I have alot of time for our opposition fans but far too many of them do not understand living in London is a burden, and for an established player with a wife and two kids is just crazy when you compare it with say Hull. That used to equate to being 3 players light in a SL squad a decade ago, and now that has got even wider. The salary cap must link to the cost-of-living in an area or else there is no point in even talking about London being a powerhouse, because no powerhouse starts the season off with 75% of the players that everyone else has, because you are having to pay massive rents, or treat fully grown men as students in shared accommodation. Paying several million pounds for a few houses, and then charging £1 a year rent to the players is the only way to even begin thinking about being competitive at the top table. https://www.home.co.uk/for_rent/london/ ... ion=london https://www.home.co.uk/for_rent/hull/cu ... ation=hull

I have alot of time for our opposition fans but far too many of them do not understand living in London is a burden, and for an established player with a wife and two kids is just crazy when you compare it with say Hull. That used to equate to being 3 players light in a SL squad a decade ago, and now that has got even wider. The salary cap must link to the cost-of-living in an area or else there is no point in even talking about London being a powerhouse, because no powerhouse starts the season off with 75% of the players that everyone else has, because you are having to pay massive rents, or treat fully grown men as students in shared accommodation. Paying several million pounds for a few houses, and then charging £1 a year rent to the players is the only way to even begin thinking about being competitive at the top table. https://www.home.co.uk/for_rent/london/ ... ion=london https://www.home.co.uk/for_rent/hull/cu ... ation=hull

A simple experiment is to take the crowds from 2002 up to 2007 and compare them to the crowds 2008-2014 under the sole ownership of Hughes. up to relegation
315,236 fans attended 81 home games over the first period (3,892), whilst 285,987 attended the latter 102 home games (2,801).
This is a 30% decrease in crowds and about £20,000 per game drop in ticketing income alone. Over 102 games, that's £2,000,000+ less income. I believe we took about £200,000 on the gate last year.....we were £80,000 per game during that first period.

Now let's list the excused trotted out by the club.

1. The tie in with Quins wasn't working!
Whilst we were welcomed as partners when we arrived, Evans leaving and Hughes generally gruff demeanour when doing "business' his way soured the relationship. Quins NEEDED us when we arrived, but we had a responsibility to make ourselves part of the club in general, but we made no effort at all and expected the hosts to put everything on a plate for us. I remember how hard Petra worked at that time to make it a success, but once Gus was appointed, that was it.

2. The Name was confusing. The infamous RL RL[/size.com. If ever there were proof needed of the insanity and ineptitude at the club in that period, this is it.
3. The Stoop was too expensive. I've seen the 2009-2012 accounts at the club and £225,000 was the average price we paid. WE decided to move our offices out because we didn't like the space we were given, saying it wasn't big enough? We already had a peppercorn staff at this stage, so space wasn't an issue and when I met with the RFL at the club, the meeting rooms and offices seemed perfectly adequate.
4. The fans don't get behind the club. This one grates me. I ran busses to Wales and Wakefield before I moved down here and filled them both. I did it through hard work and pestering folk. The club at the time had tried to put coaches on but gave up when nobody wanted to go........the difference was communication and a bit of effort. For Hughes to ask lapsed fans to return with no apology for his prior aloofness towards us points to his issue here. He really doesn't have a f&*(ing clue!

Excuses are easy. The problems happen when you run out of them and Hughes MacKay and now Loubser have now done this. They can't blame anyone but themselves for the carnage from 2012 onwards, not the slow decline before that period. Bad decisions, not listening to the RFL, ignoring fan feedback and bad judgement when recruiting have all led us to the point where avoiding relegation to the 3rd tier in 2022 is seen as a bright spot.

26 games until his 5k target has to be hit.......someone should remind him of the season average in 2006 (4,917)

Just thought my mind was playing tricks on me. 5k+ for Wigan , fair enough , the Where's Wally brigade always travel well, but Salford don't really compare in terms of away support, eh?

We might be better off being owned by Nerys Hughes. At least she is funny.

2,440 is the average attendance for Salford in SL from 1996-2014 and once again in 2019. Only Catalans travel in fewer numbers to the capital. Wigan, with 4,903 as an average over 23 visits are the biggest drawcard in the Capital, followed by Saints 4,473 and then Leeds 4,076 pointing to the reality that a great number of our attendances were boosted by ex-pat fans of these clubs who were based in the south because other than occasions where clubs sponsored coaches down (Wigan 2008 = 8,041) I never saw more than 4 supporters coaches in the capital, carrying maybe 300 away fans.....

I'd be surprised if we shifted more than 600 Season Tickets in 2019 and I'd be stunned if it were more than 100 memberships in 2023.