugby Football League.

Other matters discussed at what was an historic first meeting for the new club included the playing venue, coach, players and funding.

The club are confident that the current deal with Glyndwr University for the team to play at the Racecourse remains both valid and viable.

It was also stated that the university, which owns the Racecourse Ground, was not behind the controversial alternative bid to form a club in Wrexham and that the bid from a team called “Glyndwr Chargers” was just using the Glyndwr name.

CVs have recently been received from a number of coaches expressing an interest in the role at Crusaders. It is hoped that any coach would be of such standing that they could either bring or attract players to come and play for the club.

It was also emphasised that former owners Geoff Moss and Ian Roberts are no longer involved in the club and that the new outfit will be partially owned by a Supporters Trust as well as a number of individuals and organisations throughout the area.

Jamie Thomas from Save The Cru said: “I’d like to thank everyone for attending, the enthusiasm shown by the fans of the club was outstanding.

“There is a long way to go but we are hopeful that the new club will launch in a similar vein to Rochdale and Hunslet who are doing well with having no single owner, which is where Crusaders and others have failed in the past.

He said that the club would be looking to set up a share issue where fans and others can buy into the club for a minimum of £100.

The Rugby Football League will be considering the new club’s application and if they are admitted into the lower tier of the professional game, they would take on South Wales Scorpions in the first professional Wales Rugby League derby in almost 102 years.