Bedfordshire Bronco Posted August 4 Share Posted August 4 (edited) 16 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: Here's a tip: https://wandlevalleypark.co.uk/locations/merton/wandle-meadow-nature-park/ Free at weekends and half a mile from the ground. OK, I might Edited August 4 by Bedfordshire Bronco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 Latest from LB (typos not mine, this is a cut & paste job) September Supporter Meeting Members of the clubs management enjoyed a positive first meeting with supporters last week as our first Supporter consultation took place in Central London. Chief Executive Jason Loubser and Head of Commercial James Milner met with a group of Broncos long term fans to establish the potential for a focus group to become a regular feature and discuss the concerns of supporters as we come off the back of a very difficult period for the club. This initial meeting was a relaxed general discussion however some questions were asked that we felt would be of interest to the wider fan base. The first point raised was a concern over the team going part time in 2021 and how that leaves the clubs future in terms of ambitions of Super League. CEO Jason Loubser gave the group a detailed explanation of how the financial situation across the game is going through a huge change which is likely to result in the Broncos being hundreds of thousands of pounds worse off in 2022 than in 2021 and 2020. An estimate of 86% reduction in central funding is expected which is probably going to leave several clubs in serious problems so we are taking steps to ensure the club is stable and able to come back stronger in future seasons. On top of this our owner David Hughes has been injecting huge amounts of cash in order to keep the first team Full Time in what is predominantly a part time competition and it has been decided that this simply cannot continue. 2021 has been very disappointing on the field for the First Team and the justification for spending the sort of money it takes to remain full time cannot be found. We have had some big positives with the Academy continuing to hold it’s own with Super League sides and our Ladies team doing themselves proud in their first ever season. The group were reassured that whilst the playing staff would become part time players this was not a reflection of the club resigning itself to Championship Rugby League and the focus was now very much on marketing the move to Plough Lane and ensuring that we maximize the potential of that new beginning. This led to further questions on the move to Plough Lane, how the club plans to build the average attendance, community engagement and memberships. It was explained by James Milner that the focus will be a milt-pronged attack on several groups including, but not exclusively, families, community club partners, AFC Wimbledon Fans and the event seeker. It was explained that making elite sport affordable to families in London was a key part of the plan with attention going on family season tickets in our Community section which will contain a no-alcohol zone. This will also hopefully give those who prefer not to be around Alcohol an opportunity to enjoy the game in separate surroundings. Positive discussions have already started with our community club partners around their involvement in the Community stand, playing curtain raisers and being mascots ahead of First Team Games and their feedback has been very good. It was explained that several Home fixtures will be planned as ‘events’ with specific target markets being catered for to try and attract new supporters via a ‘side door’ and other reasons to attend the game such as live music, a ‘theme’ around matches such as an ‘80’s music event’ or Street Food/Real Ale festival. The club officials also suggested a new style membership scheme could be offered if this can be facilitated by our ticketing partners and the Lough Lane system which would see supporters be able to support the club in a number of ways, some of which not involving a large upfront payment but still reward them for their loyalty by attending games. Away from the room our supporter who unfortunately was taken ill emailed some interesting questions which were answered remotely. These included a question on poor communication from the club in 2021 with a specific mention of communication not being consolidated across all social media channels. The clubs response to this was that we communicated as much as possible in 2021 but for much of this year there was simply no updates possible. It has always been felt that if the club puts out an update that says nothing it would be criticized for not really saying anything but if it says nothing at all it is still criticized. On the specific issue of Plough Lane we held a dignified silence throughout much of the process as it was not our business to be communicating to fans about something that was not official. This was widely praised by fans of AFC Wimbledon on social media. On the question of Social media the club feels the output is significantly improved in 2021 and everything is absolutely consolidated across all channels. Due to GD PR regulations the club is about to reset it’s marketing database and ask any supporter who wishes to be communicated with to sign up to a new database so emails will go out far more regularly in future. A further question from the same absent supporter was asked regarding the change from a squad that was a mix of quality players from the UK and Australia to one that is majority Academy products and is this the future? The clubs response on this was that above all else the current financial climate is the main thing dictating how we build our squad. Many clubs in our division, and potentially Super League, have players funded by ‘Squad Builder’ initiatives from supporters and other innovative ways to assist and we are open to discussions on this but in the main the club will only sign players within a pare-agreed wage structure and who fulfill the attributes to fit into the culture we intend to create at the London Broncos. Signing players from Australia is no longer an easy option given the current visa regulations and leaving the EU rules out the EU Passport holder option too. However the club still has several contacts in Australia speaking to the CEO with potential options and we would never rule out bringing in overseas players with potential, in fact we are in current dialogue with Australian and Kiwi players as well as many British based athletes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archie Gordon Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 (edited) 1 hour ago, Man of Kent said: Latest from LB (typos not mine, this is a cut & paste job) ... Cheers. Where is this published? Edit: Found this in my email inbox as it is addressed to season ticket holders. Ok - aside from some things being inaccurate and others doubtful, this is not very encouraging. The idea that mailing this to tens of email addresses is putting it to "the wider fan base" is laughable. My favourite part is where they say we didn't put many comms out in 2021 because we had nothing much to say. Good luck with families (this one is gone, partly because, like others, we never received the t-shirt that came with membership), community clubs (never hear anything from the club anymore), AFCW fans (who knows?), and especially the "event seekers". Ah, the event seekers. Edited September 23 by Archie Gordon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 1 hour ago, Archie Gordon said: Good luck with families (this one is gone, partly because, like others, we never received the t-shirt that came with membership), community clubs (never hear anything from the club anymore), AFCW fans (who knows?), and especially the "event seekers". Ah, the event seekers. Yes, good luck to the Broncos. I hope it works, wouldn't you agree? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archie Gordon Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 18 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: Yes, good luck to the Broncos. I hope it works, wouldn't you agree? I have everything crossed for them. A successful London Broncos club would be a huge asset for RL. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingerjon Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 3 hours ago, Man of Kent said: Yes, good luck to the Broncos. I hope it works, wouldn't you agree? It's going to have to succeed with virtually none of the people who have ever supported rugby league in London and the South in attendance. So, yeah, good luck with that. 5 Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. (Terry Pratchett) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 5 minutes ago, gingerjon said: It's going to have to succeed with virtually none of the people who have ever supported rugby league in London and the South in attendance. So, yeah, good luck with that. I’m sure you’ll be willing it to succeed, won’t you Jon? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingerjon Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 Just now, Man of Kent said: I’m sure you’ll be willing it to succeed, won’t you Jon? Next door to no interest at this stage. Like I say, they're going to need to replace a lot of folk who did used to care. 1 Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. (Terry Pratchett) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nadera78 Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 Load of rubbish, as usual. 1 "Just as we had been Cathars, we were treizistes, men apart." Jean Roque, Calendrier-revue du Racing-Club Albigeois, 1958-1959 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nadera78 Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 3 hours ago, Man of Kent said: Yes, good luck to the Broncos. I hope it works, wouldn't you agree? The speed, and authority, with which you moved from "moving to Plough Lane is going to be brilliant" to "well, it's up to the Broncos but it might work" is quite something. 1 "Just as we had been Cathars, we were treizistes, men apart." Jean Roque, Calendrier-revue du Racing-Club Albigeois, 1958-1959 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 5 minutes ago, nadera78 said: The speed, and authority, with which you moved from "moving to Plough Lane is going to be brilliant" to "well, it's up to the Broncos but it might work" is quite something. I’m sure you’re desperate for the move to work too, chief. Am I right? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingerjon Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 7 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: I’m sure you’re desperate for the move to work too, chief. Am I right? Bless 1 Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. (Terry Pratchett) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westlondonfan Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 Until we really know what the restructuring is going to look like I don’t think anyone can say with any certainty that we will actually move to Plough Lane at all. If we ARE actually moving down to twenty teams then I don’t think a merger with Skolars is out of the question personally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nadera78 Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 11 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: I’m sure you’re desperate for the move to work too, chief. Am I right? After 27 years, chief, I've washed my hands of it. As I said to you previously, it's your club now. 1 "Just as we had been Cathars, we were treizistes, men apart." Jean Roque, Calendrier-revue du Racing-Club Albigeois, 1958-1959 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 9 minutes ago, westlondonfan said: If we ARE actually moving down to twenty teams then I don’t think a merger with Skolars is out of the question personally. Have Skolars replaced Coleman? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivarr the Boneless Posted September 24 Share Posted September 24 Nothing announced yet though they have invited applications so the process is under way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 Just in case any posters were getting paranoid that the Plough Lane groundshare isn't happening: https://www.afcwimbledon.co.uk/news/2021/november/sporting-quiz-challenge/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 More on this from the Broncos, including a 'tour' of the ground for fans https://londonbroncosrl.com/2021/11/12/broncos-and-dons-best-brains-to-face-off-for-annual-challenge/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crashmon Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 19 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: More on this from the Broncos, including a 'tour' of the ground for fans https://londonbroncosrl.com/2021/11/12/broncos-and-dons-best-brains-to-face-off-for-annual-challenge/ Yep, any good / positive news coming out of the Broncos right now is to be welcomed 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scubby Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 56 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: More on this from the Broncos, including a 'tour' of the ground for fans https://londonbroncosrl.com/2021/11/12/broncos-and-dons-best-brains-to-face-off-for-annual-challenge/ I think the men's first team page is particularly encouraging for London fans https://londonbroncosrl.com/mens-first-team/ 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Click Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 36 minutes ago, Scubby said: I think the men's first team page is particularly encouraging for London fans https://londonbroncosrl.com/mens-first-team/ I've been following the signings so far... Most have spent the last 2 years either at Skolars or West Wales... So.. I'll let you figure out how I think we're going to do next season. I think TBC is much better than what we do have. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man of Kent Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 4 hours ago, crashmon said: Yep, any good / positive news coming out of the Broncos right now is to be welcomed Too often groundshares create an Us vs. Them situation (Hello, Wigan!) so a bit of enlightened self-interest through collaboration bodes well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATLANTISMAN Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 Oh well League 1 was interesting with Toronto and Newcastle in it once at least now in 2023 we will have a nice trip to Cornwall:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crashmon Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 57 minutes ago, Man of Kent said: Too often groundshares create an Us vs. Them situation (Hello, Wigan!) so a bit of enlightened self-interest through collaboration bodes well. Its not Wimbledon or the dons fans that any Broncos fan blames for the mess London are in right now. We know exactly who has put us where we are, Part time and fighing to avoid relegation with the weakest squad in the 30 years of London history. So I would not expect any bad blood between London and Wimbledon when it comes to supporters or to the respective clubs. I still think 200k rent is far too much for a struggling part time team, but again thats not the fault of the dons, but the leadership of London agreeing to that in the first place. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuff Smith Posted November 12 Share Posted November 12 13 minutes ago, ATLANTISMAN said: Oh well League 1 was interesting with Toronto and Newcastle in it once at least now in 2023 we will have a nice trip to Cornwall:) Can we not join Elite 1 instead? I've always wanted an excuse to go to Albi. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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