NEWCASTLE coach Wayne Bennett has warned the club's supporters against getting caught up in the anti-Nathan Tinkler fervour sweeping the Hunter region over the coal baron's financial problems.
Bennett, who has seven NRL premierships with two different clubs, has survived administration at both Brisbane and St George Illawarra.
On the eve of a second crisis meeting of the Newcastle Knights members' board, Bennett reminded the Tinkler critics to take a deep breath.
"Remember some of the people that ran the club in the past didn't have a great amount of success either," Bennett said yesterday. "I'm just not sure where they're coming from on this issue.
"If you look at the last 18 months and compare what we have to what we did have, there is no comparison. And that includes whether you are talking memberships, sponsorships, and playing staff. That's all because of Nathan's input.
"We all forget that some of the people throwing mud at the moment were part of those past administrations that had the club in pretty poor shape.
"Nathan didn't get a clean slate when he started."
Tinkler's Hunter Sports Group and subsidiaries, the NRL Knights and A-League Newcastle Jets, are now the subject of Australian Taxation Office legal action to recover $2.67 million in debts.
Tinkler bought the Jets in September 2010 and took over the Knights in March last year, when his empire was worth $1.18 billion.
Chairman of the Knights members' board Nicolas Dan said one option was to buy the club back from Tinkler for $1.
"The $1 fee was the price Tinkler agreed to when the members overwhelmingly voted to hand over the club to him," Dan said. "It would be remiss of us as a board not to test the waters (on a buyback). With every new day comes fresh revelations of Tinkler's crumbling business empire.
"We've also requested Matt Gidley, the Knights chief executive, and Hunter Sports Group chief Troy Palmer and Paul Harragon to be present for a full and frank review of the club's current financial position."
Bennett will also be present at today's meeting, after attending the one called last week following the ATO action. But the 62-year-old said he had no knowledge of any ultimatum for Tinkler to hand back the club to members.
"I'm not familiar that's happening," he said.
"This meeting is working through some of the issues we went through last week and making sure that we're up to date on everything that we're doing."
Bennett said he wanted Tinkler to remain as club owner.
"Absolutely. Everyone has talked about Nathan a lot in recent times but there hasn't been enough talk about all the good that he's done," he said.
"He deserves the chance to work things through. That's my opinion and that won't change."
FFA chief executive David Gallop also said Tinkler needed time to fulfil his business responsibilities.
"Of course there is some concern, but we have been assured both publicly and directly that the issues will be resolved soon," Gallop said.
The members' board meeting follows Tinkler completing the sale on Saturday of Caulfield Guineas winner All Too Hard and his first foray into horse racing, Patinack Farm, at Aberdeen in the NSW Hunter Valley for $30m to Vinery Stud.
Vinery Stud is part-owned by retail king Gerry Harvey and Black Caviar's owner Neil Werrett. Tinkler's private jet and helicopter were repossessed recently and his private suite at ANZ Stadium, valued at $165,000, is also on the market.
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