BESIEGED Titans co-owner Darryl Kelly has a message for those who believe the Titans are on death’s door, defiantly declaring last night: “I’m here to stay.”
Breaking his silence amid the cocaine scandal that has rocked Queensland sport, Kelly told The Sunday Mail he has no plans to abandon a Titans club relying on his investment to stay alive.
Speculation sweeping league circles yesterday suggested Kelly was reviewing his 47.2 per cent stake in the club following the Titans duo Beau Falloon and Jamie Dowling being charged with supplying cocaine.
But the 64-year-old white knight vowed to bankroll the Titans for the long haul, scuppering suggestions the NRL could strip their licence as part of a Gold Coast rescue.
“I will say this now ... I’m here to stay,” Kelly said on Saturday night.
“I am committed to see this through and I will do my darndest to make sure this club is successful.
“This (the cocaine scandal) has also galvanised me and people at the Titans. Rugby league is my sport, so I’m staying on.”
The business tycoon has pumped an estimated $5.3 million into the Titans and jokes that people could rightly question his sanity underwriting a club lurching from one crisis to the next.
When news of Falloon and Dowling’s charges broke on Friday, Kelly admits he was devastated and briefly considered his financial and emotional investment in the Titans.
“(On Friday night), I think everyone was considering their position here,” he admits.
“It was a pretty black day and I was personally physically ill.
“I was so disappointed when you put so much work in. At the moment, they are allegations but it still affects you. But the response from the public and the people like Graham Annesley (Titans CEO) and Rebecca Frizelle (chairwoman) is what can we do to help?
“At 5am (yesterday) morning when I woke up, I had a discussion with my wife to whom I’ve been married for 39 years. I said I’ve made up my mind, I’m sticking with this club. I’m convinced this is what I have to do. There is no doubt at all.
“There’s a few reasons I won’t walk. The main one is the people that would be affected by this if it was to fall over. A lot of very good people don’t deserve a kick in the guts.
“And I suppose I’m a pig-headed person who wants to see the Titans successful.
“It’s been a lot more challenging, but I built my personal business on taking over businesses that were in trouble. Everything I have done in business has been about restructuring, but the Titans is a different animal altogether and it’s a lot harder.”
Kelly is adamant the Titans can avoid becoming another sporting carcass on the holiday strip, claiming there has been no agitation from the NRL to re-brand or take over the club.
“The NRL have got confidence in the board in place now, so I don’t expect we will see any changes to our club,” he said.
“The NRL is very competitive and knowing you have the hierarchy behind you prepared to back us is great, but we’ve earned that backing with the decisions and changes we’ve made.
“Structurally, we have changed things. Our football department is new. We’re making all the right moves, we just need a few clean breaks.”
Kelly said he remained in the dark on whether the Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission will press more charges against Titans players.
“We’ve heard nothing from them, that’s a fact,” he said. “We’ll get on with things and see what charges get read out in court on March 5.