Future for Us

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Darren

Bencher
Whilst people jump up and down at this, remaining at Brookvale with present conditions will put whole club in jeopardy. I am more than happy for Brisbane games as it brings in promised cash. I want Manly here in 2111.

My mate (long time travelling fan) said to me on Saturday "have a look at our ground when I caught up with him on the hill on Saturday. He pointed out when we walked around the benches with split boards (compo case there), the toilets on hill side are atrocious and except for Arko stand the place looks like a shambles. How amateur to see officials checking the ground after 40 minutes in NSW Cup. Some even had a shovel. I cannot believe we allow people onto an NRL ground with their dog during the week. :s

I paid $55 for the Jane Try stand only to get rained on (4 rows up) luckily loads of ticket holders weren't there and snuck up the back. What sucks is that Australia's richest man under 40 Tinkler, buys in after Knights get $50 million on renovations. What do we get? Sorry, really upset with our oval, been going there since Mum would let me get train and ferry from the Gong (1983) but no way would I bring my family to it. $25.00 to sit on a muddy hill, call it tribal but also consider it financial suicide in the future. Suncorp looks a million miles away.

8500 fans there at $25.00 bucks means 200 grand and imagine how many free kids!! Then take out hire and wages (eg Brett on 10 grand a week and imagine the dollars loss from Saturday night. :(
 
If we owned the ground things would be very different, unfortunately Warringah Council owns the ground & as such we have the aforementioned problems that have been talked about for a loooong time. You'd think that they could do simple things like appoint a full time groundskeeper for their own property but it seems even that is beyond Warringah Council.

Despite this we have to stay at Brookie to survive IMO. Moving away from the ground would be suicide IMO. The only other viable option is the SFS & our already average crowd numbers would take a hit if we moved there.
 
agree Wolfpack, my mate pointed out the benches down southern end near Hill side, the were rotting away, why don't they take photos of it??

If we got that Homebush $100 grand a game guarantee we would be fine,
 
1. we would lose 4000 fans a game to goto homebush

2. Homebush is a joke in the rain, you have to sit 50m from the field to get under cover, not just a few rows back

3. Homebush needs 25K to feel like brookie with 12K

We wouldnt be fine
 
There is the argument about losing support with losing local ground. Yet, all the afl teams like Collingwood, Carlton, Richmond etc play at the G and are doing great, with big crowds and guaranteed dough from the AFL. This is the golden goose, why we give games away from Brookie, guaranteed cash. Why do we give games away? because Brookie isn't a viable ground, end of story.
 
Homebush is **** in the wet and too far away. SFS is also **** in the wet. Better to go to SCG at least we would have tradition behind us and at least there is plenty of cover and corporate facilities. We have to move out of brookie and become more of a product to people outside the northern suburbs to survive.
 
One only has to look at the three bedroom Besser houses built in the early 1980s and compare them with the McMansions of the past 5 years to understand how consumer perception of comfort and facilities has changed in the last 25 years. Brookvale is a fibro 50s shack compared with something like Suncorp.

Not that I can see any other Sydney Ground, or Gosford as an option. Our future as being between a rock and a hard place seems the best I can come up with.
 
I find it disturbing all the talk that we are struggling to maybe meet the salary cap at present. It may not be totally true I know but there is rarely smoke without some fire. We are obviously struggling.

Surely in an operating budget of what $12 to $14 million per year or whatever it is ... surely the last place you cut costs is on players salaries amounting to just over 4 million. Cant you save money on accommodation or airfares or coaching assistants, office staff. ... or anywhere before you weaken your product on field ... the other 8 million or more ??


The youngsters of Hoppa, Buhrer and Oldfield must be kept - yes sometimes that cant happen... but if we let any of them go by not spending the cap we may as well fold up now and turn Brookie into that dog walking park the council wants.
 
The playing surface & the spectator area are two completely separate things.
I'm not sure where you're directing your gripe Darren.

Moving anywhere other than Brookvale would be a sick joke & it would be the end.
 
I have said on many occasions i fear for Manly long term. Im based in brisbane so i an not as attached to brookvale as those that live in the area. Im also a little more open in my thinking as manly moving impacts me less. All i want is for my son ( now only 6) to take his kids to watch manly. That is my agenda

Expansion bids are lining up and the IC will signal a slow death to a few sydney based teams.Reality

I have listened to arguements, started arguements and heard opinions on what impact moving away has, tribalism , history etc etc

For me manly the club (the club that wonders where the 80k fans that attended the GF in 08 are) need to compile some real infiormation based on facts and figures rather than a number of different people with there own agendas

The northern eagles is not a real comparism

Run a marketing campaign to aquire every manly fan in australia's details.Maybe offering a few signed jerseys and match tickets as we obviously have a few spare. Compile a massive data base with emails and start collecting real information on Manly fans, location, footy desires etc. Send real surveys to the source. They could use the website as a base

Until they do there market research properly anything they do will be a stab in the dark and we all know that. When its done they have to target there market where ever that may be, brookvale or the black stump.

It will cost no doubt, but if they dont there is a real danger they will pay a much more hefty price. Some costs may be off set by selling the data base info

There are many references to brookvale and funding and its chicken and the egg stuff
Manly want a real ground to attract fans, the council needs to see a consistent house full sign before they will be forced to act. How many times has brookie been full, sold out in the last 10 years ??
 
A few points for and against Darren's post.
1. While we only had 8,600 fans there, it was more than Blue Tongue which is touted as the stadium Brokkvale should try to become.
2. There was only 12,000-odd at the new Newcastle Stadium
3. Brookie offers the best view of any ground
4. I sat on the Hill, and apart from a wet backside it was very pleasant. I didn't need my umbrella
5. The toilets have received a lick of maroon paint, so they are slightly better...
6. Homebush is a terrible oval, and we'd get far fewer if (heaven forbid) our games were moved there.

However,
1. Our ticket prices are too high. $40 to sit in the southern stand is OTT
2. We could certainly do with more cover/shading; something like the tent-like fabric at Adelaide Oval
3. The seats etc do need a makeover, but as has been pointed out this is not something the football club can control
 

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