We go and attend Guildford Flames when we can, and its usually at about 80% capacity, even with rail strikes etc. I really feel if Basketball / Ice Hockey can manage it with a lot less funding than RL in the south, it should be possible for a RL team for London.

Interesting debate. It strikes me you could really do with two southern teams. Maybe one in London and one in North Kent? Get a derby going.

I don't think having a derby would be a key factor. The main thing is having a competitive team and a decent match day experience.

We have had much better crowds in the past but it takes hard work. The current ground provides all the facilities required to provide a good experience but last season the club put in very little effort to welcome and retain fans (unless you wanted to go in the lounge). Seems some lessons are being learned for next season but it ain't rocket science is it.

Maybe IMG has prompted more than Leigh's rebrand. RLFans has a new look too. These new user badges are making many of us look reminiscent of a tin of Azera coffee. It is to be hoped that Nescafe are paying a premium for this?

Not sure that can really be called a derby & things didn't go well for Kent Invicta all be it in Maidstone, did they?

I see the club are tweeting the IMG stuff out now. Hmm.....reading the blurb thus far, the missing word that matters is Broncos. London is a great place for event games, but the sick puppy that is the Broncos have never been able to grasp the idea of events.

Yes other Championship sides tweeting about their not too shabby recent recruits, us tweeting about this type of thing. Here’s hoping this week’s newsletter has more meat in it than the last half dozen.

Yes, and not seemingly realising that IMG's conclusions are basically saying London have wasted opportunities to build on interest in the game.

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

There are 3 themes on our Twitter feed at the moment. A countdown to start of season, who is excited about next season and a shout out for the club shop. On the latter one sharp fan has already pointed out the absence of new shirts which I guess would be the biggest seller - nuff said and on the other two themes- I’d be a lot more excited if with so little time left I heard we had a full squad that was better than last year. The clock is ticking.

I'd suggest that we trawl the NSW/QLND cup comps.
Recent Fair Trade deals between AU/NZ and Blighty mean we can get backpackers in. These guys are Still young enough to share a house, but hopefully good enough that they see this an an opportunity to put themselves in the SL shop window.
Failing that, we need to look at paying well over the odds for ayers and to Dou that we need to generate more revenue....alas....well, we know my thoughts on that topic.
IMG would welcome an investor willing to fork out millions to relaunch a SL side in London, but theynwont touch the Broncos whilst Hughes is there. Why would they? He basically flushed £17,000,000 of central funding down the tubes in 8 years and drove 3,500 fans away from the game. He's the text book on how NOT to do it.
I see us struggling this year and relegation being a real issue...

If there is, then it probably relates to the menu in the Gold Lounge.

Their fixation with corporate hospitality is weird. They claim we didn't get a fair share at Trailfinders and now they're begging existing fans to cover their costs that they themselves have incurred by claiming they'd be able to sell more at Wimbledon.
They should just admit they F&*(ed up and open 1 bar for everyone. Fleecing existing fans isn't growth and it NEVER ends well

I don't understands it either. Just dilutes an already small crowd.