New club to help Swans' fight: AFL

[Bear]

New club to help Swans' fight: AFL

League boss Andrew Demetriou believes the introduction of a new club will aid the Sydney Swans in their battle against rival codes

[Bear]

New club to help Swans' fight: AFL

League boss Andrew Demetriou believes the introduction of a new club will aid the Sydney Swans in their battle against rival codes

I know you'll get most on RWO disagreeing with the AFL boss, but the arrival of a second team in Sydney will be a massive boost for Australian Football AND the Swans in Sydney. I can't wait for the cross-town rivalry, extra AFL news in the media, growth in support for the game from Western Sydney, extra games, etc, etc.

It is about time there was a club/team that Western Sydney can actually relate to... not an eastern suburbs / LNS team that has no real connection with the west. Bring on 2012.

[dimelb]

Roos is right and Demetriou is wrong. QED.

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

New club to help Swans' fight: AFL

League boss Andrew Demetriou believes the introduction of a new club will aid the Sydney Swans in their battle against rival codes

"New club to get AFL more leverage in the Sydney sponsorship market", more like.

The more I hear Dimwit harp on about developing the game in NSW, the more I want to crawl. He realises that sponsorship & business-wise the southern markets are largely saturated. People & companies who want to invest in footy already/have done. The Sydney market is not only the largest in the country but it largely untapped in terms of involvement with sponsorship the "AFL brand". This is why Dimwit & co want their hands on. To do so they can build a couple of ovals and pump money into a spuriously thought-up western Sydney team. West Sydney Razorbacks anyone?

I just hope the AFL has deep pockets to both bankroll the new Sydney team AND start developing a serious infrastructure for the game in the area from Strathfield to the foot of the mountains. Because if they do, West Sydney will flop. And the AFL brand will have lost a lot of the credibility it has earned in the toughest sporting & leisure market in the country.

JF

[AnnieH]

... that would be from Flemington.

(Strathfield/Homebush are still considered "inner-west".)

[Mr Magoo]

I know you'll get most on RWO disagreeing with the AFL boss, but the arrival of a second team in Sydney will be a massive boost for Australian Football AND the Swans in Sydney. I can't wait for the cross-town rivalry, extra AFL news in the media, growth in support for the game from Western Sydney, extra games, etc, etc.

It is about time there was a club/team that Western Sydney can actually relate to... not an eastern suburbs / LNS team that has no real connection with the west. Bring on 2012.

I agree with all these sentiments.

Unfortunately I dont know if the support is out there in the community so I hope that the AFL can live with propping up this team for a very very long time as it will be many years until we have the things described above.

In the meantime they may find all they do is splinter the support generated for the swans so that they may also find the swans in financial trouble as a result. Double whammy.

[Cheer Squad]

I agree with all these sentiments.

Unfortunately I dont know if the support is out there in the community so I hope that the AFL can live with propping up this team for a very very long time as it will be many years until we have the things described above.

In the meantime they may find all they do is splinter the support generated for the swans so that they may also find the swans in financial trouble as a result. Double whammy.

That very much depends on how successful the brand identity of the western Sydney team is. That's the key to whether or not the western Sydney team will ultimately work.

I suspect if the AFL goes ahead and establishes the second Sydney team as planned, it will become an enormous burden on the rest of the competition.

[Mountain Man]

Coming down from the Mountains, I would pass by a Western Sydney team to go to a Swans game every time;

and, given it takes time out of a weekend to watch TV for a Swans away game, I cannot see I would ever go live to a Western Sydney team game.

The "rivalry" round would just be another Superpass Homebush game for the Swans.

If it isn't about gate attendance, it confirms my belief that the expansion is all about sponsorship/TV. I wonder if the Ruddster should see whether the Dimwit is running the game for some reward in his employment contract - all about CEO greed!

[swannieserin]

I would like to add a slightly different point of view to this debate. Two things to take into account:
1. I am not a lifelong, hardcore Swans supporter. I was raised with aussie rules by two SA expat parents and was a Crows/Port supporter when younger. I chose to support the Swans because I was desperate for live footy, and lets be honest, the Swans are an inoffensive team.
2. I worked in Western Sydney, close to some of the people and figures involved in the second team, and have had some involvement in local footy.

I personally cannot wait for the western Sydney team. I have been alienated by the Swans, with membership price rises, and their best attempt at something that suits me, the "Young Bloods" is designed for young professionals in investment banking, etc. I am a young professional in a government department and have zero interest in spending my money on overpriced alcohol, shoes or ridiculously overinflated seats at the footy.

I suspect that the drop in Swans membership has come from people like me who came to the Swans because they love football. People who supported other teams or are from interstate, people who played at their strong western Sydney footy or auskick team and wanted to see a live game and feel that excitement. But people who have been surrounded by the latte set while they wanted to cheer (and got shushed), who find it hard to get a response from the club about anything and have to call at least 3 times just to get their address changed.

I will go to games of the western Sydney team and I will support them. They have no history - no rivalries, no premierships, no supporters who can bang on about how they drove all over the world, or went to their first game in the rain in 1891. I can see the sport I love, help others learn the game I love.

The AFL wouldn't be putting in this team unless there is evidence of a long term gain. What I have seen indicates that this will be the case.

I don't mind if people disagree with me, after all, this is my opinion based on my experiences. Few people here, in a hardcore Swans supporter's website, probably supported the Swans for the reason that I have, and feel the way I do about the club. But I'm certainly not the only person in Sydney who feels that way.

And for what its worth, I think a second team in Sydney will bolster support for the Swans. People will care about the East-West rivalry, its one constant in Sydney and to base a football team on that makes perfect sense.

[desredandwhite]

I think bringing in a second Sydney team is certainly not an insignificant task. One only needs to look at the fate of a lot of other "expansion" teams in other leagues in Australia to realise that it is a tough fight.

However, I also believe that the rivalry and increased exposure can only benefit the sport and the Swans, if done right!!!

I live out west (well.. North-west, which IMO is actually a pretty strong Aussie Rules area compared to straight west) and have plenty of mates who are interested in Aussie Rules. Some like me will stick with the Swans. Some could go either way.

[ShockOfHair]

I'm quite content with 16 league clubs, but I can see the logic - it will create more emotion around both Sydney and the new club. Not to mention advertising revenue.

If the AFL has done its sums, and thinks it's worthwhile doing a second Sydney club, then they shouldn't hold off because of the recession. For a business with cash in the bank it's a good time to expand. They just better be prepared to spend a lot of that cash.

It will provide plenty of entertainment as it unfolds. I'm looking forward to the leaguees' outraged reaction and the scorn of the locals until Team West beats the Swans.