Shocking that our sport has no pro club in Manchester

[The Daddy]

I find it shocking that in 2025 our sport, which plays the SL Grand Final at Old Trafford and has played many test matches in the city has not one Manchester club in our league structure. 

It's actually bonkers and backwards that this is the case and it's not been prioritised by the RFL, SL or the clubs. 

Several years ago, local businessmen and mancunians involved in RL formed the Manchester Rangers. They played in the Rugby League Conference (correct me if I'm wrong) And applied to join League One. 

My understanding is that their application was declined on the basis of there already being Swinton, Oldham, Salford and Rochdale in the local vicinity and somd of those clubs being against their inclusion. 

But how does this even make sense when each of those clubs are adamant that they are not a Manchester club? 

Manchester has RL history without a pro club and is one of the UKs biggest cities. Make it make sense. 

I'm sure if the NRL have any significant influence in UK RL they will address this. 

[Spidey]

Go set one up if you can 

[Tommygilf]

Manchester Rangers should have been brought in. Like Goole they would have been a strong asset to the lower divisions and could have grown from there with easy access to the SL academies and strong amateur scene to draw upon. That they weren't was a disgrace especially the circumstances around the supposed opinions of other clubs.

It's unfortunate that the clubs in and around Greater Manchester, of which we have 6 (Salford, Swinton, Oldham, Wigan, Leigh, Rochdale) haven't been able to really build in the city more broadly. Salford should be our vehicle to do that but they have too many issues. Swinton and Rochdale seem to be destined for obscurity for various reasons till some major investment comes in. Oldham may grow into that Manchester side too but they need to focus on their locale in the short to medium term.

Wigan and Leigh are way out relatively, but I'm surprised the former haven't explored "Big Game" type events in Manchester for example. They're a big brand and have a good existing support base for this sort of event. 

RL has a long history in the city and is a key part of the wider Greater Manchester area.

[Roughyed Rats]

24 minutes ago, The Daddy said:

I find it shocking that in 2025 our sport, which plays the SL Grand Final at Old Trafford and has played many test matches in the city has not one Manchester club in our league structure. 

It's actually bonkers and backwards that this is the case and it's not been prioritised by the RFL, SL or the clubs. 

Several years ago, local businessmen and mancunians involved in RL formed the Manchester Rangers. They played in the Rugby League Conference (correct me if I'm wrong) And applied to join League One. 

My understanding is that their application was declined on the basis of there already being Swinton, Oldham, Salford and Rochdale in the local vicinity and somd of those clubs being against their inclusion. 

But how does this even make sense when each of those clubs are adamant that they are not a Manchester club? 

Manchester has RL history without a pro club and is one of the UKs biggest cities. Make it make sense. 

I'm sure if the NRL have any significant influence in UK RL they will address this. 

Their application was not declined solely on the basis that there are already several established clubs based in Greater Manchester (you missed off Leigh and Wigan) or because any of those clubs objected to their inclusion. They ran for 7 years as an amateur club and unsuccessfully tried to purchase the Hemel license (ultimately sold to Ottawa). The RFL encouraged them to purchase / merge with an existing club but they instead chose to try and merge with Salford reserves, with the idea of running a reserves side that 'would support all the existing professional Manchester clubs'. 

[Damien]

17 minutes ago, Roughyed Rats said:

Their application was not declined solely on the basis that there are already several established clubs based in Greater Manchester (you missed off Leigh and Wigan) or because any of those clubs objected to their inclusion. They ran for 7 years as an amateur club and unsuccessfully tried to purchase the Hemel license (ultimately sold to Ottawa). The RFL encouraged them to purchase / merge with an existing club but they instead chose to try and merge with Salford reserves, with the idea of running a reserves side that 'would support all the existing professional Manchester clubs'. 

They shouldn't have had to purchase or merge with an existing club though.

[The Daddy]

37 minutes ago, Roughyed Rats said:

Their application was not declined solely on the basis that there are already several established clubs based in Greater Manchester (you missed off Leigh and Wigan) or because any of those clubs objected to their inclusion. They ran for 7 years as an amateur club and unsuccessfully tried to purchase the Hemel license (ultimately sold to Ottawa). The RFL encouraged them to purchase / merge with an existing club but they instead chose to try and merge with Salford reserves, with the idea of running a reserves side that 'would support all the existing professional Manchester clubs'. 

Thank you, I wasn't aware they attempted to buy Hemel's license. That wasn't public knowledge.

Were they simply outbid by Ottawa? 

A merger with an existing club would never have worked, which club that's been going for 100 plus years is gonna merge with an unknown entity? 

I hope the investors behind that club return, but probably wishful thinking at this point 

Edited March 14 by The Daddy

[Gooleboy]

2 minutes ago, The Daddy said:

Thank you, I wasn't aware they attempted yo but Hemel's license. We're they simply outbid by Ottawa? 

A merger with an existing club would never have worked, which club that's been going for 100 plus years is gonna merge with an unknown entity? 

I hope the investors behind that club return, but probably wishful thinking at this point 

Hands up if you remember Ottawa!

[Tommygilf]

Weren't the Manchester Rangers board asked to stump up £500k too or am I confused?

[corvusxiii]

8 minutes ago, Gooleboy said:

Hands up if you remember Ottawa!

Very Good!

[Sports Prophet]

28 minutes ago, Gooleboy said:

Hands up if you remember Ottawa!

The Senators?

[langpark]

1 hour ago, The Daddy said:

My understanding is that their application was declined on the basis of there already being Swinton, Oldham, Salford and Rochdale in the local vicinity and somd of those clubs being against their inclusion. 

That sounds like hearsay to me. I don't know where it went wrong, but it's a shame it did. They had a Championship-standard venue that they were already playing in, had some really good momentum and good crowds at one point. Not sure how/why it all fell apart. 

 

 

 

[Spidey]

Just now, langpark said:

That sounds like hearsay to me. I don't know where it went wrong, but it's a shame it did. They had a Championship-standard venue that they were already playing in, had some really good momentum and good crowds at one point. Not sure how/why it all fell apart. 

 

 

 

After being rejected as a pro club it seemed they didn’t want to continue as a community club and folded shortly after 

[hunsletgreenandgold]

I've always said, if we can't 'expand' into 2 cities (Manc/L'Pool) that are surrounded by the heartlands, because football, then can the idea of pop up clubs elsewhere really be plausible? They just don't have the grassroots infrastructure to support it. And yes putting a pro club there is a little chicken and egg, but invariably the backer(s) of these clubs can't sustain it long enough for the grassroots element to get off the ground, in any meaningful way. Having a pro side branded as Manchester and/or Liverpool would help the community game expand into the suburbs of these cities, I'm sure of it. IF the whole NRL thing does take off I'd like to see them more focus on this and get a quicker return, than expansion as we've previously known it. To begin with at least. 

Edited March 14 by hunsletgreenandgold

[sam4731]

47 minutes ago, Gooleboy said:

Hands up if you remember Ottawa!

What do you mean remember them? They still exist and play in League 1. They just happen to play their home games slightly outside Ottawa.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa_Aces

[Roughyed Rats]

56 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

Weren't the Manchester Rangers board asked to stump up £500k too or am I confused?

Not sure but that was the amount they claimed to have already invested prior to folding. 

[Just Browny]

24 minutes ago, Spidey said:

After being rejected as a pro club it seemed they didn’t want to continue as a community club and folded shortly after 

Their sales pitch was all about the depth of the roots they had laid, and then as soon as they got a 'no' they had packed up as an organisation within days.

[RP London]

9 minutes ago, hunsletgreenandgold said:

I've always said, if we can't 'expand' into 2 cities (Manc/L'Pool) that are surrounded by the heartlands, because football, then can the idea of pop up clubs elsewhere. 

Thats the strangest argument... Because it doesnt work in 2 cities that are hugely dominated by football then it cannot work elsewhere... 

There are many reasons why clubs succeed or fail, very few are the same from one place to the next. While we have not established footholds in Liverpool or Manchester we do have teams in those "areas". Teams have appeared in Sheffield, Newcastle, Birmingham and with some concerted effort from the RFL and the League Community these could be good strong growth areas. What these "pop up" clubs all have in common though is that they have to be built independently of any sort of "grand plan" or funding and normally by "interested individuals" rather than a really well planned out strategy supported by the governing body. Do things differently and we may see some vastly different results. But not having one single Manchester club and one single Liverpool club is not a reason not to look elsewhere. Those cities are covered by other clubs (however, i would add having a team branded Manchester or Liverpool would be no bad thing).

[Agbrigg]

Last time I looked Swinton was in Manchester. When I first started watching the game they were a top club and test matches were played at their ground. I also went to a Wakey/Sainrs chamionship final there and the crowd was about 38,000. I know the ground is long gone, but surely with a bit of branding etc, Swinton would be the obvious choice to have a significant presence.

[RP London]

a quick google brought up this article which gives a very quick overview of the situation when they folded: 

https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/manchester-rangers-withdraw-team-after-league-one-snub

cant really blame people if they are in it for a professional club to perhaps pull out when they dont get to their aim as they can then, perhaps, concentrate on other business ventures.

[RP London]

1 minute ago, Agbrigg said:

Last time I looked Swinton was in Manchester. When I first started watching the game they were a top club and test matches were played at their ground. I also went to a Wakey/Sainrs chamionship final there and the crowd was about 38,000. I know the ground is long gone, but surely with a bit of branding etc, Swinton would be the obvious choice to have a significant presence.

Didn't they add Manchester to their badge a few years back, which IIRC didnt go down all that well?

[Just Browny]

10 minutes ago, Agbrigg said:

Last time I looked Swinton was in Manchester. When I first started watching the game they were a top club and test matches were played at their ground. I also went to a Wakey/Sainrs chamionship final there and the crowd was about 38,000. I know the ground is long gone, but surely with a bit of branding etc, Swinton would be the obvious choice to have a significant presence.

Last time I looked Swinton was in the City of Salford, so either:

- there are no Manchester clubs as originally stated; or

- we are defining Manchester as the Greater Manchester area, and we have the following pro clubs: Salford, Wigan, Leigh, Swinton, Oldham and Rochdale.

[Amber Avenger]

At a community level there was also Mancunians RL - at one point about ten or more years ago there certainly seemed to be a bit of "arms race" and rivalry between them and Rangers in terms of laying down the path to a potential professional club in Manchester. There was also the Canalsiders for a couple of years as well and they got a few headlines. 

Having now lived in Manchester for 20 years, it was a really exciting time, as although it was obviously a long road for both clubs, it at least was nice there were some presences that felt like they belonged to the city. Mancunians I think refocussed on to being more "entry level in the community", with popular touch rugby and kids sessions for a couple of years, around the time Rangers were talking about League One, but it looks like they haven't been active in that area either since 2019. A proper shame.

[hunsletgreenandgold]

12 minutes ago, RP London said:

Thats the strangest argument... Because it doesnt work in 2 cities that are hugely dominated by football then it cannot work elsewhere... 

There are many reasons why clubs succeed or fail, very few are the same from one place to the next. While we have not established footholds in Liverpool or Manchester we do have teams in those "areas". Teams have appeared in Sheffield, Newcastle, Birmingham and with some concerted effort from the RFL and the League Community these could be good strong growth areas. What these "pop up" clubs all have in common though is that they have to be built independently of any sort of "grand plan" or funding and normally by "interested individuals" rather than a really well planned out strategy supported by the governing body. Do things differently and we may see some vastly different results. But not having one single Manchester club and one single Liverpool club is not a reason not to look elsewhere. Those cities are covered by other clubs (however, i would add having a team branded Manchester or Liverpool would be no bad thing).

My post cut off for some reason - I've gone back an edited and partly replied to this. It's not enough to just have clubs surrounding them - the buy in from the city as a whole is carried with the name. Hunslet is vastly different to the pull Leeds has and that's not me suggesting existing clubs should just rename, but new clubs could and should be set up in those cities. 

[RP London]

40 minutes ago, hunsletgreenandgold said:

My post cut off for some reason - I've gone back an edited and partly replied to this. It's not enough to just have clubs surrounding them - the buy in from the city as a whole is carried with the name. Hunslet is vastly different to the pull Leeds has and that's not me suggesting existing clubs should just rename, but new clubs could and should be set up in those cities. 

I totally get what you are saying, I dont 100% agree with it but I do get it. 

What I dont get is the argument that if we cannot do that (in a totally different environment, one with already viable alternatives for the RL lovers on the doorstep) then we should not be looking at any other form of expansion with "pop up clubs"... even though in areas they are working (Sheffield, Midlands, Newcastle [though that nearly fell over]) without any real help from the RFL etc

[The Daddy]

1 hour ago, RP London said:

a quick google brought up this article which gives a very quick overview of the situation when they folded: 

https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/manchester-rangers-withdraw-team-after-league-one-snub

cant really blame people if they are in it for a professional club to perhaps pull out when they dont get to their aim as they can then, perhaps, concentrate on other business ventures.

So according to this article, they were refused because of the presence of other greater Manchester clubs.