Bears fans have been told to wait at least a fortnight before being given some idea of what the future holds for their club.

Owner Romek Kriwald was hoping to make some progress this week in his three-point plan of bringing in fresh investment, a new coach and additional playing talent to the BBL club.

Intriguingly, those plans have been out on hold as, in Kriwald's words: "People I am having meaningful discussions with are busy because their season has not yet finished.

"It's a little slower than I hoped it would be. Nothing will happen for a couple of weeks because of other people's commitments."

Kriwald's jobs this week included driving some of his under-achieving squad to the airport for flights back across the Atlantic.

How many of them return for next season remains to be seen.

Dave Wahl topped a poll on the club website, asking which players the fans would most like to come back. Errol Seaman was, perhaps surprisingly, in second place with Daniel Hildreth third.

Curiously, less than a third of fans who voted wanted free-scoring Kevin Wallace back.

Wahl has caught the eye as one of Bears' best rebounders in years and also started to recover some of his shooting accuracy after a barren spell in mid-season.

The 6ft 8ins Canadian was enjoying a post match beer at Thames Valley last Saturday when Kriwald dropped the biggest hint yet he would be invited back.

Bears' chief said: "The guy in front of me there has made a heck of a contribution.

"He came second behind Wilbur Johnson in the supporters club poll for player-of-the-season and there are a lot of good judges of basketball players within that group.

"But there are a number of people who might hope to come back and perhaps should expect to."

One man who will not be coming back of course, is coach Mark Dunning.

He was invited behind closed doors minutes after last week's defeat at Bracknell and given the bad news.

Dunning then spoke to all his players in turn, wishing them well and handing them typed assessments of their efforts and advice about what they needed to work on.

He said: "I probably half expected the news although the signs were Romek had taken on board the importance of continuity. There are so few opportunities in our game but I will be looking to get back into coaching.

"I don't like the ethos and philosophy of our league but it is the only place I can get paid to do what I do. There are a lot of people in the game with delusions of grandeur, from the governing body down.

"It frustates everybody and you end up getting a bit cynical. You either walk away from the game or you keep working quietly in your own area and insulate yourself to what is going on.

"A lot of good people do that. That's what I will probably do."

It was typically forthright stuff from Dunning, a man of strong views who is not afraid to upset people. His sit down protest in the final quarter of a defeat by Sheffield will long be remembered.

So will some of his timeout ploys. Such as in that same Sheffield match, when he sent his players back out after a Sharks timeout, waited for everyone to get ready to re-start play, then called them back in for another chat.

Or a London Towers clash when he called a timeout, waited for the visitors to get in the huddle, then sent Bears straight back out to play against no opposition.

The officials deemed the move illegal and ordered Bears to take the full minute.

Then there were those programme notes, the most cryptic since Kevin Cadle was waxing lyrical with Kingston and usually rounded off with an eclectic selection of quotes.

He was certainly a character. Now Bears hope he has also laid some foundations for an overdue upturn in their fortunes.