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Salford to move to Moor Lane?


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2 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

Would seem odd for Salford City to move if it was so easy to expand though surely?

That's exactly why they are moving, I drive past it on my way to work every day and it's a tidy enough little ground for championship but it's pretty much maximised the space available on the land as it is, it's sandwiched between 2 roads, a housing estate and a primary school. It's also in a bit of a public transport dead zone in Salford with not a lot in the way of parking either, the below guide gives a fairly accurate account of the area in terms of what to expect for away fans.

 

https://footballgroundguide.com/leagues/england/league-two/salford-city-moor-lane.html

 

 

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1 hour ago, LeytherRob said:

That's exactly why they are moving, I drive past it on my way to work every day and it's a tidy enough little ground for championship but it's pretty much maximised the space available on the land as it is, it's sandwiched between 2 roads, a housing estate and a primary school. It's also in a bit of a public transport dead zone in Salford with not a lot in the way of parking either, the below guide gives a fairly accurate account of the area in terms of what to expect for away fans.

 

https://footballgroundguide.com/leagues/england/league-two/salford-city-moor-lane.html

 

 

Interesting read.

Seems that there's no toilets, no pubs, no parking and poor links to public transport. Not the promising move I initially thought it was 

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15 minutes ago, David Dockhouse Host said:

Interesting read.

Seems that there's no toilets, no pubs, no parking and poor links to public transport. Not the promising move I initially thought it was 

Looking on Satellite view on google maps will give a good view of the space(or lack of) available. It's a ground that would be more suitable for Swinton than Salford. I do really sympathise with Salford fans because they are between a rock and a hard place.

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21 minutes ago, LeytherRob said:

It’s actually perfectly fine for Salford in terms of where we are at the moment/where we are likely heading/where we’ve pretty much always been (I’m a Salford fan by the way) ie it is a perfectly good Championship good.

If you get a full house in there it has a great atmosphere as you’re so close to the pitch. I know from seeing a local FC United v Salford football derby there.

Negatives as mentioned are that facilities aren’t great, stands are semi-permanent, no room to develop, on the very edge of Salford, little parking, no pubs, not quite big enough.

Positives are we aren’t made homeless, has a good feel to it, not a soulless oversized pit like AJ Bell, is already painted red which is handy 😎

Edited by theswanmcr
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Worth remembering when you say the aj bell is the next step for sale that their preferred option was to build a new stadium in sale, which they couldn't get planning permission for.

The aj bell isn't a bad stadium, but imo the problems with it stem from how difficult it is to get to by public transport.

I've not been to Moor Lane, but if it's more accessible for Salford fans, it could be worth the downgrade in stadium.

A worry is that salford haven't been able to afford the rent at the aj bell, and the proposed solution seems to include the council owning Moor Lane and Salford renting.

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5 hours ago, Mrgameandwatch said:

Worth remembering when you say the aj bell is the next step for sale that their preferred option was to build a new stadium in sale, which they couldn't get planning permission for.

The aj bell isn't a bad stadium, but imo the problems with it stem from how difficult it is to get to by public transport.

I've not been to Moor Lane, but if it's more accessible for Salford fans, it could be worth the downgrade in stadium.

A worry is that salford haven't been able to afford the rent at the aj bell, and the proposed solution seems to include the council owning Moor Lane and Salford renting.

Actually Sale have tried to buy the AJ Bell Stadium repeatedly over the years and the council have always said no. Wanting to own their own stadium is what forced Sale to then look to move back to Sale. When this faced issues they looked again at the AJ Bell.

Now for some strange reason the council are suddenly very willing to sell this loss making operation. Of course there is no connection between that sudden change of heart and the tennents it was built for collapsing the CVA, and so not paying their debt to the council, and many years of Salford not paying rent and/or the market rate. Things tend to become a burden and unprofitable when stuff like that happens.

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5 hours ago, Johnoco said:

20 years ago Sale were playing where Swinton now play, to 2 men and a dog. We used to take the pee on here about them.

Now, they are effectively removing Salford from a stadium built for them while RL fans are celebrating the move to a no mark football ground as some sort of positive step. I suppose it depends on how you viewed RL and whether you thought it was capable of better. 
 

Their home attendance even now isn't that great TBH. It's still well under 6,000.

If they were in Super League, they'd be one of the ones being mocked for low crowds in a soulless stadium.

I do, though, take your broader point that this isn't anything other than ignominious for Salford RL. The surprise to me is that, as ever, we focus on RU and miss the leaking of potential supporters, players and sponsors to soccer.

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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)

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7 hours ago, Johnoco said:

I'm sorry but if anyone thinks the AJ Bell is an 'oversized pit' I have to wonder at their expectations. If a trashy club like Sale can see it as their next step, what does it say for Salfords ambitions? Absolutely epic fail.

The AJ Bell is and never was right for Salford. Too big, soulless,  in the wrong location for our fan base , standing area in wrong place (should be down the side like the Shed at the Willows) etc.

I’m not happy about potentially moving to Moor Lane in many respects - and yes it does show a lack of ambition - but we are where we are.

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8 minutes ago, Johnoco said:

I don’t think Sale are some sort of powerhouse, far from it. But that highlights the issue even more….Salford are a long established top flight RL club with a good history. And yet they are forced to play third fiddle to a crappy RU club and a crappy football club? It’s sad.

Sale just show what millionaire backers who aren't afraid of losing money can do. They had a stadium bought in Stockport and now it looks like another with the AJ Bell. Additionally countless millions spent on the actual squad over the years. Unfortunately we have never seen owners plough that sort of money into RL clubs over a sustained couple of decades.

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3 minutes ago, Johnoco said:

I sincerely hope I’m wrong and it turns out to be a master stroke and in 5 years Salford are playing to full houses of 6-7K and looking to expand. 
But it rarely turns out like that……

Good luck all the same.

Thanks Johnoco.

Even if it all works it’s not really a master stroke. Unless a sugar daddy comes along to buy us a new stadium we have no choice. We owe the council millions, have low crowds and despite best intentions from the start the new stadium didn’t work.

Lets see how it all pans out as nothing has been confirmed just yet.

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9 hours ago, David Dockhouse Host said:

Interesting read.

Seems that there's no toilets, no pubs, no parking and poor links to public transport. Not the promising move I initially thought it was 

Sounds exactly like the AJ Bell, come on no toilets, hardly beyond modern science to rectify is it.

also the poster you are replying to is wrong, there is adequate expansion room for those with imagination. Headingly is hardly in open space and they do ok and Salford don’t need a stadium that size.

at the end of the day it’s what you can afford and it’s about time the dreamers on here realise this.

if Salford can make it work for them then it’s a SL standard stadium end of. They can’t make the AJ work for them FACT so pretty though it may be to some it isn’t a SL stadium.

Being a SL club is not about attendances and stadiums it’s about the ability of that club to put out a team within its budget that can compete in SL. Not win it, there can only br one winner but to be a part of it.

Clubs like Salford or Trinity may be some way off winning anything at present but both still have a big say in who does. Both teams are capable of beating the top teams and often do and that goes a long way to deciding the eventual winners. It’s called a competition.

To carry on doing that Salford need to move to Moor Lane as soon as possible.

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14 hours ago, Spidey said:

All while playing in a dump. If Salford or say Leigh or Widnes stayed in their dumps maybe they’d be where Wakefield are now. That was the point being made

A little off topic and apologies for being repetitive, but do you know off hand how much of Salford/Leigh/Widnes' playing budget was spent on their ground upgrades?

The Moor Lane ground looks up to the buffers already from looking at google maps. It would need to be a temporary move (any port in a storm) if they have long-term SL ambitions. (irony overload 🤣)

https://www.google.com/maps/place/53°30'49.1"N+2°16'36.4"W/@53.5136068,-2.2762233,211m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d53.5136306!4d-2.276775?hl=en

Prior to purchasing the superbowl land etc., Belle Vue was similarly land-locked and difficult to develop, which is why a new build stadium was the only feasible option.  Even so, the current footprint of the stadium is significantly bigger than that at Moor Lane.

https://www.google.com/maps/@53.6697979,-1.4788495,250m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

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10 hours ago, LeytherRob said:

Looking on Satellite view on google maps will give a good view of the space(or lack of) available. It's a ground that would be more suitable for Swinton than Salford. I do really sympathise with Salford fans because they are between a rock and a hard place.

I did indeed do that and to me there is certainly scope to make at least 3 sides bigger. It's never going to be a huge, but it doesn't need to be. I certainly don't think it's unfeasible that it could be made into a 8k or so stadium.

The main thing for me is that Salford need to look to buy it and make it their own. That certainly shouldn't be unfeasible. If they could do that then I think it's a good move.

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13 minutes ago, Wholly Trinity said:

A little off topic and apologies for being repetitive, but do you know off hand how much of Salford/Leigh/Widnes' playing budget was spent on their ground upgrades?

The Moor Lane ground looks up to the buffers already from looking at google maps. It would need to be a temporary move (any port in a storm) if they have long-term SL ambitions. (irony overload 🤣)

https://www.google.com/maps/place/53°30'49.1"N+2°16'36.4"W/@53.5136068,-2.2762233,211m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d53.5136306!4d-2.276775?hl=en

Prior to purchasing the superbowl land etc., Belle Vue was similarly land-locked and difficult to develop, which is why a new build stadium was the only feasible option.  Even so, the current footprint of the stadium is significantly bigger than that at Moor Lane.

https://www.google.com/maps/@53.6697979,-1.4788495,250m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

Its not just about directly about playing budgets, its the loss of income from ground they gave up control of so they could fulfil minimum standards as defined by SL 

I just think its a bit cheeky of fans of certain clubs having a pop at Salford when they tried to do the right thing by their playing facilities when certain dumps are still considered SL standard

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The lack of corporate at Moor Lane is a concern I would have thought, indeed its probably why Salford City are looking at moving out. Corporate generates so much more revenue per head than your standard punter its not even close. Is that money Salford can afford not to have?

If there is to be a Salford backed expansion at Moor Lane I would expect corporate to be the primary driving force behind that.

Ultimately Salford are now passengers in this deal.

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1 hour ago, Kirmonds pouch said:

Sounds exactly like the AJ Bell, come on no toilets, hardly beyond modern science to rectify is it.

also the poster you are replying to is wrong, there is adequate expansion room for those with imagination. Headingly is hardly in open space and they do ok and Salford don’t need a stadium that size.

at the end of the day it’s what you can afford and it’s about time the dreamers on here realise this.

if Salford can make it work for them then it’s a SL standard stadium end of. They can’t make the AJ work for them FACT so pretty though it may be to some it isn’t a SL stadium.

Being a SL club is not about attendances and stadiums it’s about the ability of that club to put out a team within its budget that can compete in SL. Not win it, there can only br one winner but to be a part of it.

Clubs like Salford or Trinity may be some way off winning anything at present but both still have a big say in who does. Both teams are capable of beating the top teams and often do and that goes a long way to deciding the eventual winners. It’s called a competition.

To carry on doing that Salford need to move to Moor Lane as soon as possible.

Im not saying there are not potential benefits of a move but it isn't as promising as first thought.

No toilets - yes these can be added, I do wonder why the whole stadium has been redeveloped yet they didn't add toilets? Drains, space, regs etc. Sure it can be done but may not be as simple as we imagine.

Space, looking at maps and Google earth I cannot see any space to increase and expand. Point taken about the amount of supporters but what about corporate, pitch size being too small, parking etc.

Headingly is much larger 

Stadiums are important, not the be all I agree but important. Sponsorships are attracted to a more professional looking product, TV looks better, the overall image of the game etc.

There are terrible local transport links, no local pubs, part of a day out is a few beers in local pubs and walk down. If you cannot park how do people get there if they don't live local? 

I quite like the look of Moor Lane but it isn't without improvement a great long term option.

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43 minutes ago, Damien said:

I did indeed do that and to me there is certainly scope to make at least 3 sides bigger. It's never going to be a huge, but it doesn't need to be. I certainly don't think it's unfeasible that it could be made into a 8k or so stadium.

The main thing for me is that Salford need to look to buy it and make it their own. That certainly shouldn't be unfeasible. If they could do that then I think it's a good move.

If they could buy it and make income from it great.

8k is big enough I believe, 5k should create demand if they can sell out.

Corporate, pitch size, parking, toilets, somewhere to get a pint and public transport are key to making it work IMO

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26 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

The lack of corporate at Moor Lane is a concern I would have thought, indeed its probably why Salford City are looking at moving out. Corporate generates so much more revenue per head than your standard punter its not even close. Is that money Salford can afford not to have?

If there is to be a Salford backed expansion at Moor Lane I would expect corporate to be the primary driving force behind that.

Ultimately Salford are now passengers in this deal.

Salford City are moving out of Moor Lane because it doesn't meet the standards required by Championship football, The owners of Salford City have aspirations to do that in the next few years and as they have said this move has come far to early from them but its forced their hand somewhat. 

the only ground inside the city boundaries that meets the requirements is the AJ Bell and if they dont buy in to it now when they do need to upgrade they will end up moving out of the city,. 

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8 minutes ago, To Be Confirmed said:

Salford City are moving out of Moor Lane because it doesn't meet the standards required by Championship football, The owners of Salford City have aspirations to do that in the next few years and as they have said this move has come far to early from them but its forced their hand somewhat. 

the only ground inside the city boundaries that meets the requirements is the AJ Bell and if they dont buy in to it now when they do need to upgrade they will end up moving out of the city,. 

I know its not really your point but when 25 years in we are still discussing and debating standards for our elite competition and doing the hokey cokey at various points when it comes to them, which is what partly drove Salford to move from the Willows in the first place, I do see some irony in all of this.

Edited by Damien
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1 hour ago, Spidey said:

Not really, an elite league should have minimum standards - something RL has failed to maintain over the last decade

What elite league, that’s the point it’s a fantasy perpetuated on here for years. There is not enough money in RL for an elite league and there never has been and there never will be.

Wigan and Hull are renters so they don’t have elite facilities of there own. Hull are struggling to maintain a viable presence at the KC whilst Wigan’s attendances have plummeted at the JJB.

So in reality RL has three elite clubs, Leeds, Saints and Warrington. Not much of an elite is it.

Stop this delusional nonsense now before it’s too late. We are a niche sport in the wrong part of the country pretending to be bigger than we are.

We as a sport, including fans need to grow up and accept where we are in the food chain. Once we do that we finally start to progress at a sensible pace.

The problem with these forums is they are full of talking heads. People who think they represent RL fans when they don’t. Ninety percent of fans don’t care about elites, minimum standards or expansion. They just want a team to watch in an adequate stadium once a week.

 

 

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10 minutes ago, Kirmonds pouch said:

Wigan and Hull are renters so they don’t have elite facilities of there own. Hull are struggling to maintain a viable presence at the KC whilst Wigan’s attendances have plummeted at the JJB.

This about Wigan just isn't true. The first years average attendance at the then JJB was 10,536 and for the first few years it wasn't much different to that, give or take a few hundred. The last year at Central Park was 9,239.

The attendances for the last year before Covid was 11,432. In between they have had 16k+ averages that were higher than even the glory days of the 1990's. Every year at the DW Stadium prior to Covid has seen average attendances that were higher than the last year at Central Park.

Before making sweeping statements it is better to check your facts first.

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4 minutes ago, Kirmonds pouch said:

What elite league, that’s the point it’s a fantasy perpetuated on here for years. There is not enough money in RL for an elite league and there never has been and there never will be.

Wigan and Hull are renters so they don’t have elite facilities of there own. Hull are struggling to maintain a viable presence at the KC whilst Wigan’s attendances have plummeted at the JJB.

So in reality RL has three elite clubs, Leeds, Saints and Warrington. Not much of an elite is it.

Stop this delusional nonsense now before it’s too late. We are a niche sport in the wrong part of the country pretending to be bigger than we are.

We as a sport, including fans need to grow up and accept where we are in the food chain. Once we do that we finally start to progress at a sensible pace.

The problem with these forums is they are full of talking heads. People who think they represent RL fans when they don’t. Ninety percent of fans don’t care about elites, minimum standards or expansion. They just want a team to watch in an adequate stadium once a week.

 

 

These are fairly reasonable points 

The clubs that own their stadium facility are best describef as elite. 

Many rugby league clubs have been owned or managed by fairly average and even poor businessmen. 

Warrington and st helens stand out as very good clubs, but based on ground ownership featherstone rovers and Batley are fabulous examples

of teams who have progressed in the right way. 

My own team widnes vikings have received over £500,000 from supporters trusts although i think thst may include a proposed £120,000 injection of cash for next year. 

In that respect i view supporter involvement as critical for aspiring teams. 

The problem with wigan and Hull is most definately the fact that they no longer own their own stadium and ard therefore unable to create alternative revenue streams. Indeed as hull kr move towards purchasing their own ground again they will also perhaps achieve elite status. 

Clubs in our sport need to be central to the local community and the fact this maybe in batley or barrow, or featherstone of halifax should be embraced rather than neglected. 

The great efforts of whitehaven and workington and barrow have largely gone unnoticed by a critical set of rugby league journalists and north wales crusaders have also been a huge success. 

Our key strengths are right before us and in plain sight 

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