Bulldogs consider Central Coast move

[Russell Crowe's Band]

yeah.

the sfs is the best place ive watched footy.

seen some great games there. 1 club game in 02 against the roosters springs to mind. very high quality game. Johns, peachey, Fittler and Mullins had great games. sharks won in the end but it was a very entertaining contest.

 

[ucantseeme]

Do you think the AFL sniffing around may have something to do with the Dogs not being allowed to train at the showground?

The Dogs sponsors would be savvy enough to know they thave recruited really well and their 2009 team will be far more competitive.

As for relocation, the Northern Eagles showed a half hearted attempt at it is doomed. So the CC Bulldogs playing half their games at Bluetongue Stadium and the other "blockbuster" games at ANZ will not work. Been there done that.

 

[Timmah]

Sorry mate - or Aussie....actually - that's what I meant....
my point was ANZ sucks, and we shouldn't have heaps of teams playing out of there.

As I understand it next year...

The Bulldogs will play 1-2 games at Gosford (there goes two ANZ games)
The Dragons will not play at ANZ (back at OKI for 6 games, WIN the other 6).
The Eels will only bring their matches v Bulldogs and v Tigers to ANZ.
The Rabbitohs will still possibly play 2 matches in WA.
The Tigers will only play 6 games there, possibly only 5.

Next year therefore should represent a significant reduction in the amount of games... 10 'Dogs, 10 Souths, max of 6 Tigers and 2 Eels, that brings us down to 28 from about 35-40 this year IIRC...

 

[Dave Q]

Go for it dogs so Souths dont have to put up with all the crap about moving up there any more.

But I agree with an earlier poster, I dont know if the dogs dont have many friends away from their suburban heartland.

 

[Dogs Of War]

Do you think the AFL sniffing around may have something to do with the Dogs not being allowed to train at the showground?

No, Olympians etc all train there. We hire it out for a few hours, but don't always get the exclusive use we would like, which restricts what we are allowed to do (like ballwork training, or Hazem doing goal kicking training)

The Dogs sponsors would be savvy enough to know they thave recruited really well and their 2009 team will be far more competitive.

As for relocation, the Northern Eagles showed a half hearted attempt at it is doomed. So the CC Bulldogs playing half their games at Bluetongue Stadium and the other "blockbuster" games at ANZ will not work. Been there done that.

Well it depends on how it's done. I think no more than 3 games at ANZ a year should be fine. You have to give the community the majority of games. Even then, I think within 5-10 years, all those games would revert back to Gosford as people get used to it.

 

[Wests is Best]

Would the central coast want the bulldogs? Their reputation isn't great, I'd have my doubts as to whether they'd get accepted by another city.

Funnily enough I was watching the news at work this morning with a Central Coaster, when the story broke.
Basically he was prepared to move from the CC if the Dogs were to move there.

Obviously he was only half serious, but I got the point.

 

[Timmah]

Funnily enough I was watching the news at work this morning with a Central Coaster, when the story broke.
Basically he was prepared to move from the CC if the Dogs were to move there.

Obviously he was only half serious, but I got the point.

Surely a great cross section of the 370,000 odd residents of the area.

As for 'not having many fans away from their suburban heartland'... they're one of the strongest supported clubs in the game. Like any club they share support throughout the country. Evidence itself will be the larger crowd Saturday's game will get at Suncorp as opposed to the crowd had it been held at ANZ.

 

[Wests is Best]

Surely a great cross section of the 370,000 odd residents of the area.

As for 'not having many fans away from their suburban heartland'... they're one of the strongest supported clubs in the game. Like any club they share support throughout the country. Evidence itself will be the larger crowd Saturday's game will get at Suncorp as opposed to the crowd had it been held at ANZ.

Don't take this personally Timmah, but as a neutral on this, I would dare say that more of those 370,000 would be thinking like my work colleague rather than you don't you think?

 

[GCR]

From personal experience, the Bulldogs are the best-supported team on the Coast, so there would be a ready-made supporter base waiting for them. If they went there, they could expect to average 18-19,000 in their first year. Smart move.

And I can't see people leaving the Coast because the Bulldogs moved in - after all, there's a soccer team playing out of the stadium at the moment with a playing roster that includes a drug addict, a bloke who bashed a ref and a Nazi. Much worse than anything the dogs have ever done.

 

[Dogs Of War]

Don't take this personally Timmah, but as a neutral on this, I would dare say that more of those 370,000 would be thinking like my work colleague rather than you don't you think?

If the choice is the Bulldogs making a fresh start in the Central Coast,or nothing? What do you think the locals would prefer?

 

[Perth Red]

Classic example of what could be if there was a decent stadium for the Dogs at Olympic Park. Given they are one of the strongest supported clubs in Sydney and one of the few likely to push a 20,000 average it is clear that only a decent stadium is holding the dogs back from becoming a powerhouse without moving.

Seems strange to me to move one of the best supported clubs out whilst leaving other less succesful clubs where they are.

 

[Hanscholo]

I think it would be a great idea for The Dogs fans, and the club. It's a fantastic ground guys. Plus, the atmosphere at a ground like that as upposed to ANZ or something is totally different. You would get that tribal crowd feel back.
Bulldogs games have become so sanitised crowd wise.
It would be a perfect fit.
The only Dogs fans that wouldn't want this are the one's that think they couldn't be bothered travelling there. The one's that COULD be bothered, would realise the benefits are:-

1) Beautiful Stadium / Outlook
2) Financial winfall for the club, meaning survival
3) Club in a massively growing area - focused sponsorships
4) Singleton would back you probably - more stability
5) Crowd atmosphere
6) Great Leagues Club in regards to location to ground
7) Perception of The Bulldogs (Belmore to Waterfront)
8) Insular - what I mean by that is no clubs could all of a sudden pop up close by
9) New rivalries - Newcastle could be a local darby - massive crowd puller - ANZ / Aussie just doesn't afford that benefit
10) The club will again LOOK supported. I know they are already, but at Blutongue - perception will be there as well.

In my opinion, this club needs to move on, and turn a new leaf. Thye need to say to the NRL that they are making sure their future is certain.

One or two successful seasons up there, and they'll pull 20,000 regularly like Bronco's, Newcastle and co. like other isolated teams.

This can only lead to further success, and more players wanting to play for them.

Singleton wont back a sydney team in there, he will only back his own operation.

 

[Dogs Of War]

Singleton wont back a sydney team in there, he will only back his own operation.

Who says that? If that is the only option for him. Then he would be silly to turn his back on it. I can't see a standalone CC team coming into being without a Sydney team dying first.

 

[mattyg]

would be a crap move...for the most of the past 5 years we've averaged just as much as bluetongue holds. A team such as Roosters/Sharks should be the ones thinking about this with 12k averages or less. We are always up around 16-18k which is about how many the stadium up there holds. Even this year we're coming 2nd last and averaging close to that amount. Our home crowds in Sydney will only grow over the coming years with the heavy focus we have on memberships at the moment.

 

[Rockin Ronny]

Guys, I'm a Manly fan when saying this - I reckon the Bulldogs have done as much as they possibly can to fix their perceived behavioural problems a few have hinted they have earlier in this thread.

Look at the club now. Absolute legends like Hasem El Masri (role model for kids), Andrew Ryan, Luke Patten and co.

There were some bogan fans that let of flares etc, but they are dismissed and banned as well, and they aren't directly affiliated with the club. If you look at the players next year they will have:-

Patten
Utai
Morris
Millard
El Masri
Roberts
Kimmorley
Hannant
Ennis
Kouperitsas
Ryan
DANNY Williams
Matua

Sullivan
Tsoulos
Hickey
Te Maari

And that's a VERY tidy team. Consider then guys like this in Premier League:-

Armit
Barba
Bott
Cleal
Crisp
Emelio
Groom
Holdsworth
Morrin
Nanai
JOE Williams

Damn....that's almost a 1st grade Premier League team !!

Just imagine this on the Central Coast - fresh start.

I think the Bulldogs should combine with Manly and play out of Brookvale. They both have a history of sheltering criminal players. They are universally disliked. It's a perfect fit. Manly's fans are the dumbest in the league so it has to be a win-win for both.

 

[marshall stalin]

if the dogs move up to the cc imagine the train ride from the central coast back to central if they lost??

 

[GCR]

The ratbag element of the Bulldogs' supporter base don't travel, so they'll just start supporting another team. No great loss.

 

[NK Arsenal]

So the Dogs would pretty much take up all of the CC juniors right?

What happens with Storm juniors? Will they just concentrate on QLDers?

 

[dallymessenger]

would be a crap move...for the most of the past 5 years we've averaged just as much as bluetongue holds. A team such as Roosters/Sharks should be the ones thinking about this with 12k averages or less. We are always up around 16-18k which is about how many the stadium up there holds. Even this year we're coming 2nd last and averaging close to that amount. Our home crowds in Sydney will only grow over the coming years with the heavy focus we have on memberships at the moment.

spot on.

dud season and still number 1 sydney crowds.

the dogs will crack 20,000 once they get a good team on the park

homebush is very close to their traditional area of canterbury / bankstown

if a sydney club should go it would be the sharks, roosters or penrith, but none of those should either

 

[miguel de cervantes]

Who says that? If that is the only option for him. Then he would be silly to turn his back on it. I can't see a standalone CC team coming into being without a Sydney team dying first.

Exactly, but at the same time if this goes ahead then it is pretty much the end of the Bears ever being in the NRL.