Crusaders - a success in 2010

[Wendall]

The 2010 Super League attendances for Crusaders, whose switch from South Wales to Wrexham

[1976PMJwires]

I have been impressed with attitude of all involved with the club.

Good luck to them for the coming years.

There is loads of talent in Wales, and i would prefer to see more Welsh teams than French.

Good Luck in the Europeans as well. (national side before some smart ass says )

[sgorpioncaerdyddrob]

Must say I didn't think it would work better up in Wrexham , but the club have made some considerable improvements playing and fanbase size wise. Jut need to start setting down more solid foundations to keep it going on from here.

[thirteenthman]

Must say I didn't think it would work better up in Wrexham , but the club have made some considerable improvements playing and fanbase size wise. Jut need to start setting down more solid foundations to keep it going on from here.

And therein lies the problem. Will they lay down foundations, or will the current owners seek to offload the club at the first opportunity. The initial enthusiasm shown in Wrexham has levelled off quite a bit crowd-wise. And of course the big crowds early on would've helped the averages. It'll be interesting to see what player recuitment will be like for next year, not to mention whether the Noble rumours are true or not.

The big question is, what would the crowds be like in Wrexham if they had a season like last year? Their run to the play-offs isn't exactly packing them in at the moment.

[Dave T]

Must admit, whilst the average seems generally positive, there are some warning signs which cannot be ignored.

The average was boosted by the opening few games, and despite the team having some good performances the home crowds have dropped pretty much week on week. Their home fanbase is around 2k, which is as low as our worst performing clubs, and didn't increase too much even with the visit of the likes of Warrington and Wigan which surprised me.

It will be very interesting to see what kind of crowd they get against Saints, in what may be a crucial game against one of the biggest names around.

I hope they can build on this year, as it is a great place to go and watch RL and it does have that genuine Welsh Club feel about it.

[Derwent]

This all depends on what you think is most important - the absolute average or the trend.

At the moment the average is good but the trend isn't.

[Dave T]

This all depends on what you think is most important - the absolute average or the trend.

At the moment the average is good but the trend isn't.

The trend clearly has to be most important here.

The average won't give you an idea of the future crowds, but the trends certainly will, and they don't look good.

[sallywt]

The trend clearly has to be most important here.

The average won't give you an idea of the future crowds, but the trends certainly will, and they don't look good.

Maybe so but to include the Neath matches in that trend would be at best short sighted. There are also other trends to take into account like the fact that the gates for Friday and Saturday evening are much better than those for Sunday afternoons and have been all through the season.

[Dave T]

Maybe so but to include the Neath matches in that trend would be at best short sighted. There are also other trends to take into account like the fact that the gates for Friday and Saturday evening are much better than those for Sunday afternoons and have been all through the season.

Of course the trends aren't everything, and you could argue that the sample is still very small as there are plenty of variables as you point out.

I didn't include the Neath games in any of my commentary (hence the 2k fanbase), but they have still attracted less than 3k for 3 of the last 4 games, down from over 6k against Catalans earlier in the year.

It will be interesting to see whether they make a firm decision around their matchday etc for next season.

[FullFat]

I think on the whole the move to Wrexham has to be seen as a success. The crowds from the first few games shows the potential that is there and the success that has followed on the pitch this season can only help. Where I think the issue has been is the arrangement as part of the move to go "on the road" with a few games which has not been a success.

The club needs to pick a set night to stage games for the whole of next season (Fri or Sat if that's when the crowds seem to prefer it). Get people into the habit of going same time every week and build from that.

I for one at the start of the season did not expect them to even win a game with the delay in getting a squad together and the late preparation of the players.

Hats off to them they have come through a very difficult year and performed admirably.