Always a Wasp
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1
Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Tier 2 Update - RFU
« on: April 24, 2024, 06:18:27 PM »
Think a lot comes down to local interest/competitors (in both rugby and other sports) and facilities. My 2 pennies worth based on travelling to most of the grounds over the last few years, so just my opinions!
Coventry - have gone from strength to strength since their promotion, and imo have a great chance of competing with Ealing for the title next year. Great facilities, really easy access to the station etc. And how many casual Coventry based Wasps fans have drifted their way in the last 2 years?
Bedford - consistently finishing top half and normally in the top 2-3 over many years - play great rugby. No local Bedford football club outside of the football leagues so nothing to really compete with.
Doncaster - generally top half finisher, amazing facilities (the only club to apply and pass the RFU audit every single year. Sadly they dont get near promotion as their facilities are top notch).
To compare to some of the strugglers:
Ealing - competing with the over saturated London sports market, Sarries etc. Regularly finish top but no hint of promotion, smash most of their opposition in lop sided uncompetitive games - wheres the fun in that?
Hartpury - glorified University team and Gloucesters feeder club. A real real ballache to get to on public transport.
Ampthill - lovely local club but not yet established FT in the championship. Ground is effectively the side of a hill in the middle of the woods with a clubhouse.
Caldy - pretty much the same as Ampthill in terms of being established and facilities.
London Scottish - Have struggled massively over the past few years, crowds dropped as the results went. Competing for fans with Richmond, Harlequins etc, as well as the same London sports market. Share the RAG, which is falling apart.
Its an odd league with some big skills gaps between the top and bottom (most of the clubs with big attendances are fully pro), vs the semi pro/amateur clubs in the bottom half, as well as big big differences in terms of stadiums/facilities/match day experience etc.
Coventry - have gone from strength to strength since their promotion, and imo have a great chance of competing with Ealing for the title next year. Great facilities, really easy access to the station etc. And how many casual Coventry based Wasps fans have drifted their way in the last 2 years?
Bedford - consistently finishing top half and normally in the top 2-3 over many years - play great rugby. No local Bedford football club outside of the football leagues so nothing to really compete with.
Doncaster - generally top half finisher, amazing facilities (the only club to apply and pass the RFU audit every single year. Sadly they dont get near promotion as their facilities are top notch).
To compare to some of the strugglers:
Ealing - competing with the over saturated London sports market, Sarries etc. Regularly finish top but no hint of promotion, smash most of their opposition in lop sided uncompetitive games - wheres the fun in that?
Hartpury - glorified University team and Gloucesters feeder club. A real real ballache to get to on public transport.
Ampthill - lovely local club but not yet established FT in the championship. Ground is effectively the side of a hill in the middle of the woods with a clubhouse.
Caldy - pretty much the same as Ampthill in terms of being established and facilities.
London Scottish - Have struggled massively over the past few years, crowds dropped as the results went. Competing for fans with Richmond, Harlequins etc, as well as the same London sports market. Share the RAG, which is falling apart.
Its an odd league with some big skills gaps between the top and bottom (most of the clubs with big attendances are fully pro), vs the semi pro/amateur clubs in the bottom half, as well as big big differences in terms of stadiums/facilities/match day experience etc.
2
Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Tier 2 Update - RFU
« on: April 24, 2024, 12:23:35 PM »I hope you are right Coddy, I really do. I also hadn't quite appreciated how low the attendance for Champ games is.
If you're referring to ealing they're a bit of a weird outlier as they're effectively a club elevated far beyond their support levels and infrastructure by virtue of having a sugar daddy owner bankrolling a squad they'd never be able to afford otherwise.
Average attendances for the season to date below - there's quite a varied number- but I think most are quite self explanatory for why they're high/low compared to the others!
Average Attendances:
Coventry 3440
Bedford 3063
Doncaster 1884
C. Pirates 1611
Cambridge 1411
Caldy 1182
Nottingham 1158
Ampthill 1069
Ealing 1008
Hartpury 994
L. Scottish 608
What's the source on that, Robson9? I'd be interested to see how Cov & Bedford stack up against Prem attendances for season to date.
Interesting numbers.
There's a poster on sportnetwork who does a championship round up piece every week and manually works out the averages as part of that - so I hope his math is good otherwise I'll.look pretty stupid!
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Tier 2 Update - RFU
« on: April 24, 2024, 07:59:06 AM »I hope you are right Coddy, I really do. I also hadn't quite appreciated how low the attendance for Champ games is.
If you're referring to ealing they're a bit of a weird outlier as they're effectively a club elevated far beyond their support levels and infrastructure by virtue of having a sugar daddy owner bankrolling a squad they'd never be able to afford otherwise.
Average attendances for the season to date below - there's quite a varied number- but I think most are quite self explanatory for why they're high/low compared to the others!
Average Attendances:
Coventry 3440
Bedford 3063
Doncaster 1884
C. Pirates 1611
Cambridge 1411
Caldy 1182
Nottingham 1158
Ampthill 1069
Ealing 1008
Hartpury 994
L. Scottish 608
4
Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: The Sunday Times
« on: April 16, 2024, 06:58:34 AM »The article reads like self-entitled tosh. SJ has been poor for a long time now
Nothing quite beats his article on the london 7s last year though. Wrote an entire article for the ST on how crap the atmosphere was and how poorly attended it was - unfortunately for him he'd had one too many sherries and posted it the day before the actual event took place. And of course (as his way) doubled down massively on twitter when called out on it. Guy is an absolute melon.
5
Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: We all knew this but from others it hurts
« on: April 04, 2024, 08:18:57 PM »Wasps did it with Billy V. Academy, one year as a Senior and in May he played for England in Argentina.
Yer I know - that's why I'm saying it's not tbe same situation as IFW (even if sarries fans pretend otherwise)
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: We all knew this but from others it hurts
« on: April 04, 2024, 08:12:16 PM »QuoteExeter did even less, which is Wonky?s point.
Really?
They took an academy player, who had never played in a prem game & within a season he was an England international.....
If they had done nothing he would still be a squad player, which, if Wasps hadn't gone under, I suspect he still would be. IMO of course.
The idea that exeter have done less for his development is such an utterly bizarre take. He was at wasps for what? 5 rounds of rugby i believe? So less than 2 full months of rugby plus a preseason.
24 games for Exeter in just over one full season, most of which he was a starter, where he's become an England international and probably the most hyped young backiine player in the country under their tutelage. I get the annoyance at a commentator hinting that exeter plucked him straight from uni and not mentioning wasps, but there's quite a difference between that situation and say, the way sarries fans talk about how they developed billy v into an international, forgetting hia time at wasps. Its quite clearly exeter who have turned immanual into the player he currently is (or at the very least, the ones who gave him the opportunity to do so)
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Wasps update February 2024
« on: March 05, 2024, 05:28:48 PM »Coventry comments reported -
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/todays-rugby-news-fallen-english-28746693
And, just remember folks, Coventry never went bust and got demoted to the bottom most league. Oh, wait, they did go bust? Did they get kicked to the bottom? No. Short memories, people in glass houses.
Meritocracy my @r5e. Anywhere money is involved, there will be sharks and speakers of untruths.
Coventry entered administration, and were rescued a month later, paid off their rugby debts, retained their squad and were hit with a points deduction that relegated them.
Wasps went into administration, were relegated and were given opportunities to find alternative funding. They failed to do that. They made every employee unemployed and wrapped up. They were then given a considerable period of time to find alternative funding with a place in the championship open and waiting for them. They failed again. The club that once was is completely dead and has been for several years.
The situations are completely different. If coventry had not found their funding and gone out of existence they would have been forced to start from the bottom. If Wasps had found buyers and funding on the two separate occasions they were given opportunity to do so they'd be playing one division down from where they were when they went into administration, which is the same punishment dished out to coventry.
You seem to forget Wasps had finance arranged but the RFU would not meet the investors to give confidence that they would be supporting Prem 2. No confidence given and still that way. URC are at least welcoming at a high level.
Regardless of the detailed ins and outs of it, the fact is coventry were rescued a month later and never ceased to exist in the same way. So a comparison about them having to start from the bottom isn't applicable. They were never in the same situation as Wasps.
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Wasps update February 2024
« on: March 05, 2024, 02:52:42 PM »Coventry comments reported -
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/todays-rugby-news-fallen-english-28746693
And, just remember folks, Coventry never went bust and got demoted to the bottom most league. Oh, wait, they did go bust? Did they get kicked to the bottom? No. Short memories, people in glass houses.
Meritocracy my @r5e. Anywhere money is involved, there will be sharks and speakers of untruths.
Coventry entered administration, and were rescued a month later, paid off their rugby debts, retained their squad and were hit with a points deduction that relegated them.
Wasps went into administration, were relegated and were given opportunities to find alternative funding. They failed to do that. They made every employee unemployed and wrapped up. They were then given a considerable period of time to find alternative funding with a place in the championship open and waiting for them. They failed again. The club that once was is completely dead and has been for several years.
The situations are completely different. If coventry had not found their funding and gone out of existence they would have been forced to start from the bottom. If Wasps had found buyers and funding on the two separate occasions they were given opportunity to do so they'd be playing one division down from where they were when they went into administration, which is the same punishment dished out to coventry.
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Saudis may invest in rugby clubs
« on: February 01, 2024, 05:33:32 PM »
The most obvious case of sports washing imaginable.
With football you could at least argue there was genuine interest in the sport in Saudi. Rugby? Cone on now
With football you could at least argue there was genuine interest in the sport in Saudi. Rugby? Cone on now
10
Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Bill Sweeney Speaks = Anyone Listening?
« on: January 16, 2024, 08:02:44 PM »Lets hope so, If Wasps, Irish and Worcester are forced into starting from the bottom tier then they will probably never be Professional sides again.
And if the Championship clubs think they can obtain significant investment without those clubs then they must live in cloud cuckoo land.
Anyone who thinks that the 3 defunct clubs are going to be in a position to be ready to compete in a new league in 18 months, considering they currently exist as nothing more than a brand name, memories, a pretty computer generated image of a stadium (which 2 of yhe 3 dont even have that) and a ton of unpaid debts is also living in cloud cuckoo land.
Or anyone who believes there are unknown investors waiting in the wings to plough money into those clubs/premiership 2 to make it viable, despite the fact that only a moron would invest in rugby at the moment in the current climate, where every level of the game in this coutnry is hemorrhaging money and is barely viable.
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Ospreys
« on: January 13, 2024, 10:48:55 AM »
28k is an absurd idea.
Last season the highest attendance for a game outside of the party games at Twiceknham/Spurs was Tigers with 22k. 16k highest attednance for Bears, 14k for Gloucester, all the way down to 6k highest for Falcons.
28k is just delusions of grandeur - theyd never fill it.
Last season the highest attendance for a game outside of the party games at Twiceknham/Spurs was Tigers with 22k. 16k highest attednance for Bears, 14k for Gloucester, all the way down to 6k highest for Falcons.
28k is just delusions of grandeur - theyd never fill it.
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: 2023/24 season
« on: December 04, 2023, 11:57:36 PM »
I have a lot of time for falcons and what they're doing tbf. They're the whipping boys, they're struggling massively, but they've cut their cloth to match their means and they exist. They haven't gone to the wall and they haven't lost their whole existence. Is it disheartening for the fans and will they always struggle to grow support like this? Sure. But it's better than the alternative.
As for a play off - only club that can feasibly go up according to the rfu rules is Doncaster. After scottish beat ealing this weekend (much to my delight) they're 2 points behind so will be interesting to see if they can keep the pressure on all season
As for a play off - only club that can feasibly go up according to the rfu rules is Doncaster. After scottish beat ealing this weekend (much to my delight) they're 2 points behind so will be interesting to see if they can keep the pressure on all season
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: Is this not a little ridiculous with limited funds
« on: December 02, 2023, 11:57:08 AM »Funds are only limited for certain things such as supporting the championship, plenty of money available for what / who they want to use it for!
Spot on. 4m profit for the RFU announced today. Will we see the championship clubs be properly funded? Or it to be plouged into grassroots? Or a pot put aweay to help clubs in trouble?
I wont hold my breath
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: URC?
« on: October 27, 2023, 05:12:12 PM »
All very well for games in Wales where wasps don't get the revenue - but what's the pull for average rugby punters in London and Kent to go see wasps vs the dragons in 7oaks?
Personally I couldn't tell you off the top of my head who even won the urc last year, and I'm not sure your average English rugby fan could either. Obviously it's subjective based on who you know, but I don't know any English fans who pay any attention to the competition whatsoever. Would be an odd decision to pull in legacy wasps fans as well - a phoenix club with no connection to the original club playing in a new competition that's not even an English one? Might as well just give up calling it wasps at all at that point and just create a new club
Rfu objected and stopped LS moving to the super 6 and we are a bottom of the table semi pro championship team without half the pull or appeal of wasps. I wouldn't count my chickens on rfu sanctioning a urc club personally
Personally I couldn't tell you off the top of my head who even won the urc last year, and I'm not sure your average English rugby fan could either. Obviously it's subjective based on who you know, but I don't know any English fans who pay any attention to the competition whatsoever. Would be an odd decision to pull in legacy wasps fans as well - a phoenix club with no connection to the original club playing in a new competition that's not even an English one? Might as well just give up calling it wasps at all at that point and just create a new club
Rfu objected and stopped LS moving to the super 6 and we are a bottom of the table semi pro championship team without half the pull or appeal of wasps. I wouldn't count my chickens on rfu sanctioning a urc club personally
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Wasps Rugby Discussion / Re: URC?
« on: October 27, 2023, 02:57:09 PM »
Sounds like a load of bluster to get the rfu to pull their finger out of prem 1 and 2 to me.
As above which union would fund the club? Certainly won't be the rfu. Going alone to play in a foreign league without union backing would be madness.
Not sure why fans would be drawn in to see a phoenix club playing in a competition your average English fan couldn't give a damn about either.
That's even assuming the rfu sign off on it - and what incentive do they have to do so? London scottish has a similar situation in 2021 where we applied to join the scottish super 6, but couldn't get that through the rfu red-tape
Total non starter imo
As above which union would fund the club? Certainly won't be the rfu. Going alone to play in a foreign league without union backing would be madness.
Not sure why fans would be drawn in to see a phoenix club playing in a competition your average English fan couldn't give a damn about either.
That's even assuming the rfu sign off on it - and what incentive do they have to do so? London scottish has a similar situation in 2021 where we applied to join the scottish super 6, but couldn't get that through the rfu red-tape
Total non starter imo