More games in Melbourne

[Plugger46]

I am from Melbourne and I would love to see the swans in about 8 or 9 games in Melbourne, mainly for all the old South Melbourne fans who hardly ever get to watch the swans in Melbourne as we only play 5 games down here this year.

I think the AFL is forgetting the history of the club, and the old south supporters.

thoughts???

[desredandwhite]

P46, unfortunately history and tradition don't mean very much anymore.

Given the way the competition is structured, there's absolutely no way we would get to play 8 or 9 games in Melbourne a year in a standard H&A season.

Let's assume for a minute that we have an 11/11 home and away split. If we play 9 games in Melbourne, that means only travelling 2 times outside NSW/VIC, out of a possible 5. While it would be bloody fantastic for us, it won't happen. Add in the Bulldogs home game in Sydney and the North home game in Canberra - and you're basically looking at never travelling outside NSW/VIC.

This will never happen. I think 6 games is the most we can hope for in the forseeable future (12 sydney, 1 canberra, 6 Melbourne, 1 Perth, 1 Adelaide, 1 Brisbane). 7 Melbourne games if we're lucky.

[j s]

Originally posted by desredandwhite
7 Melbourne games if we're lucky.

....or put another way.....7 opportunities for Des to apply his jinx!!

[Dpw]

Hang on a minute us in WA want games over here as we love the swans too we will take four thanks. Come on last I knew we were the Sydney Swans, but hey I could be wrong.

[scurrilous]

DPW you make a good point, but the Swans didn't come from WA unless you are talking about Districts (I shudder everytime I see a Districts scarf... black and white with the word swans on it )

You see the swans were wrenched away from the Melbourne fans. Best thing that's happened imho. In fact, the keep south at south movement prevented the swans having one of the biggest money spinners for the club from eventuating. But I digress...

[Dpw]

Originally posted by scurrilous
DPW you make a good point, but the Swans didn't come from WA unless you are talking about Districts (I shudder everytime I see a Districts scarf... black and white with the word swans on it )

You see the swans were wrenched away from the Melbourne fans. Best thing that's happened imho. In fact, the keep south at south movement prevented the swans having one of the biggest money spinners for the club from eventuating. But I digress...

There is a link with WA according to the West Australian the Sydney Swans called themselves the Swans because of the amount of West Aussies playing for the then newly relocated South Melbourne. As it is the signature of WA(the black swan).

No I did not make this up it was in the lift out they had for all clubs
I don't know If its true.

I don't think we should have more games here but rather stating how stupid it would be to have more games in Melbourne because once we were South Melbourne(althought this should never be forgotten.)

[Charlie]

DPW.... you just don't get it. Are you suggesting we have no right to expect a bit of consideration by the club and the AFL?

[Dpw]

Originally posted by Charlie
DPW.... you just don't get it. Are you suggesting we have no right to expect a bit of consideration by the club and the AFL?

I don't recall saying that, however we are the Sydney Swans not the Perth Swans, Melbourne Swans, Auckland Swans or even South Melbourne. There should always be a link to Melbourne but to expect us to play away from home and play more games in Melbourne just because we were once South Melbourne and a few of the clubs fans in Melbourne think its a good Idea is Stupid.

I think our past is important and we should be proud to once have been south melbourne and there should be consideration given to fans in respect to more funcations etc but to sacrifice home games no way.

Charlie surely you can see that.

[Charlie]

Who said home games?

As I said in the other thread, all I'm asking for is that the away games are distributed on a proportional basis - hence, we'd get 7 games a year. They can do it for Collingwood, who get a guaranteed 7 away games in Melbourne. They can do it for Brisbane as well. Why not us?

Functions don't cut it. Games, that's all I want. A fair, reasonable, proportional number of games.

[footyhead]

Come off it you melbourne idiots.
I f you want to support the "SYDNEY" Swans, ok But stop trying to build on an old and dying tradition. The south melbourne Swans are dead and buried, and you really have no more right to more melbourne games for the swans than any other interstate supporters do in melbourne.
The Swans future is in Sydney. It wouldn't matter if all the melbourne suporrters gave it up , the swans would still exist in Sydney. Get used to it.

[Charlie]

Originally posted by footyhead
Come off it you melbourne idiots.
I f you want to support the "SYDNEY" Swans, ok But stop trying to build on an old and dying tradition. The south melbourne Swans are dead and buried, and you really have no more right to more melbourne games for the swans than any other interstate supporters do in melbourne.
The Swans future is in Sydney. It wouldn't matter if all the melbourne suporrters gave it up , the swans would still exist in Sydney. Get used to it.

I never supported South Melbourne. When Robbieando's Dad was attending Keep South At South meetings, I was a figment of my parent's imagination.

I started going to games in 1994. Yep... that's right, the year we won our third straight spoon. Since then, I've seen both highs and lows. In ten years, I've experienced the same range of good and bad as many old South fans have seen over 30, 40 or 50 years. The point is, collectively we have been an incredibly loyal and dedicated group. How many Swans fans were going to Melbourne games late last year, when the SCG couldn't get over 20,000??? Answer: As many as there always is!!!

WE NEVER LEAVE. WE HAVE AS MUCH RIGHT TO THIS CLUB, AS MUCH RIGHT TO SEE THIS CLUB, AS YOU DO.

[robbieando]

I've said it once and I'll say it again for a club that lost $1 million last season and is on the path to another loss this season, pissing off the 6000 members in Melbourne is the last thing they would want to do.

Because if half these members didn't join up, I find it very hard to believe that the shortfall will be made up with Sydney members unless we have another season like 1996. So in short lose a large amount of Melbourne members and this club could find itself facing even more losses financally and could find itself back in debt in no time.

Keep us happy and you can bank on 6000 members each and every year. Sure we are now "Sydney" but just because you live in Sydney doesn't mean you have more rights to this club than the people in Melbourne.

[Nico]

Originally posted by robbieando
I've said it once and I'll say it again for a club that lost $1 million last season and is on the path to another loss this season, pissing off the 6000 members in Melbourne is the last thing they would want to do.

Because if half these members didn't join up, I find it very hard to believe that the shortfall will be made up with Sydney members unless we have another season like 1996. So in short lose a large amount of Melbourne members and this club could find itself facing even more losses financally and could find itself back in debt in no time.

Keep us happy and you can bank on 6000 members each and every year. Sure we are now "Sydney" but just because you live in Sydney doesn't mean you have more rights to this club than the people in Melbourne.

Good call Robbie,

There might be 6000 paid up members in Melbourne but a heck of a lot more seem to get to the games. Build a successful club and win a flag, and who knows how many members we might get. Amazing how many Swans stickers you see on cars in Melbourne.

No club has a supporter base out of it's home state than we do in Victoria.

[Dpw]

Look Sydneys future is not Melbourne if it was why would they have relocated South Melbourne. I don't agree with FootyHead but we have to know that the Swans are a NSW team they spend there money there trying to develop the game there first thoughts and efforts need to be there.

[Nico]

Originally posted by Dpw
There is a link with WA according to the West Australian the Sydney Swans called themselves the Swans because of the amount of West Aussies playing for the then newly relocated South Melbourne. As it is the signature of WA(the black swan).

No I did not make this up it was in the lift out they had for all clubs
I don't know If its true.

I don't think we should have more games here but rather stating how stupid it would be to have more games in Melbourne because once we were South Melbourne(althought this should never be forgotten.)

Don't know how the Wa rag could deduce that. South was called the Bloods and/or the Swans as long back as I can recall. The early 60's. They were called the Swans because there was a million swans on the Albert Park Lake that is next to the "Lake Oval" as it was called.

When they won the flag in '33, they were stacked with interstaters, many West Aussies, but then they were called the Foreign Legion. I can't recall who if any of the players in '82 were from WA.

Methinks you Sandgropers are drawing a long bow on this one. Next you will be saying the Brisbane Bears had their roots in Kalgoorlie.

Have another SWAN Lager.