2017 Membership count

[Joel Ridge]

Do people feel that the intruduction of GWS has helped the Swans streamline their targeted areas and helped with the membership drive?

Before GWS, the Swans represented all parts of Sydney and parts of regional NSW.

Now despite Sheedy saying that the boundary of Swans support ends at the Eastern end of the Anzac Bridge, the Swans are effectively the AFL club of Sydneys East, Northern Beaches, North Shore, Inner West, Southern parts of Sydney and parts of regional NSW.

The Swans can focus all their attention on junior clubs in their Academy zones and this had led to efficiencies. No need for a Swan to waste 3 hours in a car to visit a junior club in Penrith.

GWS have the mayor part of the West of Sydney, but it is all low yield west of Homebush. The best part now is that the Swans need not put any effort in a region of such low return on investment.

Does the AFL cap the price of membership? With the the Swans surging membership and being the AFL club of all of Sydneys big money areas, is it time to significantly raise the cost of Swans membership?

[YvonneH]

QUOTE: Now despite Sheedy saying that the boundary of Swans support ends at the Eastern end of the Anzac Bridge, the Swans are effectively the AFL club of Sydneys East, Northern Beaches, North Shore, Inner West, Southern parts of Sydney and parts of regional NSW.

Does the AFL cap the price of membership? With the the Swans surging membership and being the AFL club of all of Sydneys big money areas, is it time to significantly raise the cost of Swans membership? QUOTE.

What would that achieve? Disinfranchise those 'Western Suburbs' members (I am one who has been a member for 14 years), turn others off if prices were too high, drive former members to support the Giants.

I don't think raising prices would solve anything.

[Mug Punter]

Do people feel that the intruduction of GWS has helped the Swans streamline their targeted areas and helped with the membership drive?

Before GWS, the Swans represented all parts of Sydney and parts of regional NSW.

Now despite Sheedy saying that the boundary of Swans support ends at the Eastern end of the Anzac Bridge, the Swans are effectively the AFL club of Sydneys East, Northern Beaches, North Shore, Inner West, Southern parts of Sydney and parts of regional NSW.

The Swans can focus all their attention on junior clubs in their Academy zones and this had led to efficiencies. No need for a Swan to waste 3 hours in a car to visit a junior club in Penrith.

GWS have the mayor part of the West of Sydney, but it is all low yield west of Homebush. The best part now is that the Swans need not put any effort in a region of such low return on investment.

Does the AFL cap the price of membership? With the the Swans surging membership and being the AFL club of all of Sydneys big money areas, is it time to significantly raise the cost of Swans membership?

I think the Swans still have a wide footprint in Sydney with many fans from the west and I would not think too many of them have rolled over and joined the plastic franchise at Olympic Park.

I guess new fans to the sport from that area will gravitate to GWS and I'm sure that many fans of other teams have made GWS their "Sydney team". The challenge for GWS is to build a robust supporter base that will stick with them through the hard times, not just a bunch consumers who take up the AFL sponsored GWS Meal Deals on offer.

I agree with you that the introduction of GWS may have helped the Swans sharpen their focus but I think the main growth at grassroots has been Academy driven and that the "Buddy effect" is real and significant.

With respect this isn't an economic game of supply and demand so I disagree with your idea re using our current success to gouge ticket prices. Within reason we should aim to always make tickets affordable for all our supporters regardless of their financial situation. Must say that comment from you reminded me of a former poster (M@@@) who used to post on here but sure that is just a co-incidence

[mcs]

Fans not being able to get any ticket for a match, i.e a complete sell out, has been rare but if there increased membership numbers have a flowon to bums on seats at the SCG, as they should, then we may start to see some more regular sellouts.

I think a capacity of 46,000 is more than adequate for the medium to long term. If the SCG Trust were able to get their hands on some of that land behind the Bill O'Reilly then I could see a new stand there as having the potential to push capacity past 50,000 and there's not many teams in the world that average over that in a long season format (most NFL teams do but they only play 7 home matches a year).

The problem will be, of course, that when the construction is on the capacity will be reduced for 2-3 seasons and the d-heads at the SCG Trust always plan the construction to minimise the cricket season even though we are the major tenant. The same knobs that accepted a cricket pavilion design for the latest redevelopment that is totally impractical when the winter weather arrives. I was totally 100% behind to move to have all our games moved back to the SCG but if wee do have to deal with a 35,000 seat stadium for two seasons then we may well wish we still had ANZ as a fallback.

I think the next priority for a stater government handout will be the Brewongle, though I think that is a major renovation and not a complete re-build. It is looking tired but I'd do the BOR first and get the capacity up before taking one of the biggest stands out of action.

That new stand is so poor in terms of winter weather for footy, with the open back in particular a ridiculous design. What is frustrating is that the same effect can easily be achieved without needing the open back to the stand - lots of major soccer grounds in particular are built with flaps that 'open' in the back of stands/exposed areas - that are of course closed during games, but then opened to allow in wind and breeze through (and could be left open in Summer of course). It had such potential to be a superb new facility, but it really is a let down in my book.

[Mug Punter]

That new stand is so poor in terms of winter weather for footy, with the open back in particular a ridiculous design. What is frustrating is that the same effect can easily be achieved without needing the open back to the stand - lots of major soccer grounds in particular are built with flaps that 'open' in the back of stands/exposed areas - that are of course closed during games, but then opened to allow in wind and breeze through (and could be left open in Summer of course). It had such potential to be a superb new facility, but it really is a let down in my book.

Because the old farts at the SCG Trust designed it soley for cricket which is by definition a dry weather sport.

I agree it is a profoundly impractical design

[mcs]

I think the Swans still have a wide footprint in Sydney with many fans from the west and I would not think too many of them have rolled over and joined the plastic franchise at Olympic Park.

I guess new fans to the sport from that area will gravitate to GWS and I'm sure that many fans of other teams have made GWS their "Sydney team". The challenge for GWS is to build a robust supporter base that will stick with them through the hard times, not just a bunch consumers who take up the AFL sponsored GWS Meal Deals on offer.

I agree with you that the introduction of GWS may have helped the Swans sharpen their focus but I think the main growth at grassroots has been Academy driven and that the "Buddy effect" is real and significant.

With respect this isn't an economic game of supply and demand so I disagree with your idea re using our current success to gouge ticket prices. Within reason we should aim to always make tickets affordable for all our supporters regardless of their financial situation. Must say that comment from you reminded me of a former poster (M@@@) who used to post on here but sure that is just a co-incidence

I'd like to think it is a co-incidence Mug, but its not the first post I've seen that has reminded me of that.

We shouldn't be looking to gouge fans just on the basis of supply and demand, for despite our very strong membership numbers, we should take heed of how quickly the market can change in Sydney if performances aren't up to recent levels on a consistent basis. All that will do is marginalise fans that don't come from the group with plenty of disposable income - and that is something I feel we should never, ever do. A great part of AFL footy more generally is its not a 'private school' game like Rugby, or broadly a working class game like League. It has great appeal across a wide part of society - something every club should look to maintain.

We need to continue the process to turn 'casual fans' into 'rusted on fans', which ultimately is how we the club can ensure consistently higher attendances (alongside increased membership levels) into the future, even in the periods that will come in which we might not necessarily be a premiership challenger each and every year.

[bloodsbigot]

51,116

[Aprilbr]

At this rate of growth, 60000 members seems achievable this year!


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[bloodsbigot]

51,669. Great to see they're keeping up to date unlike last year.

The rate is encouraging.

[Doctor]

If only we had a stadium in Sydney with the capacity to hold all those members at once....

[Meg]

If only we had a stadium in Sydney with the capacity to hold all those members at once....

Aaarrgh! Don't re-start the stadium war! As probably something like 15,000 of our members don't live in Sydney I wouldn't think we are likely to be faced with an SCG lock-out in the near future.

[56-14]

Aaarrgh! Don't re-start the stadium war! As probably something like 15,000 of our members don't live in Sydney I wouldn't think we are likely to be faced with an SCG lock-out in the near future.

Of the 15,000 or so members that don't live in Sydney, roughly how many do you think live in Regional or Country NSW?

[liz]

Around 10k or so would probably be Melbourne members.

[Meg]

2017 Membership count

Of the 15,000 or so members that don't live in Sydney, roughly how many do you think live in Regional or Country NSW?

My 'something like 15,000' that don't live in Sydney was a guesstimate based on:

1. In Sept. 2016 (before GF) Tony Morwood, who runs the club's Victorian office, was quoted as saying "We have over 12,000 paid-up members in Victoria. It is the strongest of any [interstate] club".

2. This year there will be eight Victorian matches ? the most the Club has played in Victoria since 1996 ? so I am guessing that Vic memberships have increased again this year and might be part of the driving force behind this year's early growth in numbers.

3. To add to the Vic. members there are other interstate members, plus Canberra, plus regional and country NSW (your question), plus Davey in Canada [emoji3]. A complete guess on my part is that this group in total might be approaching 1500. Just regional and country NSW? 500 - 700? Anyone else got a better guess?

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/afl/its-tough-being-a-swans-supporter-in-a-melbourne-turning-blue-red-and-white-20160927-grpgge.html

[Meg]

2017 Membership count

To add to my reply above, I hope that the excitement about Heeney has led to an increase in memberships from around the Newcastle region. Probably still small numbers though.