One Sydney team

[SWANSBEST]

AFL to rely on Swans - http://foxsports.news.com.au/story/0...-23209,00.html
Sydney is set to remain a one-AFL team town reports Tim Morrissey
14mar03
AFL chief executive Wayne Jackson has put plans for a second Sydney team on the back burner indefinitely.

His grand plan to convert Sydney into an Aussie rules town is now solely reliant on the Swans.

Although the Swans have already made significant inroads in establishing AFL in a rugby and league-dominated city Jackson cannot see how another AFL team in Sydney is going to speed up the process.

"Whilst the Swans have done really well it takes a long, long time to capture the hearts and minds and souls and get the corporate support and a strong membership base," Jackson said.

"The Swans have done well in those regards but there is no contemplation for a second team in Sydney for as far ahead as anybody can see.

"We are promoting the AFL out in Sydney's western suburbs through activities like our pre-season camps but there's no thoughts in the foreseeable future of a second team being located in Sydney's west."

Although Jackson firmly believes the AFL is the No.1 football code in Australia and deserves a bigger presence and following in Sydney he concedes that it will be a long time before his brand of footy knocks off league and union.

"We don't have an overt ambition to become the No.1 football code in Sydney but we do want to have a significantly bigger (market) share than we do at the present time.

"I think we are improving year by year and who knows where we'll be in 50 years? But in the next five or 10 years I can't imagine we would seriously challenge for the No.1 spot."

However, the Swans proved last season that AFL's appeal goes well beyond the chardonnay set in the eastern suburbs.

Sydney's three games at Telstra Stadium in Homebush enjoyed an average crowd of 42,000 while the 54,000 fans for the first game against Essendon established a record attendance for a non-Victorian AFL match. The Swans will play three more games at Telstra Stadium this year starting with the season opener against Carlton on March 29.

Despite the initial success Jackson doesn't feel the need for the Swans to take more games away from their traditional home at the SCG.

"In the order of three or four games at Telstra Stadium is about right at the time being," said Jackson. "There is room to move a little either way if the Swans chose to.

"We know we rank well behind rugby and rugby league, in particular rugby league in (Sydney's west).

"We are prepared to take a long-term view and just keep chipping away and doing the high-quality things and doing things that have got some durability."

At the end of the day, however, the AFL's ability to shake off the image of being an imported sport rests solely on the success of the Swans both on and off the field.

"In my view they are critically important not just for Sydney but for Australian football," said Jackson.

Last season's failure to make the top eight compounded by the club's million dollar operating loss is perceived as a step backwards for the Swans and the AFL.

But the AFL boss is confident things will turn around in Sydney this season.

"A lot of our clubs found 2002 a really difficult year but we've got the confidence of the Swans board to turn that around," said Jackson.

"I'm sure they'll be budgeting to break even or post a small profit this year."

[cos789]

It is a mistake to think Sydney is a one team city.
The Roos did it totally wrong .From the outset they publicly stated they weren't moving North permanently ,putting potential supporters offside . Then they tried to pinch supporters rather than develope their own.If they had stated they'd move to where ever the largest support was ,they would have won both ways,as both cities would have tried to woo the club.

The only criteria for football in Sydney is that you have to be succesfull .Sydney can support any number of successfull teams.
it battles to support one unsuccessful team.

[Red]

Originally posted by cos789
The only criteria for football in Sydney is that you have to be succesfull .Sydney can support any number of successfull teams.
it battles to support one unsuccessful team.

Very well put cos.

The timing of this statement is interesting. Is Jackson implying that with the Swans as the only real AFL-push into Sydney, that they're therefore entitled to salary cap benefits? Or is it more an assurance that the Swans will be Sydneys only team for at least 5-10 more years as a kind of concillation for having the benefits removed? Time will tell I guess.

Go the Crows. I so hope the Dagpies go down tonight.

[bricon]

Originally posted by Red
Is Jackson implying that with the Swans as the only real AFL-push into Sydney

A big deal that many non-Sydneysiders do not appreciate, is that for a HUGE proportion of the Sydney public the Swans are Australian Football. All other "brands" are meaningless in the Sydney market, including the AFL; I'm sure Jackson appreciates this.

Eddie Everywhere was talking big about Collingwood's foray into western Sydney until he actually came here and saw the scene first hand. He hasn't said a peep about the Wobbles grand plans for western Sydney since his visit - because the reaction to Collingwood here was positively underwhelming! The Sydney visit must have been a very humbling experience for EE and the Collingwood F.C. I'm sure that even EE now appreciates how big the task is for the Swans/AFL in Sydney.

Diluting the value of the Swans "brand" here by the inappropriately early introduction of a second team would be disastrous for football in Sydney and ultimately the value of the entire AFL.

[robbieando]

I have said it once and I'll say it again, Sydney just can't support a 2nd Team for at least 20 years? Why because there isn't the support base for 2 team. We have problems now getting 20,000 so what would happen if a 2nd team came up here. It would last long without huge AFL funding which the other clubs won't let happen. We should UNTIL there is a need for a 2nd team, not try and get one going before hand.

[Charlie]

From a purely selfish pov, that's good news. I've been quite irritated by the fact that the Swans were seemingly putting a lot of their own money into preparing Western Sydney for another team.

Hopefully, this will be good for the Swans. I really think we should aim for 40,000 crowds to all our games, not just at Homebush. It's only 1 in 100 people in the Sydney metropolitan area. That doesn't include the Central and South Coasts and Hunter regions. It really should be quite doable.

[cos789]

The crowd pulling capacity of the Sydney Swans depends solely on the Swans and that is proportional to their ladder position .
Threaten for the flag and telstra stadium would be a sellout .
A second team's support would depend on
1.Their ladder position .
2.Their promotion .
3.How they identify with the Sydney people.
A second team is no division or dilution of strength .
It means a game of AFL EVERY week.This is the ideal situation as seen by perth and Adelaide.In fact it keeps the footy presence right up there ,every week .
Most people support multuple teams to varying degrees anyway.
It makes absolutely on sense to push Collingwood ,that would be the last team to leave Melbourne

[Jimmy C]

My previous view has been that the Western Bulldogs are tailor made for the Western Sydney market (lots of bogans, the whole "Western" thing in general). The AFL should be giving them financial inducements to play more home games up North-It (sort of) worked for us. Maybe in the future?

[Beaussie]

I too have always thought the Western Bulldogs would be perfectly suited for West Sydney. Perhaps a joint venture with the Canterbury Bulldogs and West Sydney Razorbacks.

Canterbury were once interested in a joint venture with the Kangaroos playing games at the Oasis stadium in Liverpool once complete? I rememeber a press conference with the Kangaroos and Bulldogs discussing the potential of the new stadium for AFL & NRL. Can't remember which players were involved. Anyone else remember this? From memory I think it was the first year of the Roos playing home games in Sydney.

[the manager]

If there is ever to be a second AFL Team in Sydney, it must be based in the growth area of Western sydney. There is a growing junior AFL base out at Penrith (Greater Western Football Association) and when the kids coming out of that league reach 16, they either decide to play with the Penrith Football Club (or any other AFL Club in the region) or go and play other codes of football because they are disinterested with the state of AFL Football in this city.

[Ajn]

No real suprise. It won't stop clubs like Collingwood trying to steal away our supporter base, with one off deals to increase their sponsorship coverage.