Wellsy4HullFC Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 I think the point about just "changing the name on its own will not change anything" has been well established now. I'm not sure if anyone claimed it would. Can people stop making this point like it's some kind of ground breaking revelation that no one knew? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oliver Clothesoff Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 I can see why you’d be angry and upset if you were a Swinton fan of a certain age, however, it’s not far off 30 years since they’ve played in Swinton, so there’s a generation of people who’ve never known Swinton in Swinton. The move to “Manchester” does seem very final for Swinton returning to Swinton. Maybe the club officials wanted to attract a younger audience and felt a re-brand was the way to go. I don’t think either the club or the “fans” (e.g the ones who’ve made threats specifically) are right here. The club apparently failed to consult the fans, which if true, is wrong and the fans shouldn’t have ever made the threats they did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolton Leyther Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 Swinton Lions represent Swinton. They don't play in Swinton and haven't for a long time, but Swinton is obviously central to their identity as a rugby league club. Because of the economics of professional sport nowadays, that might necessarily, if fact certainly will, mean they can't ever be one of the biggest clubs. But there's no disgrace in that. Not every sports club has to have ambitions to be the biggest and best, and if retaining the Swinton name, for good or ill, is of critical importance to the club's supporter base then that's their decision to make and has to be respected. Sports clubs should exist for the benefit of their supporters, and it would be a sad state of affairs if the supporters' wishes aren't first and foremost in any strategic planning. The opportunity to establish a rugby league club in Manchester, something which we desperately need to do, was Manchester Rangers. The people involved there did many good things and the club's potential should've been supported and nurtured by the powers that be. In there's any short-sightedness in this whole chain of events it's not from the Swinton Lions supporters, it's from the RFL and their failure to embrace Manchester Rangers to the fullest extent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oliver Clothesoff Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 32 minutes ago, Bolton Leyther said: Swinton Lions represent Swinton. They don't play in Swinton and haven't for a long time, but Swinton is obviously central to their identity as a rugby league club. Because of the economics of professional sport nowadays, that might necessarily, if fact certainly will, mean they can't ever be one of the biggest clubs. But there's no disgrace in that. Not every sports club has to have ambitions to be the biggest and best, and if retaining the Swinton name, for good or ill, is of critical importance to the club's supporter base then that's their decision to make and has to be respected. Sports clubs should exist for the benefit of their supporters, and it would be a sad state of affairs if the supporters' wishes aren't first and foremost in any strategic planning. The opportunity to establish a rugby league club in Manchester, something which we desperately need to do, was Manchester Rangers. The people involved there did many good things and the club's potential should've been supported and nurtured by the powers that be. In there's any short-sightedness in this whole chain of events it's not from the Swinton Lions supporters, it's from the RFL and their failure to embrace Manchester Rangers to the fullest extent. Desperately need to do is some exaggeration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolton Leyther Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 17 minutes ago, Oliver Clothesoff said: Desperately need to do is some exaggeration. That took you longer than I expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleep1673 Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 Oh at least let the season start before we go over all this bull again. Who started this thread, Boris Johnson to deflect away from the election? Stupid Idiots. I wish to announce to Donald Trump that the new leader of Islamic State is The Daddy, and should be hit with a missile straight away before anymore morons follow this Ikea of an "Idea" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wellsy4HullFC Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 1 hour ago, Bolton Leyther said: Swinton Lions represent Swinton. They don't play in Swinton and haven't for a long time, but Swinton is obviously central to their identity as a rugby league club. Because of the economics of professional sport nowadays, that might necessarily, if fact certainly will, mean they can't ever be one of the biggest clubs. But there's no disgrace in that. Not every sports club has to have ambitions to be the biggest and best, and if retaining the Swinton name, for good or ill, is of critical importance to the club's supporter base then that's their decision to make and has to be respected. Sports clubs should exist for the benefit of their supporters, and it would be a sad state of affairs if the supporters' wishes aren't first and foremost in any strategic planning. The opportunity to establish a rugby league club in Manchester, something which we desperately need to do, was Manchester Rangers. The people involved there did many good things and the club's potential should've been supported and nurtured by the powers that be. In there's any short-sightedness in this whole chain of events it's not from the Swinton Lions supporters, it's from the RFL and their failure to embrace Manchester Rangers to the fullest extent. But wasn't it because of clubs like Swinton that clubs like Manchester Rangers couldn't get the green light to join the league? It's ok not having ambitions to be at the top, but if your presence prevents those that do have those ambitions from having a shot, that's where I find an issue. Apologies if I'm completely wrong on that one, but I'm sure there were votes and issues from other clubs in the region. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleep1673 Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 Here's a new one, why not relocate London Broncos to New York? Or Vancouver? Or Pitcairn? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Daddy Posted November 1, 2019 Author Share Posted November 1, 2019 19 minutes ago, Wellsy4HullFC said: Inference doesn't have direct wording. It's been discussed that many times on that many threads, it's generally implied to be part of a bigger package. We could just ask him if it's what he implied? @The Daddy, did you imply that the name change was all that was needed? Or was it one part of a bigger package? Then it can be settled. In answer to your question no, I was not suggesting that all that was needed was a name change for the club to be successful most people with an ounce of intelligence knows that there are many aspects to a successful club than a name. Andy Mazey did outline some of his plans in the Full Eighty Minutes podcast, one of which was to tap into some of the forthcoming interest generated by the 2021 World Cup. He also stated that he wanted to model the club on some of the initiatives Newcastle Thunder had put in place and identified South and East Manchester as target areas of development and support base. The opportunity was more than just a name change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wellsy4HullFC Posted November 2, 2019 Share Posted November 2, 2019 41 minutes ago, Bleep1673 said: Here's a new one, why not relocate London Broncos to New York? Or Vancouver? Or Pitcairn? What's new about it? People have randomly suggested relocating too unusual places (in RL terms) for years for no apparent reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Tonks Sidestep Posted November 2, 2019 Share Posted November 2, 2019 IIRC the Swinton board said they would publish (or at least communicate to the 'fans') the results of their market research on the opportunities provided by the proposed name change but never actually got round to doing so....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wellsy4HullFC Posted November 3, 2019 Share Posted November 3, 2019 19 hours ago, Les Tonks Sidestep said: IIRC the Swinton board said they would publish (or at least communicate to the 'fans') the results of their market research on the opportunities provided by the proposed name change but never actually got round to doing so....... Was this says to be happening before or after the proposed name change? If after, then it's not hard to realise why this never happened given the events that quickly unfolded. If before, then it would need clarifying how it was intended to be communicated. Was it a supporters group? Public announcement? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robthegasman Posted November 9, 2019 Share Posted November 9, 2019 I think the day will come when a big decision has to be made regarding whether Swinton Lions attempt to try again the rebrand as Manchester Lions or not. And from what I read in I think League Express,the proposed rebrand has been indefinitely postponed,which suggests to me that it could still one day happen. It is no secret that as a Swinton fan I supported the proposed rebrand as it was an Eastern Suburbs style one ie Sydney Roosters on the field of play but still Eastern Suburbs RLFC.It would have been Swinton Lions RLFC still in official and legal terms.And if it was to be proposed the same way again I would support it.We will see if it happens,but I will say that I think an opportunity has been missed. Time and history will be the ultimate judge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robthegasman Posted November 9, 2019 Share Posted November 9, 2019 I think eventually there will be a Manchester team. Whether it is Manchester Lions or Manchester Rangers or another name but it will happen. The question will be will it be Swinton Lions rebranded as Manchester Lions on the field of play or something else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Daddy Posted November 9, 2019 Author Share Posted November 9, 2019 5 minutes ago, Robthegasman said: I think eventually there will be a Manchester team. Whether it is Manchester Lions or Manchester Rangers or another name but it will happen. The question will be will it be Swinton Lions rebranded as Manchester Lions on the field of play or something else? As a Swinton fan that wanted the rebrand to go ahead do you not think that Andy Mazey could've handled the situation better? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robthegasman Posted November 9, 2019 Share Posted November 9, 2019 11 minutes ago, The Daddy said: As a Swinton fan that wanted the rebrand to go ahead do you not think that Andy Mazey could've handled the situation better? I am sure that it could have been better handled not just by him but the then board in general.But in fairness there is no perfect or ideal way to handle something as big as that,unless you have PR men and women who can be wheeled out to take the flack,like say would happen at United or City. Perhaps it should have been brought up long before it actually was ie the end of the 2018 season. But what has happened has been done.We must concentrate on next year,give everything we have got on and off the field and take it all from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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