London Broncos (Merged Threads)

[Deadcowboys1]

13 hours ago, Londonbornirishbred said:

Locals are key. Local schools, clubs, community hubs, council, churches, hospitals...everything that is involved in the "fabric" of a locality.

BTW. For 2 years we had WCC warm ups in London with OK crowds (5 & 7k IIRC) but i attneded an event when the visiting Aussies attended the Walkabout in The Bush....they were greeted by about 20 QRL fans....that was it.

From the bottom up is the only way to build sustainable crowds. NZ Warriors has taken 30 years and The Melbourne Storm are still building. 

But you do need the right area first. Most people I know who live in Wimbledon & interested in sport are Chelsea fans. I expect a lot of AFC fans nolonger live in Wimbledon for the same reason few Fulham FC fans live near Craven Cottage. Cost! Tooting on the other had is predominantly populated by Indians, Pakistanis & Sri Lankans where cricket is god. It's bedlam when India does well. It is culturally alien to most of them, a game of rugby.

The deal to do if it can be done is at the Stoop. A proper rugby ground, even better facilities than when we were last there & no problems with pitch use. Yes as you always do, you go on & on Ariston about the obnoxious Hughes, Donkey Gus & the relationship with Quins. But, the were dealing with the equally obnoxious Quins CEO David Mr Social Housing Ellis. They now have Laurie Dalrymple, a rugby man, former Wolves CEO more in the mold of Mark Evans. Quins need money to expand their ground to 20k & covid put a dent in that. Yes, our 2 men, 2 woman & Patch the dog would rattle around in there to start, but it is the place to be.

[Deadcowboys1]

20 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

Charlton is in Greenwich Borough.

It may be in the Borough but it's not Greenwich. Bit Pedantic is know, but ask Charlton fans what they think.

[Barley Mow]

48 minutes ago, Deadcowboys1 said:

It may be in the Borough but it's not Greenwich. Bit Pedantic is know, but ask Charlton fans what they think.

It has taken almost 45 years, but this is how we know London are truly accepted as part of the rugby league family - their (former) location is identified by the local council it is administered by and not seen as a place in it's own right.

Castleford is Wakefield

Leigh is Wigan

Charlton is Greenwich 

[Deadcowboys1]

53 minutes ago, Barley Mow said:

It has taken almost 45 years, but this is how we know London are truly accepted as part of the rugby league family - their (former) location is identified by the local council it is administered by and not seen as a place in it's own right.

Castleford is Wakefield

Leigh is Wigan

Charlton is Greenwich 

Looking forward then to you listing the councils of the 20 odd grounds we've played home games at. 

[fieldofclothofgold]

6 hours ago, Barley Mow said:

It has taken almost 45 years, but this is how we know London are truly accepted as part of the rugby league family - their (former) location is identified by the local council it is administered by and not seen as a place in it's own right.

Castleford is Wakefield

Leigh is Wigan

Charlton is Greenwich 

Wether the residents like it or not 

[Pen-Y-Bont Crusader]

9 hours ago, gingerjon said:

Charlton is in Greenwich Borough.

Always gutted when I first moved to London they were at the Valley as Mrs PBC and I were season ticket holders for Charlton. 

[Deadcowboys1]

3 hours ago, Pen-Y-Bont Crusader said:

Always gutted when I first moved to London they were at the Valley as Mrs PBC and I were season ticket holders for Charlton. 

Oh dear PBC & David Hughes was a director. Funny old world.

[The Gardener]

If London had a successful team the crowds would be there.Look back to the years when we had a team full of well known older Australians at the stoop.Crowds were good and there were a lot of australian and kiwi accents heard.

If London hung on in there at the moment in the Championship, recruited wisely from the supposed interest from the NRL for the rest of the season and with 10 spots available to fill in the squad would be near the top of the championship by the end of the season comfortably.If the NRL rumour is happening , pick up one or two from the up and coming players from each Nrl team or even their reserve grade and I am sure London would walk the league. Look what happened when London picked up Abbas Miski and then he went on to be super leagues joint top try scorer when he moved to WIgan.

If they get promoted and with the right investement, i am sure a team full of reserve grade NRL players would give any of the teams a run for their money over the season in the Super League.You get a winning team in London and with the correct marketing I am sure London could average respectable crowd numbers. With the NRL rumors about taking over Super League,the funding could be there for London.

[Tommygilf]

The Gradings systems essentially wants well funded clubs, with decent attendances, playing in good and appropriately sized grounds, that have good on field performances on top.

The bar for the A Grade overall really is at the minimum standard level we should be demanding really. 

With a backer not completely blind to what is actually required, and committed to building a club rather than a team each year, London should be able to do this. Without those things though, London aren't an asset to the competition. 

There are things that can be done to help, the London weighting in the cap should be massively increased for example.

[londonbronco]

Quote

A relaunch of the Broncos club is expected to be announced next month, as first reported in Leeds-based Forty20 magazine. It is understood the NRL are planning to invest in the capital outfit who were relegated from Betfred Super League to the Championship last year.

I hope this is 100% true as things really do seem to be moving on for the Broncos!

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/ex-leeds-rhinos-star-enlisted-to-boost-london-broncos-revival-5044088

[Click]

28 minutes ago, londonbronco said:

I hope this is 100% true as things really do seem to be moving on for the Broncos!

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/ex-leeds-rhinos-star-enlisted-to-boost-london-broncos-revival-5044088

One can hope, but I don't believe anything until it's official these days.

[preid]

29 minutes ago, londonbronco said:

I hope this is 100% true as things really do seem to be moving on for the Broncos!

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/ex-leeds-rhinos-star-enlisted-to-boost-london-broncos-revival-5044088

That's really great. The only thing is I hope that Mike Eccles is not pushed aside. He's been fantastic both as a coach and for his understanding of the whole London scene and precisely what is needed there. For me he is the glue that can bind it all together.

[Click]

3 minutes ago, preid said:

That's really great. The only thing is I hope that Mike Eccles is not pushed aside. He's been fantastic both as a coach and for his understanding of the whole London scene and precisely what is needed there. For me he is the glue that can bind it all together.

He's the only permanent asset. If any new owner came in and got rid of him, I wouldn't be that optimistic about their future.

[JM2010]

Just read the article. Hope this comes off. I especially liked the bit about funding marketing and setting up centres of excellence 

[preid]

16 minutes ago, Click said:

He's the only permanent asset. If any new owner came in and got rid of him, I wouldn't be that optimistic about their future.

Yeah, Gary Hetherington should appreciate that more than anyone and fight his corner but there's always the worry that Aussies may not and want their own man .

[Londonbornirishbred]

watching the womens union (insomnia)...the ground looks like it was built with meccano....how much would such "development" cost ar ealing?

having a permanent home is key. Quins was perfect, but if we coyld throw a few milion at ealing for a share, we could build from there.

[preid]

2 minutes ago, Londonbornirishbred said:

watching the womens union (insomnia)...the ground looks like it was built with meccano....how much would such "development" cost ar ealing?

having a permanent home is key. Quins was perfect, but if we coyld throw a few milion at ealing for a share, we could build from there.

Which would you choose, Ealing or The Stoop as mentioned above ?

[Londonbornirishbred]

9 minutes ago, preid said:

Which would you choose, Ealing or The Stoop as mentioned above ?

I was 100% against the wedding venue (ealing) when it happened as i thought it was a backward step. I now see it as PERFECT for where we are now. Trailfinders have again been denied promotion to the onion top tier because of their ground, so they need to boost their facilites, so a few million as "partners" would see is cement ourselves in west London.

The stoop would be great foe games where we expected more than 8k, but that is years away. 

build from the bottom. 3k fans in a 14k stadium doesnt work...

[Click]

Think we really need to be consolidating and making Wimbledon our home. 

It is the perfect ground if we are actually looking at rebuilding and getting back into SL. If the plan is to just be a team in the Championship then Ealing would be fine, but it has no future beyond that.

 

[Londonbornirishbred]

11 minutes ago, Click said:

Think we really need to be consolidating and making Wimbledon our home. 

It is the perfect ground if we are actually looking at rebuilding and getting back into SL. If the plan is to just be a team in the Championship then Ealing would be fine, but it has no future beyond that.

 

The issue with Wimbledon is "building". 

West London was our home since 2002 until 2022.....we made an effort at Brentford and grew crowds. Even the move to The Stoop seemed to work, but for me, uf i still lived in Brentford/Ealing, Wimbledon would be a drag. New fans are key, but i am not sure there is a rugby culture south of the river......

[Click]

6 minutes ago, Londonbornirishbred said:

The issue with Wimbledon is "building". 

West London was our home since 2002 until 2022.....we made an effort at Brentford and grew crowds. Even the move to The Stoop seemed to work, but for me, uf i still lived in Brentford/Ealing, Wimbledon would be a drag. New fans are key, but i am not sure there is a rugby culture south of the river......

"A rugby culture" ... We've played south of the river plenty of times, and have had homes south of the river as well. 

We've played all over London, not all of our fans are based in West London, it's what happens when you market the club as the only professional Rugby League in London/The South. 

I don't see what numbers of fans you recall seeing at Ealing that makes you think that the future is there, the crowds were dire and even with dire crowds the wedding venue couldn't cope. 

Not sure how you truly expand it without digging up the other 3g/4g pitch that they have 5 foot next to the main pitch, as well as knocking down the actual wedding venue building, unless having 3 rows of seats as a "main stand" is fine for you.

[SixSet]

Interesting -  all this talk about the London Broncos' "home". West London, say some - many even.

But what does that really mean?   I mean, really?

As we all know, the London (insert suffix) rugby league club has cavorted and cantered about the capital like a wild,  well,  Bronco. There's never been a "home",  or there's been several.

If the ideal is that the club put down studs and hooves away from Plough Lane, and make some other place the stable base for the London rugby league project then let's go for it. If that means a complete reboot and rebirth and resurgence that brings funding, vision, long term planning, grass roots sensibility and a sustainable future, then bring it on at a gallop.... wherever that is, by the way. In London? Great. Further afield? That's another kettle…

Does it matter what the location is for a “home” ground? Up to a point, yes. I mean, if they moved to Reading, for example, like London Irish did, many existing followers would probably think twice before schlepping out to Berkshire to watch games. Nevertheless, after some time, remember, London Irish grew their fan base whilst out in that home county.

Just like the exiles, London's rugby league club have been nomads since the outset. They haven't grown out of a community, with other clubs around the M25, for example. No, there's no real base, no heartland, no neighbours or rival clubs like there are oop north. Not much tradition in that respect, to damage or trample on. So, if a wholesale reset and relocation is what transpires then, yes, there might well be (probably will be) outcry amongst those few hardcore Broncos fans in south west London but it wouldn't make any headlines and it wouldn't affect potential spectators, if managed carefully.

So, are some, perhaps, in danger of succumbing to a touch of parochialism, maybe?

Those reactionary die-hards, incidentally, who would rather London’s premier rugby league club soldiered on as is than change and slough off a layer or two in order to survive and develop ( whether the layer is the name or the location) are just guilty of esoteric snobbery, really. The core "ultras" ( all two dozen of them) don't represent anyone else besides themselves, any more than those wooly, wild horse mascots at Plough Lane’s pitchside!

Interesting times. What is over the horizon, I wonder...

 

[SixSet]

Cor blimey, sorry about that! Forgot to turn the bold off as well as forget a question mark at the end there ...!

[Henson Park Old Firm]

1 hour ago, SixSet said:

Cor blimey, sorry about that! Forgot to turn the bold off as well as forget a question mark at the end there ...!

You have made your point.

[Sports Prophet]

On 18/03/2025 at 02:28, Anita Bath said:

Had the same experience on a recent cruise holiday….sydneysiders who thought mauls were a thing of beauty …all educated in private schools.

Unlike Panthers fans who think the same of Westfield shopping malls.