Sun 20 Jun: The Betfred Championship Match Thread

[Guest]

And let's remember that Ealing was far from a popular choice of location.

[EssexRL]

24 minutes ago, Leonard said:

I get that - but I don't get it in the sense that if I want to watch RL then that is the option, bar Skolars or amateur.

I spend 6 hours of the day because I enjoy the sport - not sure a move from Ealing to Wimbledon overly bothers me, indeed Wimbledon is far easier to get to and better served by overground and tube lines (Wimbeldon and Tooting areas).

 

Clearly though you’re in the minority and let’s be honest the level of crowd for some time has hardly been impressive. I know fans who have followed them for 20 years and have given up. It does feel like a dying project which doesn’t help attract support in itself.  There needs to be a proper realistic strategy to grow the club’s fan base starting with those they have lost. 

Perhaps the COVID forced break has made people reprioritise .

Worth saying though there are heartland clubs in the Championship who have been around for a century plus who are hardly pulling the punters in either.

I find it really frustrating that RL is such a great spectacle (mostly and much more so than football) but we just can’t seem to break through or even hold what we’ve got.  

 

[Guest]

I completely agree. But if locals in Ealing won't watch - it is not a convenient location or a location that works and has no ability to support a SL club, whether or not that is pie in the sky.

But the point is still valid that support was poor anyway. My guess is 750 regulars pre-COVID as it was.

it would be a shame though - as London has a decent production line.

 

[crashmon]

45 minutes ago, Leonard said:

I completely agree. But if locals in Ealing won't watch - it is not a convenient location or a location that works and has no ability to support a SL club, whether or not that is pie in the sky.

But the point is still valid that support was poor anyway. My guess is 750 regulars pre-COVID as it was.

it would be a shame though - as London has a decent production line.

 

Its a combination of things which has caused this move to be the final straw for most people (me included at 20 years+ following London)

I think the point is that we reached our previous low point at Barnet. From Brentford => Stoop => Barnet, we lost fans year on year on year, from 4000+ at Brentford, to 400 at Barnet.

Then we moved to Ealing, and even though it was a low base we rebuilt, and in the 5 seasons we had at Ealing, the attendances improved year on year (abet small but still in the right direction), we had a good squad, and it felt we was moving in the right direction, and only missed staying up by Points difference.  For what we are, Ealing was perfect and pricing was also at the right level to get fans in.

Putting up the prices so much, then moving to a ground with no nearby parking, and not close to a train / tube station (like barnet was), my dad is 80 and just not fit enough for two trains and a bus to get to PL. Not to mention in a car for three of us was £5 Petrol and £5 parking, and now for three of us who live outside london to get Public transport will be £60 for us (3 * £20), just makes PL not possible, unless we don't bring my dad and thats not going to happen. 

We have taken advantage of the 4 games for £60 offer, but after that its unlikely we will attend again, not for the cost involved, and hassle in getting there with a OAP with limited mobility (but not disabled)

Even though I don't follow football at all, My dad does so we will be going to watch Egham Town (once non league soccer starts again) and at £6 for a ticket and in walking distance from my dad's house, that will have to fulfull his live sport for the weekend.

 

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

5 hours ago, crashmon said:

London last played Haven just before the Lockdown started (Feb 2020), and attendance was 735.  So in 15 months have lost 435 paying fans (assuming Haven brought same amount of fans). This is what happens when you increase ticket costs by over 100%, and decide to move the club with the weakest squad we have ever had.

I think that says it all from 735 to approx 300 (being generous)

And as I remember it was nearly called off for a big storm - many people didn't travel because of it as it was potentially going to be called off. It would likely have been 1000 otherwise 

[EssexRL]

11 minutes ago, crashmon said:

Its a combination of things which has caused this move to be the final straw for most people (me included at 20 years+ following London)

I think the point is that we reached our previous low point at Barnet. From Brentford => Stoop => Barnet, we lost fans year on year on year, from 4000+ at Brentford, to 400 at Barnet.

Then we moved to Ealing, and even though it was a low base we rebuilt, and in the 5 seasons we had at Ealing, the attendances improved year on year (abet small but still in the right direction), we had a good squad, and it felt we was moving in the right direction, and only missed staying up by Points difference.  For what we are, Ealing was perfect and pricing was also at the right level to get fans in.

Putting up the prices so much, then moving to a ground with no nearby parking, and not close to a train / tube station (like barnet was), my dad is 80 and just not fit enough for two trains and a bus to get to PL. Not to mention in a car for three of us was £5 Petrol and £5 parking, and now for three of us who live outside london to get Public transport will be £60 for us (3 * £20), just makes PL not possible, unless we don't bring my dad and thats not going to happen. 

We have taken advantage of the 4 games for £60 offer, but after that its unlikely we will attend again, not for the cost involved, and hassle in getting there with a OAP with limited mobility (but not disabled)

Even though I don't follow football at all, My dad does so we will be going to watch Egham Town (once non league soccer starts again) and at £6 for a ticket and in walking distance from my dad's house, that will have to fulfull his live sport for the weekend.

 

I’m sure your story echos many and makes you wonder if the club think about their fans at all. I actually gave up when they moved to Brentford (too far for me and my son). Since then we have seen them twice at Barnet (with a group of now exLB fans we know from Kent). We’re lucky Skolars are down the road from us and have not moved. 

It is sad but I just can’t see how they can build the fan base up  - they have lost so many old ones and don’t appear to have a strategy for new ones  

i

[crashmon]

They need to move before the world cup. They need to target the Tolouse game in August, make it free for Dons ST holders, market it as England v France, make it free for U16, bring back Buck and Dusty (plus the Dons Mascot if the Dons have one), also play a Broncos Womens SL game as a double header, hopefully Tolouse will still be undefeated as well.

Also could try gimmicks to get French fans in (remember London is the 4th largest city in France if you count population), show your french passport, get a free drink or something etc. Then hope the game is not a blowout, and London at least come close.

[Jimbo78]

A bit of positive news in the wake of the doom and gloom at Broncos here. I was at Thunder v Oldham on Sunday. Attendance was just under 1,100  and a large proportion of the crowd there would have been 16 or under which bodes well for the future support.

[gingerjon]

19 hours ago, Archie Gordon said:

I think the Broncos are left with around 150 fans - vast majority white, male and over 50. Sad thing is, I think they like it that way.

This is my concern now for London. When I first went to games there twenty-two years ago I felt moderately young in the crowd but not like I'd stand out. That was fine.

Now, as a proper wrong side of 40 bloke, I'm still young in comparison to most London supporters. And that has to be a real problem.

[gingerjon]

8 minutes ago, Jimbo78 said:

A bit of positive news in the wake of the doom and gloom at Broncos here. I was at Thunder v Oldham on Sunday. Attendance was just under 1,100  and a large proportion of the crowd there would have been 16 or under which bodes well for the future support.

Really good to hear.

[Moscow01]

What a depressing read. I’d love to know why the Broncos media output has been so amateur for so long. Even when they were in Super League, it was really poor. Surely they can afford to appoint a savvy media and marketing professional? 

[gingerjon]

35 minutes ago, ShropshireBull said:

Probably not but problem is in a sport so small it really is on the owner or CEO to be the front man so to speak. 

Others know the ins and outs of this more than me but isn't the Broncos 'marketing' man just the bloke who wants to sell tracksuits these days?

[Neutralfan7]

Is this not better being talked about in the London Broncos section?

[nadera78]

2 hours ago, gingerjon said:

This is my concern now for London. When I first went to games there twenty-two years ago I felt moderately young in the crowd but not like I'd stand out. That was fine.

Now, as a proper wrong side of 40 bloke, I'm still young in comparison to most London supporters. And that has to be a real problem.

No, what's concerning is that when I read "22 years ago" my immediate thought was 1980-something.

[40yearsatlondon]

On ‎21‎/‎06‎/‎2021 at 19:55, EssexRL said:

Clearly though you’re in the minority and let’s be honest the level of crowd for some time has hardly been impressive. I know fans who have followed them for 20 years and have given up. It does feel like a dying project which doesn’t help attract support in itself.  There needs to be a proper realistic strategy to grow the club’s fan base starting with those they have lost. 

Perhaps the COVID forced break has made people reprioritise .

Worth saying though there are heartland clubs in the Championship who have been around for a century plus who are hardly pulling the punters in either.

I find it really frustrating that RL is such a great spectacle (mostly and much more so than football) but we just can’t seem to break through or even hold what we’ve got.  

 

covid has had a damaging effect on the championship...with the exception maybe of widnes and fev  all clubs have had massive drop off.....whats important is next season.

we all know whats needed ,but not sure we have the people to implement the changes needed

ive seen the club go up and down over the 41 years I have followed them ...this is not the worst team or lowest attendance 

but this club should be moving forward ....and at the moment its not....but lets see what plans they have

[EssexRL]

58 minutes ago, 40yearsatlondon said:

covid has had a damaging effect on the championship...with the exception maybe of widnes and fev  all clubs have had massive drop off.....whats important is next season.

we all know whats needed ,but not sure we have the people to implement the changes needed

ive seen the club go up and down over the 41 years I have followed them ...this is not the worst team or lowest attendance 

but this club should be moving forward ....and at the moment its not....but lets see what plans they have

The problem (unfairly) is it is more than just about the club; it is about the sport and the sport's ability to expand it self and, in this case, have a presence in the capital. It is unfair this burden falls on the clubs, but it does. It is a barometer of the sport here.

[Bleep1673]

I have tried emailing & Ringing Broncos about how I can get a ticket to this weekend game, but no one seems able to reply. It is no wonder the attendance figures are going down, when they can't be arsed replying to phone or e mail 

[Spidey]

12 minutes ago, Bleep1673 said:

I have tried emailing & Ringing Broncos about how I can get a ticket to this weekend game, but no one seems able to reply. It is no wonder the attendance figures are going down, when they can't be arsed replying to phone or e mail 

I’m sure a link has already been posted, but you can purchase here

 

[Archie Gordon]

1 hour ago, Bleep1673 said:

I have tried emailing & Ringing Broncos about how I can get a ticket to this weekend game, but no one seems able to reply. It is no wonder the attendance figures are going down, when they can't be arsed replying to phone or e mail 

You're a long way from being the only one who can't get a response from the club. It is surely deliberate - perhaps (more charitably) complete indifference.

[Bleep1673]

Do I really want to pay £70 to go and watch a game of Rugby League? £20 entrance, £40+ train fare, £10 Tube?

Much as I love Swinton Lions RLFC, I think I have reached my limit.

[EssexRL]

2 hours ago, Bleep1673 said:

Do I really want to pay £70 to go and watch a game of Rugby League? £20 entrance, £40+ train fare, £10 Tube?

Much as I love Swinton Lions RLFC, I think I have reached my limit.

Certainly the cost of getting too and around London, not to mention food and drink has risen substantially in recent times (not that it was ever cheap).

[Bleep1673]

7 minutes ago, EssexRL said:

Certainly the cost of getting too and around London, not to mention food and drink has risen substantially in recent times (not that it was ever cheap).

London can be accused of many nefarious procedures, but being cheap is never one of them. I lived on the outskirts for 20 years, (Uxbridge), so I can vouch for the wage draining capability of living inside the M25.

[Bleep1673]

4 minutes ago, Bleep1673 said:

London can be accused of many nefarious procedures, but being cheap is never one of them. I lived on the outskirts for 20 years, (Uxbridge), so I can vouch for the wage draining capability of living inside the M25.

It would be interesting to compare housing standards between London, Leeds, Warrington, Catalans players and wage earnings, London are on a budget, so are the players in studio flats, while Wolves players are in 3-bed houses?

Does anybody know? Does anybody care?

[EssexRL]

3 hours ago, Bleep1673 said:

It would be interesting to compare housing standards between London, Leeds, Warrington, Catalans players and wage earnings, London are on a budget, so are the players in studio flats, while Wolves players are in 3-bed houses?

Does anybody know? Does anybody care?

I have no idea but the issue for us down here is the cost makes it very hard to attract players from outside the south. When we (Skolars) have signed players from the heartlands they’ve commuted down, which never really works. The pool of potential players as a result is much smaller. The plus of that is it means local talent has to be grown. 

[crashmon]

I have some old London programs, from a few years ago, and I think they house shared (if you look at the player interviews in the programs). But yes and no offence to any of my yorkshire / lancs brethern, but you could probably buy a whole street in some parts of Yorkshire for the price of a apartment in London.

A one bed apartment in Ealing would set you back 500K ( I am not kidding), in Bradford / Leeds / Wigan / Liverpool I could probably get a 5 bed house + large garden and possibly a swimming pool to boot. 

I'm just giving examples here, I am not saying anything negative about the north or south.  Living in Egham I can tell you how stupidly overpriced housing is , and I am lucky enough to own a 2 bed semi on the Thames.