Saturday May 5 2012 dawned bright over High Wycombe, however as a capacity crowd of 10,510 slowly filtered up the hill and into the stadium there was an air of tension.

If Wasps lost by more than 24 points they would face relegation to the second tier of English rugby and almost certain insolvency.

Even surviving that final game almost didn’t save Wasps. Although we fans will never know for sure, many media outlets reported that the club was only half-an-hour from going out of business before a deal was struck for current chairman Derek Richardson to buy the club.

Almost four years on, and it is safe to say the turnaround has been magnificent.

The club now owns a 32,500 seater stadium within a complex that boasts a hotel, casino and conferencing facilities. This has allowed it to develop a non-rugby income, which in turn allows sustainable development on the field.

This was financed by the issue of a secured corporate bond that raised £35 million. This revolutionary thinking is a new approach for a rugby club, and has allowed the club to structure its debt in a very low-risk way.

Watch: Christian Wade looking sharp in training

Christian Wade
VIDEO LOADING

Saracens were recently revealed to be around £45 million in debt to the club’s owners, which means their debt levels could keep growing, as they have no fixed time during which it must be repaid. By contrast, both the term and interest rate of Wasps’ loan are fixed, meaning it cannot spiral out of control.

No other club in the world has used the model of building a complete entertainment brand as effectively as this; the crowning glory of which will come in June when Rihanna brings her tour to the Ricoh Arena.

As much as the business success and stability of Wasps pleases me, what I really like about the new regime is its desire to keep Wasps’ core beliefs at the heart of everything they do.

Of the 23 players that featured against Newcastle in the crucial relegation battle in 2012, five are still in the squad today, as is boss Dai Young who took over halfway through that season. Almost everything that has happened over the last four years has built a stable base, from which a stable club has grown, none of which, as I am sure all Wasps’ fans will agree, has been to the detriment of performances on the pitch.

Alex Chinery,who works in London for an investment Management firm, has been a Wasps fan as long as he can remember, after attending his first game aged five.

He has attended all Wasps’ cup wins this millennium, and lists Rob Howley’s last-gasp try against Toulouse as a particular highlight