I think we would do well to focus on an area that we can call our own in rugby terms if and when we decide to move away from the Stoop.

What is interesting tho is that Barnet FC were told to not put up a fuss when Saracens put in a bid for the Barnet Copthall site, one that they were interested in and had approval on from the mayors office, and in return tfrom the local council end they would help the football club with their own ground issues for keeping stum. The football club did this and Saracens have got a high value site for free, one that the football club had seriously looked at, instead the council charge Barnet £200k for a site that is dwarfed by the rent free Copthall site.

Barnet are now going to be denied access to their own ground by the council past the end of 2012, with the London Borough of Barnet Licensing Department denying them a licence to operate at the ground for the whole of the 2012-13 football season.

They appear to treat football as a cash-cow and want to move rugby in to replace it, I wouldn't want to think what they might do with us putting in £10m and then turning around and refusing a licence to play matches during the summer, park within a mile of the stadium or give pedestrian access. Steer clear of that part of North London, mainly due to the council.

The council run Barnet like 16th century landowners. They don't give a stuff about what people think.

Isn't Barnet Brian Coleman's stomping ground?

One of them. He's got several full time jobs, and even more part-time ones.

As posted above, Barnet FC wanted to redevelop the Copthall and tried for many years but were repeatedly fought off by the council and local residents. Now they face a difficult future.

A local football club of over 100 years going along nicely at their own level being turfed out by their own council, and an alien rugby union club being transplanted into the area. Do Barnet council think they have got the next Man Utd in their sights or do they think every football club has a turnover that goes to nine figues. Never thought a council would be so pig-headed but sometimes govt organisations can be that way, eg HMRC with us a few years back; pay it all back now, well we can't but we can do significant lump sums over a relatively short period of time, no all now, okay you get zip and we become a new company and stay in the league. You've gotta take your hat off to stupid people and then beat then over the head with it like DH did, and hopefully Barnet can come through this in spite of their council.

www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news ... h_council/

www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news ... h_council/

Where will we get £10m from?

Would we have any bigger an impact on the local area than we have in Twickenham? Barnet's a football town as far as I can see. You throw Saracens in as well I'm not sure we'd be able to compete.

The design of Barnet Copthall has it being used as an athletics stadium in summer. The temporary stands on four sides of the ground covering the athleticstrack during winter to create a compact rugby ground are removed in summer for athletics.

At Hemel we have taken a close interest in what Saracens are doing, in many areas, and their stadium development has features we are seeking to include in the development of our ground at Pennine Way.

That's about 50 years rent at Stoop, isn't it ?

Imagine if we had a set figure and a ground we could seek investors, like any business would.

Location - less important so long as its permanent - that's the key and why we should never have considered moving away while we were looking to build links with Quins,
Once we started getting charged rent that was the end of that and a move was inevitable. We need a base a place to make our home. Somewhere where we have roots the better but permanent base is key. Otherwise we're just a nomadic fanless joke

Maybe another question is would the majority of fans be happy in Barnet?

Transport links for cars are ideal, off the M25 at J23, A1 straight to ground.
Train you have Mill Hill East on the Northern Line and Mill Hill Broadway on the main line but believe it or not that's a fair walk from both stations, a lot further than Twickenham Stn to The Stoop. So it leaves you catching the bus (221 i think) from both stations in different directions. You also have the 113 from the main line but not a huge amount of public transport compared to The Stoop, and people moan enough now.

Barnet as mentioned is a football town and I'm not sure what the uptake is on rugby in the area. You're then thrusting TWO new sports in to Barnet who will be looking and competing to get the community to either take up the sport or watch it, Saracens will market like hell and Broncos errr might do. It's a massive gamble, bigger than setting up from scratch somewhere else.

As a side point is there any evidence of the Jewish community having an interest in rugby? All the surrounding areas around Copthall, Mill Hill, Finchley, Barnet, Hendon, Edgware are predominately Jewish.

From a selfish point of view it's 10 minutes travel for me but would it really be in Broncos best interest, i personally think it would be too risky.

250 years

Saracens moving there makes it a non-starter as we would be in the same location of one of only three professional rugby (both codes) clubs in the whole of London, were Saracens to walk away then it may be worthwile looking, but certainly not as partners, even more so as the council wants athletics there in the summer.

I can`t imagine why Barnet is even being considered or discussed......I still have nightmares from our past use of the ground. Terrible ground and travel links. Might as well throw Crystal Palace into the pot as well. Why the urgency to get ourselves into a load of debt that we cannot afford. There is an old saying along the lines of `you never appreciate what you have until its gone` and should we move on I think we may come to regret leaving the Stoop.

Hilarious people. Some people on here seem to be permanently stuck in cloud cuckoo land.