343 replies to this topic

[Northern Sol]

I watched on as Wakefield went bust and their playing roster was picked over. Watched the same before that when Crusaders nearly didn't start the season. This year HKR lost players and dropped their playing budgets.

But all three clubs did well despite the massive setbacks London have not had.

They were bankrupt and forced to leave SL two years later. Talk about revisionism.

[Old Frightful]

Sadly floggin a dead horse

Why "sadly"?

A decent sponsorship with Tescos could do wonders for the club.

[deluded pom?]

If the SL clubs collectively were interested in buying Bradford why not London?

[EastLondonMike]

Quite simply London need money.. and lots of it. For all his efforts and love of RL, David Hughes isnt going to provide the answers. The club needs a complete clear-out. Actually it needed a complete clear-out a couple of years ago and all thats happened is the rubbish has been added to. Gus McKay, is a nice enough bloke, but he's not up to the job (there's very few at the Broncos that are). The experienced players at the club (mostly Journeymen) aren't good enough, the young players who have potential just don't have the experience, and to be honest have probably been thrown in a year or two too soon, and playing in a bad side hasn't helped them at all.

The only way out for me is to leave the stoop and find a home where they are genuinely welcome, in the community and with whoever they share with, as a share is the best they could possibly hope for at the moment, and also to find a new owner with particularly deep pockets who knows how to run a sporting organisation, knows how the media works and knows how to, and is willing to spend money o promoting the club to the public. Which is something that has never been done in any guise of the London club. Unless your involved in RL in London, or are a hardcore lover of sport you wont even know there is a london club.

I first started following RL when i was 15, through watching challenge cup games on the BBC and the RL available on SKY.. i was 17 before i knew there was a club in Lonon, and that was only when i managed to find a copy of the rugbyleaguer in a west end book shop.

Every other Londoner i've met who loves RL has always discovered the game through studying in the north of England or through a girlfriend from the north.

Promotion of the club in London has always been completely non-existent..

The Broncos played at Orient last year. 5 minutes down the road is Westfield, the biggest shopping centre in Europe.. Did the Bronco's look at promoting themselves or the game via Westfield leading up to the game? A shopping centre that draws thousands of people from all over London, Essex and Kent.. of course not.

Edited by EastLondonMike, 10 March 2013 - 09:51 AM.

[Northern Sol]

If the SL clubs collectively were interested in buying Bradford why not London?

I don't think the other clubs should buy Bradford either but as far as I could tell it was only supposed to be a temporary affair and Bradford are still a well supported side that have much bigger revenues than Broncos.

The problem at Broncos is that there isn't a queue of people waiting to buy into Broncos, you only need to look at how long it took for Ian Lenighan to sell his shares. If the other clubs bought Broncos then it would be a long-term commitment (and that's why they won't).

[EastLondonMike]

Would be good (to a degree), though not particularly ethical, if News Int (SKY) purchased a major share in the Broncos, much like happened at the Brisbane Bronco's initially (i think) and at the Melbourne Storm.

One of the major factors in Football becoming such a completely dominant part of life in English society was the financial involvement of News Int. and its desire to grow the popularity of its product even further by filling all its newspapers and media outlets with blanket coverage of the sport and making non football fans think this was something they had to be part of.

[Chronicler of Chiswick]

Andy Wilson's match report in 'The Observer' read like an obituary, and it's easy to see why. With the club apparently imploding both on and off the pitch and the distinct prospect of the first sub-1000 SL gate since the demise of PSG rapidly approaching (my money's on the Cats game), I'm beginning to worry if we'll even finish the season!

[Northern Sol]

The problem with the 3-year licence is that a club that is really struggling doesn't just have to finish the current season but potentially 1-2 others. This needs to be thought about.

[Lobbygobbler]

Bring relegation back. London always "bucked up" when there was the threat of this and it made games more interesting if the playoff was a lost cause. I'd like to see the RL allow Broncos special dispensation to play at a smaller stadium to build up atmosphere etc

[Trojan]

Was the game in a worse state than it is now before the advent of London? Was the game in a better state after the advent of London? Remember Fulham was not a venture planned by the RFL but by Fulham AFC in order to make better use of the ground. The "presence" in London will soon by 33 years old and things are no better in London or in the game generally IMO. What possibly benefit do we get from the game being in London? If they were successful on the field - then I'd say persevere - if they were disappointing on the field but attracting reasonable crowds - a bit like Hull are and Leeds used to be there'd be cause to continue in London. But be fair as the Observer report says there were three times as many specators in the ground for the earlier Union game than for the later SL game. We are flogging a dead horse - most Londers clearly aren't bothered whether RL is in London or not, so why should the rest of us care? The game grew for 85 years without (for the most part) a team in London. I'm sure it could continue to prosper without one now. Apart from any other considerations I don't reckon we can afford a club in London, not when Cas are struggling and Salford and Bradford have been struggling. Consolidate into the heartlands, built up the strength of the game hopefully on the back of a successful World Cup campaign. Either that or raise the white flag to Union then we can have as much presence in London as we want.

[deluded pom?]

The game grew for 85 years? Oh you mean Cumbria and Cas. A presence in London has allowed the game to grow at amateur and semi pro levels. There are genuine southern born players playing prefessionally in the top flight. Maybe we should retract back to the "heartlands" and watch that go chest up but from a close proximity without having to leave the M62. The problem is that the flagship club in London has never been "done" properly. Just getting a team on the park and hoping people turn up is never going to work just like it's not working in Salford. Dr Koukash has realised that from day one. Bradford had to heavily subsidise the season tickets once the glory days ended.

[Terry Mullaney]

The game grew for 85 years? Oh you mean Cumbria and Cas. A presence in London has allowed the game to grow at amateur and semi pro levels. There are genuine southern born players playing prefessionally in the top flight. Maybe we should retract back to the "heartlands" and watch that go chest up but from a close proximity without having to leave the M62. The problem is that the flagship club in London has never been "done" properly. Just getting a team on the park and hoping people turn up is never going to work just like it's not working in Salford. Dr Koukash has realised that from day one. Bradford had to heavily subsidise the season tickets once the glory days ended.

Do you think the growth in London has taken place because of the Broncos SL status or would it have still happened had they been in the Championship? I appreciate that the current team has a few Londoners within it but the side doesn't appear to be of SL quality. Could the considerable growth at amateur and semi pro levels still be maintained with London Broncos in the Championship perhaps?

Edited by Terry Mullaney, 10 March 2013 - 01:29 PM.

[The Parksider]

Unless there is some central funding then the club will simply die the statement from NW in my opinion is the RFL lining up for the clubs demise,SL is already suffering from lack of sponsors and decreasing crowds and the RFL seems to be hell bent on taking the sport downmarket the demise of London would be the end of any chance of the game being taken seriously as a national sport.

I value your opinion and certainly agree with it. The spectacle of a regional sport trying to be a national one will be sad.

The massive cracks London would leave would be part papered over by Toulouse, but there's no guarantee they will make it to SL.

[zorquif]

We should make a completely artificial league - four french teams, london, birmingham, edinburgh, damn it, why not barcelona? who needs a sport based around the likes of wigan and cas?

[The Parksider]

Do you think the growth in London has taken place because of the Broncos SL status or would it have still happened had they been in the Championship? I appreciate that the current team has a few Londoners within it but the side doesn't appear to be of SL quality. Could the considerable growth at amateur and semi pro levels still be maintained with London Broncos in the Championship perhaps?

Well if you can go round the Championship club areas like Sheffield, Doncaster, York, Leigh, Swinton, Keighley, etc etc yopu will find the answer and it is simple. Second tier Rugby League doesn't attract fans or excite people to play it.

Next go round places like Leeds and Warrington and you will find growth off the back of a professional outfit. There was a lot of growth off the vback od the celtic Crusaders climb to Superleague.

If London go the RFL will keep the "London Academy" and pop that alongside the ones in Wales and Cumbria. How well it will do without London Broncos we will see but logically, it will suffer as the kids quickly realise they are working towards moving north if they make it.....

[zorquif]

Well if you can go round the Championship club areas like Sheffield, Doncaster, York, Leigh, Swinton, Keighley, etc etc yopu will find the answer and it is simple. Second tier Rugby League doesn't attract fans or excite people to play it.

Next go round places like Leeds and Warrington and you will find growth off the back of a professional outfit. There was a lot of growth off the vback od the celtic Crusaders climb to Superleague.

If London go the RFL will keep the "London Academy" and pop that alongside the ones in Wales and Cumbria. How well it will do without London Broncos we will see but logically, it will suffer as the kids quickly realise they are working towards moving north if they make it.....

Yeah - who would ever consider moving away from london to play the sport they love...

[The Parksider]

Bring relegation back. London always "bucked up" when there was the threat of this and it made games more interesting if the playoff was a lost cause.

Boy you never miss a chance. How do you think Koukash will react getting slung out of SL?

Or have you not thought past cap in hand Leigh getting promoted?

[The Parksider]

Yeah - who would ever consider moving away from london to play the sport they love...

The out and out enthusiasts for League would move. Some Welsh lads clearly love the game enough to move north.

However many lads who like their Rugby either way may well not bother to give League a go anymore.

IMHO if London go the game will fall back there, but the continued presence of a small minority of leaguies toughing it out will allow people up t'north to go round saying "Broncos are gone but they still play league in London so no harm done".

[Trojan]

The game grew for 85 years? Oh you mean Cumbria and Cas. A presence in London has allowed the game to grow at amateur and semi pro levels. There are genuine southern born players playing prefessionally in the top flight. Maybe we should retract back to the "heartlands" and watch that go chest up but from a close proximity without having to leave the M62. The problem is that the flagship club in London has never been "done" properly. Just getting a team on the park and hoping people turn up is never going to work just like it's not working in Salford. Dr Koukash has realised that from day one. Bradford had to heavily subsidise the season tickets once the glory days ended.

I recall watching a Wakefield amateur side play a London amateur side at Belle Vue in the late sixties. So amateur RL was in London long before the advent of Fulham.
All the above may be true about Bradford, Salford, Cas etc, but the difference is that people are turning out to watch those teams play in reasonable nuimbers - they're not turning out to watch London in anything lilke reasonable numbers. Watching London on TV is like playing spot the crowd. We have a superb product and some great athletes playing our game. Witness the World Club Challenge game - fantastic game fanstastic skills on show. Any Londoner who has Sky must surely be able to see this and if they are interested turn up and watch a game. Clearly they're not interested. Time to call it a day.

[Northern Sol]

The out and out enthusiasts for League would move. Some Welsh lads clearly love the game enough to move north.

However many lads who like their Rugby either way may well not bother to give League a go anymore.

If they do then they already have a hundred reasons to pick union. The money is better, the travel opportunities are better, they get to play for a London based side that won't move every so often, the career is longer, more media attention...

The only people in the South who stick with league are the hard-core.

IMHO if London go the game will fall back there, but the continued presence of a small minority of leaguies toughing it out will allow people up t'north to go round saying "Broncos are gone but they still play league in London so no harm done".

Time will tell but I suspect that it won't make that big a difference. Participation is more down to how many community development officers we have. The very people who would get axed if the "central funding" pipe dream ever came to anything.