London Skolars New Owners

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

58 minutes ago, Oxford said:

 

In the meantime I'm really looking forward to all the reasons why it won't work, can't possibly work and we may as well give up now

You are win just the right place

[Toby Chopra]

2 hours ago, Archie Gordon said:

I don't fully agree. Of course, a large capital investment is required but I think that the 'build slowly approach' is the *only way* it will work in London. Ironically, this was happening at Ealing between 2016-2019 - all aspects of the club at one location, incremental stadium improvements, crowds growing, local community side started - but just not fast enough for Hughes. I don't care that some fans think Ealing was sub-par as a venue - other people were taking their place at a faster rate than they were leaving.

Skolars have something that the Broncos don't - a property that allows them to make money (I'm assuming they own the clubhouse?). Hughes's folly was never to own anything at all. Hemel should have been the blueprint. Skolars is next best.

I don't think Skolars need to redevelop New River until they have a side that pulls in >2k. That is some way off and so I don't think infrastructure investment is needed in the near term. Catering for crowds way, way bigger than you're getting (or going to get anytime soon) is the (failed) Broncos approach.

 

All fair points and I know you know your London RL.

I suppose the issue I have is recent history would suggest that the London (&SE) community game just doesn't have the depth to produce even a reasonably successful team on its own - certainly not challenging for Championship playoffs. That's not to diss the players that have been, and are being produced, over the years and all the volunteers and coaches that made this happen. It's simply a question of numbers, and the fact that London can't attract the best part time players from the heartland. (Same applies to Newcastle). 

So there HAS to be a core of full time players brought in if any London club is to prosper, and that isn't going to be affordable on 2k crowds. It's just a different equation for teams outside the heartland, always has been. 

Just because the current Broncos approach is a shambles shouldn't blind us to the fact that investing in a decent ground AND a decent team is the only way to possibly succeed in London. 

 

[EssexRL]

26 minutes ago, Toby Chopra said:

 Just because the current Broncos approach is a shambles shouldn't blind us to the fact that investing in a decent ground AND a decent team is the only way to possibly succeed in London. 

 

Agree with all you say - and would add that we can get that right but because RL profile in London is low there has to be marketing too.

[Toby Chopra]

9 minutes ago, EssexRL said:

Agree with all you say - and would add that we can get that right but because RL profile in London is low there has to be marketing too.

So for me, this is another test of IMG's comittment. 

They say that London is a strategic priority, but it still seems that we've got two owners in London with their own teams, competing for the same player pathway and same fans base, with no real strategic plan. 

Obviously I can't begrudge someone coming in and saying they're going to give a boost to Skolars. But it's some random investor. It would be better if there was a whole game plan being implemented here. London just IS different if you want to crack it. 

[DEANO]

8 hours ago, Gomersall said:

Didn’t York fail a few years back too?

The point is Fulham or what ever you want to call them playing out of whichever ground you want hasn’t really worked. Even when they were fast tracked to super league and had a rich benefactor crowds were poor made up mostly of  northerners down for a jolly. They never raised the profile of rl and barely got a mention in the London press

[Toby Chopra]

42 minutes ago, DEANO said:

The point is Fulham or what ever you want to call them playing out of whichever ground you want hasn’t really worked. Even when they were fast tracked to super league and had a rich benefactor crowds were poor made up mostly of  northerners down for a jolly. They never raised the profile of rl and barely got a mention in the London press

Its fair enough to be sceptical about the prospects for a successful London rugby league team - at some point we have to stop making excuses for 40 years of relative failure. 

But you're wrong about the bit in bold. In the late 90s to the mid-2000s the Broncos did have a visible presence in the London sporting ecosystem - a lot more people would have at least recognised the name and the sport than would now, way beyond northerners and expatriate Aussies. 

The question is why was it not sustained, and what we can we learn from that to give the best chance of success now. 

I'd really like to hear from the new Skolars owners what they've learned from the past, and how they'll make sure it's different this time round.

[IM2]

4 hours ago, Archie Gordon said:

New River is fine and can be developed a little. The Skolars surely won't make the error of the Broncos in thinking that a shortcut to building a fanbase is to move to a shiny stadium. In any case, they already have a clubhouse/bar/shop on site so it wouldn't make sense to lose that foothold.

I've previously said that there aren't the resources for 2 p/t professional teams in London - but happy to hear what the new owners' plans are (and, more importantly, who they are). 

given there are 400k people in Haringey (bigger than Bradford) & similar in neighbouring boroughs of Islington, Barnet and Walthemstow all probably within 20 mins drive I think thats a big enough market. Skolars are a distant second to Spurs in the borough but given that its £100 a ticket at spurs & they sell out all the time if the product is right then why not. Ive always believed if you have that local focus then you can succeed

[IM2]

4 hours ago, Toby Chopra said:

Your Broncos point is of course true, but the flip side of that is that any London project will rapidly become a money pit unless paying crowds can be built up quickly to fund a full-time team. So a larger ground, or a costly redevelopment of New River will be needed in short order if the Skolars are to break out of the eternal trap of poor results=poor crowds that rugby league in London faces. 

I too look forward to hearing the plans of the new owners - it would be hard to be any worse than the current Broncos strategy. But I think we know now that the worthy sounding "build up the club slowly" strategy doesn't actually work in London. For either club to survive, they need to fund a step change, and I hope the owners realise this.          

I believe broncos pay £20k a game at Wimbledon. Id be surprised if Skolars pay double that for the season. More like £2k a  game. £18k to spend on a squad is massive. plus the bar is all theirs and they often use the car park for bars and food etc. whats great there is loads of space. I dont think the cost to upgrade would be enormous. the capacity is officially 5k with the terracing. Haringey Council would love a solution for NR. It's got close several times before. im very optimistic 

[IM2]

2 hours ago, Toby Chopra said:

All fair points and I know you know your London RL.

I suppose the issue I have is recent history would suggest that the London (&SE) community game just doesn't have the depth to produce even a reasonably successful team on its own - certainly not challenging for Championship playoffs. That's not to diss the players that have been, and are being produced, over the years and all the volunteers and coaches that made this happen. It's simply a question of numbers, and the fact that London can't attract the best part time players from the heartland. (Same applies to Newcastle). 

So there HAS to be a core of full time players brought in if any London club is to prosper, and that isn't going to be affordable on 2k crowds. It's just a different equation for teams outside the heartland, always has been. 

Just because the current Broncos approach is a shambles shouldn't blind us to the fact that investing in a decent ground AND a decent team is the only way to possibly succeed in London. 

 

I believe the new owners have a very healthy source of players from the Brisbane and Auckland areas

[OriginalMrC]

7 minutes ago, IM2 said:

I believe the new owners have a very healthy source of players from the Brisbane and Auckland areas

Most of whom won't be able to play here without a British passport 

[IM2]

1 minute ago, OriginalMrC said:

Most of whom won't be able to play here without a British passport 

there are always loads with passports. I know ive signed 100s of them over the years. also there are a few loopholes that can help 

[The storm]

Hector is a top class business man and it would take something special to replace him

[EssexRL]

37 minutes ago, The storm said:

Hector is a top class business man and it would take something special to replace him

I hope all of those involved with the club, will still be around in some capacity. Their knowledge and insights will be invaluable. 

[Pen-Y-Bont Crusader]

Delighted to hear this news about my old club.

[Londonbornirishbred]

Personally I would be delighted to see the skolars become the #1 london side and at present, this will only take a few hundred grand to achieve. Superleague on the other hand is a Rich mans folly unless you have a 10,000 supporter base and getting that number through the gates on a regular basis in london will cost serious money.

Remember, the NZ warriors are the only game in town over here and yet they struggle with getting bums on seats.....a passion for RL is fantastic, but it needs real business accumen and wedges of cash to build a top flight side that can be self sufficient.

Edited January 21, 2023 by Londonbornirishbred

[Henson Park Old Firm]

does anyone have a link to this news?

[The Daddy]

7 minutes ago, Henson Park Old Firm said:

does anyone have a link to this news?

Check Hector McNeil's Twitter timeline

[The Daddy]

 

[The Partisan]

As a holidaying Aussie I went to London Skolars v Toulouse on the eve of the 2016 Challenge Cup final and really enjoyed the experience.

From the kids at the nearby tube station handing out flyers and giving directions, to the lady on the gate greeting me with a warm welcome,  to the banter in the bar after the game with people involved in the club .....it was a great evening out. 

I thought the stadium was suitable and hope they establish themselves there.  

Ended up buying a London Skolars polo shirt which I still wear today.

The creation and competent implementation of a marketing strategy to entice both locals and visitors to home games is certainly a task for the new owners. 

Hopefully get back there when next in the UK during the RL season.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 21, 2023 by The Partisan

[Pie tries]

On 20/01/2023 at 19:53, gingerjon said:

Best not try again then, eh?

Spot on.

Broncos got to Wembley- the collective failure of RL is that Broncos don’t own / have their own ground- somewhere to plant roots…

[The Lad]

Rugby League needs a strong team in the capital, the Broncos have been competitive over the last few years but it can't hurt to have another team in the capital pushing for success. As much as we like to think of ourselves as a northern sport we need to grow the sport in the south of England and the scholars could have a place at the table.

[langpark]

New River Stadium is absolutely fine as long as they are in League One or Championship. Let's hope they get to a position where we are discussing promotion to Super League. But seems unnecessary. 

I went to a game there about 5 years ago. It was disappointing as it felt like there were about 50 people there, so they definitely have some work to do in building a fan base. I wish them nothing but the best.

I also agree that a name change would be good. 'Skolars' I always felt sounded like an academy team name or something. 

[Jughead]

Avoiding all the mistakes (stadium changes and name changes) Broncos have made is crucial. 

[Davo5]

1 hour ago, langpark said:

New River Stadium is absolutely fine as long as they are in League One or Championship. Let's hope they get to a position where we are discussing promotion to Super League. But seems unnecessary. 

I went to a game there about 5 years ago. It was disappointing as it felt like there were about 50 people there, so they definitely have some work to do in building a fan base. I wish them nothing but the best.

I also agree that a name change would be good. 'Skolars' I always felt sounded like an academy team name or something. 

South Sydney have made rabbit butcher work ok down the years,Skolars is fine.

[welshmagpie]

1 hour ago, Davo5 said:

South Sydney have made rabbit butcher work ok down the years,Skolars is fine.

To the person who responded ‘confused’ to this… a Rabbitohs is somebody who sells rabbits