Nothing says Salford and some extent RL is small time than this sutuation. Nothing really wrong with the AJ Bell or its location, the fact Salford despite having a recent rich backer and made both major finals recently, its 12k capacity and 8-10k average should be achievable then the rent is no problem. Salford have failed catastrophically to break 4k average if not 3k, Salford are not right for Suoer League. If they are having to down size then they should down grade a division in favour of Leigh or Fev. With less TV money going around, its harsh but fair that that money should go go clubs who can generate a bigger support.

really the drop in attendance proves the location wasn't right for their fans and a nice shiny stadium wasn't the answer but if they was replaced with Fev you'd have everyone ranting pit village

I don't know how feasible it is, because obviously I appreciate that they don't want to clash fixtures with the football clubs on their doorstep, but I'd like Salford to play as many of their non televised games as possible on weekend afternoons.

With this ground being much easier to get to from central Manchester, it will encourage more away fans from places like Leeds and Hull to see it as a potential day out on the train if it is at 3pm on a weekend. Friday night isn't so ideal for this.

They where hardly ripping it up attendance wise at The Willows, could understand if they where like say Huddersfield or Wigan downsizing from 25k to 12-15k

Fev was just an example if a progressive team who have do every right over the last 5 years or more. Leigh or Widnes would be better addition, but already expressed my view that Franchising would be the way forward.

It was kind of 2K at worst, 6K at best and an average of 4K at the Willows, with the Barton stadium dragging that down towards 3K average. Leigh and Widnes a good shout but reality dictates the best shout isn't based on attendances but rich guys.

So Beaumont and Koukash fit that bill and obviously were the SL chairmens choice......... Leigh averaged 6K in SL as well......

As stated earlier, i think this could actually be a very good move for salford, taking them back nearer to their base who have made it clear they will not travel to Barton to support them.

Barton, plus their recent relative success was a huge opportunity to kick salford on to be a credible SL club, appealing to the wider Manchester area as Sale do. There is no reason why they shouldn't have got averages of 7-9k after their GF success which would have made that stadium easily viable....That should have happened after the grand final (where did those 20k fans who suddenly appeared at OT suddenly disappear to?)
Sadly it seems the stadium location and fierce resistance to losing the 'salford' tag that has held them back from becoming a successful Manchester club, and they have probably now missed that boat!

Staying at Barton they are a sitting duck...no club is going to survive with huge rent costs and no support. The problem is not so much the stadium cost, but the fact that you can't make it viable on the back of 2-3k average attendances. Unless you find a way to push up to 7k plus crowds it is never going to work.

So their hand is forced. ....They will probably push back up to their old averages of circa 4k back in Salford, but the problem is that, in a non SL standard capacity ground of 5k is not good enough for SL. So they will need to moderate their expectations back into the championship / 2nd SL tier imo.

If they are moving back there though, surely there is opportunity also for swinton? Would make much more sense for them both there, and perhaps even looking to purchase that stadium together?

Sale don't appeal to the wider Manchester area. I've lived and worked in Manchester for nearly 19 years and I don't know a single person who supports either Salford or Sale. Sale appeal to the rugby union community around the North West as a whole as they're the only club, but even then they're probably only the fourth best supported "rugby" club in the NW after Wigan, Saints and Wires. They obviously have more money because they play a sport that generates higher revenues than RL does, but they don't have thousands of fans across Manchester.

Salford trying to rebrand as Manchester would be a pointless gimmick that would annoy long standing fans and appeal to no one. Sale actually did it years ago I think, and then reverted back once they realised. Those 20,000 fans at the GF, who probably would have gone to Wembley too had they been able to, will be a combination of lapsed fans who don't go regularly anymore, friends and family of regulars who went along with them, and locals who simply jumped on the bandwagon. Every club has that at finals, it's not exclusive to Salford. The fact that the GF is literally a five minute walk away from the City of Salford boundary, and Man United are by far the best supported sports club there, probably helped too.

I think the location of this ground is far better for the community than Barton is, and I agree it would be good for Swinton too as it is a lot closer for them than their current home in Sale. I worry about the capacity though. Average attendances being lower than that or not, I don't see how 5,000 is sustainable as a Super League venue when you have clubs like Leigh and Widnes playing in the Championship with far more suitable facilities.

Cas and Wakefield have both been hammered for years over their grounds not being up to scratch, but Cas in particular can at least get decent sized crowds in for big games.

Lots of innacuracies here being posted as usual from the likes of Donny and an embarrassing lack of local knowledge from someone who has apparently lived and worked in Manchester for almost 20 years. So (as a Salfordian and a fan of both the Red Devils and Salford City) I'm sure I'm in a better place to comment than trolls like Donny. I'll even make it easier for some of the less intellectual on here by bullet pointing.



- Salford City will be BUYING the AJ Bell stadium, not renting it so the current extortionate rental costs are irrelevant as they won't exist

- Contrary to our local expert Murphy's claims... The Peninsula Stadium won't actually be easier to get to for the majority of Salford Red Devils core support which comes from Weaste, Eccles, Swinton, Walkden etc. There are no direct bus services to the ground apart from the 1 or 2 that go from Salford Precinct. The majority of direct bus services are from Manchester or Prestwich/Whitefield and they aren't exactly hotbeds for the Salford fan base. The AJ Bell actually is (although not ideal) actually better served by bus services for the majority of Salford fans.

- For any Yorkshire based away fans, the Peninsula Stadium is actually easier to get to being barely a mile and a half off Junction 17 (Prestwich/Whitefield). The lame excuses of "Friday night traffic" will no doubt still be rolled out by away fans not wanting to make the effort to attend away games (I regularly commuted from Salford to Halifax so I'm fully aware of the M62 btw)

- Feel free to mock Salford's new ground but please feel free to show me photos of how Wakey & Cas's new ground are coming along. I mean that was one of the criteria of getting a SL license was it not all those years ago and the reason Salford were forced out of The Willows?



- Any crowds of 4500-5000 at the Peninsula Stadium will be far more financially viable for Salford than similar crowds at the AJ Bell. The club will have far lower overheads and they will also get all the proceeds from food/beverage sales etc. Is the location ideal or the ground perfect for SL rugby? No. But it will at least be a financially viable option until a longer term solution can be found (that's assuming land can be found to potentially build another community stadium and that the council don't just keep selling it off to to$$ers like Fred Done to build overpriced/poorly built new build homes on

)

- Please bore off with the continual drivel about Leigh/Widnes/Feb being a better SL option that Salford. If they were then they'd be playing in SL already. However, they aren't and I'm sorry that little old Salford pi$$ you off so much.

I suggest you just learn to live with it and it might not bother you so much.



Anyway, I look forward to listening to the further waffle you guys can come up with as it's always entertaining listening to people who generally have no idea what they're talking about.

Weaste and Swinton are closer to Kersal than Barton. Eccles obviously isn't, granted. I commented on away fans travelling by train which would obviously mean alighting in Manchester. It takes nearly an hour to get the bus from Shudehill to the AJ Bell. It would probably cost about £15 at least to do it by taxi. It will take half the time by bus and cost half the fare by taxi to Moor Lane won't it? I never once said central Manchester was a hotbed of Salford fans. It obviously isn't. I said it was easier to get to for people getting off trains from other places, and also closer to Salford Precinct and the Willows as well as Manchester city centre. What part of any of that isn't true? Does no one in Ordsall or Broughton support Salford? If they don't then being in a more local ground might encourage them to

Will the new ground be cheaper in a taxi for you?

Top Post!
I'd rather see Salford with a 4k average but making money rather than a 4k average and haemorrhaging cash paying landlord and not getting a bean from the matchday. I really hope they do well next year.....I suspect a few yorkshire sides will be looking over their shoulders at the drop into the abyss come next September. Anyone who thinks SL neds Fev to join Cas and Wakey in SL needs their bumps felt!

EDIT.
According to google maps, the journey between the old site of The Willows and Moor Ln is 20 minutes by push-bike or half that by car. Perish the though to a short walk, a bus, a trainn and another short walk taking 30 minutes.....because it's a well known fact that ALL MANCHESTER UNITED FANS live 3 minutes from Old Trafford

[i"Plans to build Salford City Reds' new stadium at Barton have been given the go-ahead by Salford City Council. The Reds aim to move into the 20,000-seater stadium by 2012 and are hopeful that it will mean they do not lose their Super League licence. Chairman John Wilkinson told BBC Radio Manchester: "It will put us on the same playing field as the clubs around us. Wilkinson said: "The new stadium is a huge part of our licence bid. We have to tick so many boxes and the old stadium doesn't really comply with Super League standards. If all goes well we will have a stadium that is compliant with Super League criteria. Look at where Manchester city were at Maine Road and now where they are at Eastlands he said The move attracted new investment and helped put them in the position they are in today. The new stadium at Barton is an opportunity for us to increase our fan base, sponsorship and commercial activities The stadium opens doors for us that were closed previously."....................."[/i

Whilst Wilkinson did see Barton as a way to "comply" with Superleague criteria, clearly Wakefield and Castleford were not going to be railroaded into new grounds they could not afford due to the intransigence of Wakefield District Council. Salford took Barton on but history shows they clearly didn't have to. Not if they had stood their ground with Cas and Wakey



Indeed as the piece above shows Wilkinson was not actually scared of being thrown out of Superleague if he stayed at the Willows. His thinking was that the move to Barton would attract...

New Fans
More Sponsorship money
More money from commercial activities

He got this idea from Manchester City's relocation from Maine Road to Eastlands, and he copied this move with Salford. However the new fans didn't come (nor did many old fans





) The sponsorship money didn't come, and the commercial activities didn't come........

[uYour the one who is "inaccurate" with the idea Salford were forced out of the Willows[/u, the facts show Wilkinson thought the move would make Salford the "Manchester City of Rugby League"...................

Mind reading now, or just window dressing your skewed opinion as usual?

Salford did what was asked of them by the SL Franchise regulations...applauding Wakey and Castleford for not is hardly "the high ground".....both clubs should have been fined for non compliance along with other clubs including my own, for not doing what they said they would.

It's not is it. Not now I've posted the real reason Wilkinson made the move, he was going to make Salford the Manchester City of Rugby League



Once Wilkinson realised his massive mistake he could not get out of Salford City Reds fast enough.......

[i"John Wilkinson is finally getting a good night’s sleep again.After a turbulent and troubled final 12 months of his 31-year reign as chairman and owner of the Salford City Reds, Wilkinson is now genuinely delighted and relieved to see the club rescued and saved from going under. Wilkinson believes Salford is in safe hands under the stewardship of the multi-millionaire race horse owner Marwan Koukash, who intends to transform Reds’ fortunes on and off the field.And he believes the future is bright for Salford in Super League. Wilkinson told M.E.N. Sport: “I really do like the way Marwan is going about his business. He wants to be a winner and [uI am there for him.[/u
[/i

And so the fact is Wilkinson dumped his white elephant on Koukash and was far from "[ithere for him[/i"







Koukash obviously realised his mistake, and quit. But now he has Derek to hold his hand he may feel a bit more confident going back into club ownership with Degsy. No need to reply as I don't believe your a genuine poster who wants a serious discussion shall we say.....It's game set and match anyway

Nope. You've posted your opinion....wrapped it up in drivel and then claimed it to be fact......as usual.

The only reference I can find to Salford becoming Manchester City of RL was from well after Wilkinson left and reported in the daily star.....is that your daily oracle?

as for Marwan. Hmm....like plenty of other well intentioned owners, he knows SFA about RL as does Del Boy at Leigh...who dummy spits almost as regularly as a two year old not getting its way. Marwan ran for the hills citing not being allowed to buy what he wanted.....him and argyle gave it the "big i am" then bolted when the bill arrived....

...I have no idea what "game set and match" in terms of RL means BTW?...

Sorry but very few away fans travel ever travelled to Salford by train. I remember match days at The Willows and the vast majority drove to the ground or used club coaches. You might get a couple of hundred away fans getting off the tram at Weaste back in the day but that was about it.

It's totally different getting to Wigan, Warrington, Hudds where the stadium is much more accessible by rail. Throw in the cost of rail travel these days and I doubt a move to Moor Lane will make much difference at all. Happy to be proved wrong though as & when the move takes place.

And yes Swinton & Ordsall are nearer to Moor Lane but again, there are no direct bus services.

I travel to every away ground by train. I've walked from Hull station to Craven Park and back, used Burley Park station many times for Headingley, used to get the bus from Interchange to Odsal when we played Bradford, and always got the tram to Weaste for the Willows. I hate Barton despite it being geographically the nearest Super League ground to where I live, because that bus from Shudehill takes more than twice as long as the train from Oxford Road to a home game in Warrington, and roughly the same time as a train from Manchester to Leeds. It's absolutely miles away from anything!

You're an exception then as most away fans never travelled to The Willows by train. I use the train for Warrington, Wigan, Hudds (on occasion) but it still means having to take half an hour getting into town (or to Salford Crescent) to catch said train. I don't disagree one bit that the bus takes forever from town to the AJ Bell..... however, I do disagree that it affects travelling numbers from that perspective.

The "it's a pain to get to" excuse is just trawled out every season by fans who are too lazy to make the effort tbh. (and this is coming from a guy that we from Belfast to Exeter, then caught a bus and a train to get to a League 2 football match on a Tuesday night!

).

When we move to Moor Lane it'll be "there's no parking" (which there isn't immediately surrounding the ground). You can park around 10 minutes away and walk to the ground though which will no doubt be too much effort for most people.

PS. Stop being a drama queen.... the AJ Bell isn't "miles from anything".



The Trafford Centre is a 20 minute walk away and it's right off a motorway junction. There is a pub barely 400 yards from the stadium and a few thousand local residents live nearby. What you mean is "the transport links are crap for anyone wishing to get the bus from town", which is correct.



PPS. Apparently it's 3.9 miles from Hull Interchange to Craven Park.... I think you're In a minority in walking to/from the ground as an away fan!

yes theres parking at the AJ bell, and a pub - but recall back to when the move was made and there was originally diddly squat. Although I managed to park and walk from the airport, and across some dodgy unlit wasteground, not everyone is able to do so - chuck in non cash turnstiles and long queues at the ticket office - in the intervening time people have found something else to do.
Its still a nightmare to get to queuing off the 62.

Quote ="Donnyman"[i"Plans to build Salford City Reds' new stadium at Barton have been given the go-ahead by Salford City Council. The Reds aim to move into the 20,000-seater stadium by 2012 and are hopeful that it will mean they do not lose their Super League licence. Chairman John Wilkinson told BBC Radio Manchester: "It will put us on the same playing field as the clubs around us. Wilkinson said: "The new stadium is a huge part of our licence bid. We have to tick so many boxes and the old stadium doesn't really comply with Super League standards. If all goes well we will have a stadium that is compliant with Super League criteria. Look at where Manchester city were at Maine Road and now where they are at Eastlands he said The move attracted new investment and helped put them in the position they are in today. The new stadium at Barton is an opportunity for us to increase our fan base, sponsorship and commercial activities The stadium opens doors for us that were closed previously."....................."[/i Whilst Wilkinson did see Barton as a way to "comply" with Superleague criteria, clearly Wakefield and Castleford were not going to be railroaded into new grounds they could not afford due to the intransigence of Wakefield District Council. Salford took Barton on but history shows they clearly didn't have to. Not if they had stood their ground with Cas and Wakey Indeed as the piece above shows Wilkinson was not actually scared of being thrown out of Superleague if he stayed at the Willows. His thinking was that the move to Barton would attract... New Fans More Sponsorship money More money from commercial activities He got this idea from Manchester City's relocation from Maine Road to Eastlands, and he copied this move with Salford. However the new fans didn't come (nor did many old fans ) The sponsorship money didn't come, and the commercial activities didn't come........ [uYour the one who is "inaccurate" with the idea Salford were forced out of the Willows[/u, the facts show Wilkinson thought the move would make Salford the "Manchester City of Rugby League"................... '" You ain't very well informed on your favourite M62 clubs,are you? Salford made efforts for the very first Licensing period. Unfortunately the 2008 banking crash put paid to those plans https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... ure-994120 Check the date... The City of Manchester stadium was constructed at the start of the decade for the Commonwealth Games,which Man City obtained.Then there was the overseas investment from wealthy Arabs ....in 2008!

Quote ="Donnyman"[i"Plans to build Salford City Reds' new stadium at Barton have been given the go-ahead by Salford City Council. The Reds aim to move into the 20,000-seater stadium by 2012 and are hopeful that it will mean they do not lose their Super League licence. Chairman John Wilkinson told BBC Radio Manchester: "It will put us on the same playing field as the clubs around us. Wilkinson said: "The new stadium is a huge part of our licence bid. We have to tick so many boxes and the old stadium doesn't really comply with Super League standards. If all goes well we will have a stadium that is compliant with Super League criteria. Look at where Manchester city were at Maine Road and now where they are at Eastlands he said The move attracted new investment and helped put them in the position they are in today. The new stadium at Barton is an opportunity for us to increase our fan base, sponsorship and commercial activities The stadium opens doors for us that were closed previously."....................."[/i Whilst Wilkinson did see Barton as a way to "comply" with Superleague criteria, clearly Wakefield and Castleford were not going to be railroaded into new grounds they could not afford due to the intransigence of Wakefield District Council. Salford took Barton on but history shows they clearly didn't have to. Not if they had stood their ground with Cas and Wakey Indeed as the piece above shows Wilkinson was not actually scared of being thrown out of Superleague if he stayed at the Willows. His thinking was that the move to Barton would attract... New Fans More Sponsorship money More money from commercial activities He got this idea from Manchester City's relocation from Maine Road to Eastlands, and he copied this move with Salford. However the new fans didn't come (nor did many old fans ) The sponsorship money didn't come, and the commercial activities didn't come........ [uYour the one who is "inaccurate" with the idea Salford were forced out of the Willows[/u, the facts show Wilkinson thought the move would make Salford the "Manchester City of Rugby League"................... '" You ain't very well informed on your favourite M62 clubs,are you? Salford made efforts for the very first Licensing period. Unfortunately the 2008 banking crash put paid to those plans https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... ure-994120 Check the date... The City of Manchester stadium was constructed at the start of the decade for the Commonwealth Games,which Man City obtained.Then there was the overseas investment from wealthy Arabs ....in 2008!

Regardless of all the moaning and complaining on here i think we all agree Salford as a club arent fit for Superleague.
Yes 2 finals a few years ago from an onfield perspective but as an organisation as whole they are really really poor.
Little comerial income with very little brand power in the local area, a pathetic fan base (in terms of numbers not the people them selves) potentially a new 5k stadium (hows that for potential growth and ambition!). If SL wants to grow then Salford are a club that needs to be left behind. The Championship is the place for them where they can compete with clubs of a similar level.

Come on then.... who should be replacing Salford fella and please provide some sound reasoning?

What happened to sport being decided by results on the field? Nah forget that, let's turn it into a willy measuring contest over who can sign the biggest commercial deal with their local chippy.

I think Bradford would be a team he would suggest,. You know, the team where a bucket is the mascot.

Totally agree.
Salford "could" have made a success of the AJ Bell, apart from the very hefty rent and the parking debacle, which will have turned away many new and returning fans.
There were 7000+ in the early days at the new ground but, with a 2 hour wait to escape after the game, why on earth would anyone want to do thet, especially when, at the time, they weren't exactly setting the world alight on the pitch.
They've been unlucky yo make 2 major finals with fans not being able to attend and with that lost all of the potential gain, in terms of both revenue and increasing their fan base, which will have been like the proverbial kick in the gonads.

As a visiting fan, The AJ Bell is pretty easy to get to and the facilities are plenty good enough but, the costs of playing there seem prohibitive.

I wish them well but fear the worst and let's face it, RL cant afford to lose ANY clubs

TBH I think we only ever had one 7000+ crowd (Wigan maybe?) but I'm honestly not sure. It's been hard to keep fans and, as you say, the relative success of appearing in 2 major finals and potential new fans has been completely pi$$ed on by COVID. Throw in the fact that we have to pretty much rebuild half our squad every year and it's only the hardcore fanbase that has survived.

The 2 hour wait (I'm not sure it was ever that bad tbh) has long gone (has anyone tried to get away from Headingley recently?!) but a lot of away fans have stayed away. I appreciate we shouldn't be relying on away fans but it's a fact that some of the supposed big clubs have brought pi$$ poor followings. Sale and Salford City will have control over all food & beverages (a revenue stream that we never had) and will no doubt also use the stadium for concerts & other events that the Council & Peel never bothered with. The stadium has been poorly managed full stop.

Anyway.... IF Moor Lane passes SL criteria I think it might be a blessing in disguise. The club will be able to rebuild with reduced overheads. We've actually got some great people in charge at the club in Salfordians Paul King & Ian Blease and the new Commercial Director has started to open a few more doors. The Foundation is starting to develop potential players of the future and we've got partnerships in place with Wales RL & Coleg y Cymoedd and have recently partnered with the Ipswich Jets over in Aus. We can't be losing our best local talent (6 from Eccles recently signed for the mighty Wire) and the club are trying to stop that player drain. There is also a lot of work going on in the local schools to attract young fans and I believe the Junior Devils is being relaunched (the scheme that suckered mugs like me into watching the club 32 years ago

).

It's not all doom and gloom despite what the naysayers might say.