58 replies to this topic

[EastLondonMike]

Personally I think east London would be a good choice for a Broncos move. A huge catchment area, with Stratford having excellent transport links to north, south and east London, as welll as all of Essex. But then again I am slightly biased in my opinion.

But no site in London is going to prove successful without some substantial marketing and a successful team on the pitch.

Edited by EastLondonMike, 13 January 2013 - 12:02 AM.

[Just Browny]

I read RedRooster's post carefully, but couldn't see the bit where he suggested what the Broncos should actaully do in his opinion. There was a lot about what they shouldn't.

[Pottsy]

If it's to be Brisbane Road (rather fitting, eh?) the Broncos could do worse than offering the Hearns the opportunity to buy in.

Those fellas have done wonders for Darts, Snooker and Boxing and are well connected.

[latchford albion]

Some interesting points, I would like to stress though as I have done on many occasions that Stratford, Leyton and that neck of the woods is not a great catchment area for the Broncos, yes the Leyton ground is a nice boutique stadium but Leyton is now a very different area to what it was 20 years ago and I don't see it as the type of suburban style London area that could support a pro rugby league team.

Blackheath....your right the ground is below super league standard but, could it be developed by the Broncos and the union club with both being co tenants and a deal which would enable London to gain matchday and other revenues. Blackheath is in the heart of residential Greenwich and Greenwich has great potential as a rugby league borough due to it's suburban, historic nature.

White Hart Lane....I do think there's some potential there for the land to be bought jointly by the RFL, Skolars and Broncos and develop into a kind of London rugby league centre but having been to the stadium and local area I have some reservations especially as the ground is situated on a residential road in need of serious redevelopment, Tottenham are a few yards down the road and I was not surprised at all when they attempted to up sticks to the Olympics stadium.

Maybe I'm too close to notice, but I've lived in Leyton since 1986 and can't see any changes that would have a negative effect on potential support for rugby league. I don't see East London being a panacea for the Broncos, but neither do I see it as a place where a successful team wouldn't be supported.

Edited by latchford albion, 13 January 2013 - 05:13 PM.

[Pottsy]

The other thing Leyton has going for it is proximity to the Olympic Park which in a year or two will be something of a tourist attraction in its own right.

[Pottsy]

The other thing Leyton has going for it is proximity to the Olympic Park which in a year or two will be something of a tourist attraction in its own right.

[THE RED ROOSTER]

I read RedRooster's post carefully, but couldn't see the bit where he suggested what the Broncos should actaully do in his opinion. There was a lot about what they shouldn't.

Someone reads me !

In an ideal world the only co-tenants that would make sense are the London Skolars and to redevelop "Rugby League park" at the New River Stradium.

This however is likely to remain in the realms of fantasy for the following reasons:

• There would be considerable opposition from local residents to redeveloping New River. It is one thing having a semi-pro club drawing 400 to the ground it would be another to have a club drawing - optimisticaly - 4,000 to the ground. Issues such as parking would come to the fore. Given the gentrification of large areas of inner city London including Tottenham a well organised protest group run by middle clasds professionals could cause considerable problems in getting planning permission as they rather than fans of the clubs live in the area and can vote. Nigel Wray Saracens owner is on record as saying that his stadium and Tottenham Hotspurs new ground are likely to be the last new build stadiums in London for the forseeable future.
• You also have to be considerably cashed up to redevelop the ground to an acceptable standard and at the same time get through the planning process. Gus Mackay has admitted the club has no money, it would be great for the Broncos to have an additional / new investor . However you do not make a lot of money in this world by having a lack of common sense and whilst as an investor you would not expect any kind of a return on your investment, incinerating your money in a club which has yet to demonstrate that there is a market for a successful team is an expensive hobby. In short, you expect to take a loss, the question here is the unsustainable size of the loss running a full time professional outfit would incur in the short / medium term..
• Any move to North / East London will probably cost the club 25% of its existing small fanbase. Can you be absolutely certain that these fans would be replaced in East London ?. For you northerners, if you want a comparitor, if you relocated Salford from Barton to Belle Vue how many of the reds hardcore would follow?

The Daddys idea of Blackheath would fail for the dual reasons of finance and the antipathy of a vocal minority of RL fans to all things Union.

The logic of the move to Gillingham was following the formula deemed to be successful in establishing a new sport in virgin territory. Basically go to where established sports are weak or non-existant and you become the local sporting attraction. That said the Gillingham Gulls would not be the London Broncos and the whole rationale behind the Broncos "value" to superleague is as the capital club.

So to answer your question Browny, a bit like the Labour Chancellor mentioned earlier in this thread, I have lots of negative comments but little by the way of a solution, although I at least recognise that the clubs predicament has come about through mismanagement over a number of years. Things are now coming to a head and although I am of the view that London was never infertile territory for the game I am afraid as a professional full time sport in the capital the Broncos time may have come and gone.

The unpalatble truth is that as with any product there is a definable limit to the number of times you can re-brand ad re-locate before most people conclude that there is no market for the product.

[Bleep1673]

I think a move to Gillingham should be looked at very carefully.

Medway Dragons did a lot to publicise the game, but would they be expected to do this every Home game? Also, there was a lot of novelty factor with last years game against Hull, how many spectators could they guarantee each game if they move to the Priestfield? I wouldn't because it's a nightmare to get to from Hastings, but thats just my lazyness.
Gillingham Town Centre is a dump, sorry to those who live there, but it is. The pubs were friendly enough, but there wasn't enough choice to eat/drink/kids friendly, before or after the game.
Nice stadium, looked really nice with 3 stands open, and thanks to the Hull fan who sold me a cut price ticket, but I can't see Gillingham as the home Base for LBRFLC
Not too sure about Brentford either, Nice ground, but that Eastern terrace is a bit open is rough weather, and it's not as accessable as Western Londoners like to make out, especially on trains or buses, there are a LOT of changes on LRT to consider. At least Gillingham is walking distance from the train staton, even if it is outside Zone 6 on the TfL Network.

[gingerjon]

London Broncos should stay as far away from Matchroom Sport as possible.

Anything else that has a chance of working should be considered.

[Lobbygobbler]

I think a move to Gillingham should be looked at very carefully.

Medway Dragons did a lot to publicise the game, but would they be expected to do this every Home game? Also, there was a lot of novelty factor with last years game against Hull, how many spectators could they guarantee each game if they move to the Priestfield? I wouldn't because it's a nightmare to get to from Hastings, but thats just my lazyness.
Gillingham Town Centre is a dump, sorry to those who live there, but it is. The pubs were friendly enough, but there wasn't enough choice to eat/drink/kids friendly, before or after the game.
Nice stadium, looked really nice with 3 stands open, and thanks to the Hull fan who sold me a cut price ticket, but I can't see Gillingham as the home Base for LBRFLC
Not too sure about Brentford either, Nice ground, but that Eastern terrace is a bit open is rough weather, and it's not as accessable as Western Londoners like to make out, especially on trains or buses, there are a LOT of changes on LRT to consider. At least Gillingham is walking distance from the train staton, even if it is outside Zone 6 on the TfL Network.

Personally I'd like the club to move to Orient but to play on the road games in other parts of London and Kent (e.g. Gillingham and Brentford). It would also be cool if the club could play a big annual game at Fulham if that was feasible. On the road games break the monotony

The Eastern Terrace at Brentford now has a stand over it.

[Hemel Rugby League]

The costs of trying to develop a ground are huge.

At Hemel, where we are trying to build a ground to Championships standards largely through our own financial resources, the cost of planning permission was £126,000 - that was before the first turf was turned.

The additional final building costs will fall not far short of £500,000. There is very little money available in the sport to do this so most of the funds have to come from selling 'pints of beer', our MUGA and collecting £1 coins on the doorsteps of Hemel via our local lottery each week and we rely heavily on volunteers to make it happen.

At Hemel, we are doing this becauise we will have a ground, albeit modest and with defects, that we can call our own and from which all revenue generated will be our own.

It would be nice for an 'investor' to come in but what sort of investment is a facility that will probably only attract crowds in the 00's to Championships matches and even low 000's to Super League matches.

Even if our six numbers and the bomus ball came up next Saturday night there is still the horrendous running costs of a stadium - hence why a lot of clubs prefer to rent their ground for matchday only. But doing this means you are always a tenant and never a landlord. And that creates other problems.

[ArmchairRhino]

London Broncos should stay as far away from Matchroom Sport as possible.

Why's that Jon?

[gingerjon]

Why's that Jon?

I can't really reply without sending John Drake prematurely bald.

I'll leave it as: I wouldn't trust Barry Hearn's motivations regarding any sport as far as I could throw the man. And I would dearly love to throw the man.

[ArmchairRhino]

I can't really reply without sending John Drake prematurely bald.

I'll leave it as: I wouldn't trust Barry Hearn's motivations regarding any sport as far as I could throw the man. And I would dearly love to throw the man.

ok

[RP London]

Personally I'd like the club to move to Orient but to play on the road games in other parts of London and Kent (e.g. Gillingham and Brentford). It would also be cool if the club could play a big annual game at Fulham if that was feasible. On the road games break the monotony

The Eastern Terrace at Brentford now has a stand over it.

you and me tend to disagree on all things London and home grounds.. and though in this case i dont necessarly agree with "basing" at Orient i really dont understand why the RFL would have an issue (and i dont know if they would) with the Broncos playing a hell of a lot of games "on the road" around London with one base (maybe orient, i have less of an issue of there are more ont he road games) which serves for a large number of games and is there HO address (for want of a better way of looking at it)..

It is after all the capital's club, it would help spread the word to more people, it would open up areas for "novelty" games so asking a large area to go maybe twice a year and if they like it to then travel around.. it would give "novelty" advertising ability which may be easier, it would help have the "medway dragons effect" of one off sales through schools/clubs etc and people doing it once rather than every week...

Basically i just think on the road is a good way to go for the london team. it is a different and difficult city to do soemthing in, it has different pressures of travel and time that is very difficult to get to grips with outside of London etc etc and i just think that if one club can serve the area then it would work and its the best way to do it IMHO

[lionwolf]

Essex would be a better place given that a number of past or present Ford employees who live in the area who used to work at the nearby car plant at Dagenham many of whom were transferred from various Ford plants in the North of England who have a affinity for RL from the days when they worked at places like Halewood which in RL terms encompassed Widnes, Warrington, St Helens, Wigan, Salford, Leigh and Swinton which meant many Ford Halewood employees came mostly from Lancashire and Cheshire and also (after 1974) Merseyside and Greater Manchester.

[Bazz]

Essex would be a better place given that a number of past or present Ford employees who live in the area who used to work at the nearby car plant at Dagenham many of whom were transferred from various Ford plants in the North of England who have a affinity for RL from the days when they worked at places like Halewood which in RL terms encompassed Widnes, Warrington, St Helens, Wigan, Salford, Leigh and Swinton which meant many Ford Halewood employees came mostly from Lancashire and Cheshire and also (after 1974) Merseyside and Greater Manchester.

I work in Canary Wharf and many of the people I work with are from the Dagenham,Romford and Hornchurch areas.They and their families have no interest in any sport other than football (and then only West Ham,Arsenal or Spurs).

RL is way off the radar.

[flyingking]

Confirmation that the broncos will be re-relocating http://www.bbc.co.uk...league/21026525

[Manx RL]

Confirmation that the broncos will be re-relocating http://www.bbc.co.uk...league/21026525

Confirmation that the broncos are looking to relocate http://www.bbc.co.uk...league/21026525