WSC Article about sharing with rugby team

[Stuka]

Good article in this month's When Saturday Comes magazine by Reading fan Roger Titford about the pros and cons of sharing a ground with a rugby team. The Madejski is referred to quite a bit along with Reading FC's experiences (cited as being a largely positive arrangement). It does outline some problems which have affected other clubs in terms of if the rugby team's influence can encroach on the interests of their hosts. Don't know how much of a risk there is of that happening here but certainly interesting to be aware of it.

[Big Foot]

I think the case of Sale Sharks and Stockport is a particularly sour one from a footballing perspective and one which if our relationship with L Irish remotely resembled; I'd be very much against.

Roger Titford...where do I know that name from? He's an old Royalmail mailing list contributor isn't he?

[Stuka]

The Stockport / Sale Sharks scenario is covered in the article. I only know Roger Titford as a regular contributor to WSC and that he's a Reading supporter which comes up in his writing from time to time.

He also was a co-author of that book Rusting Tin and Shiney Plastic which was a photo book about the move from Elm Park to the Madejski.

Selection of Titford articles, many of which a good read:
http://www.wsc.co.uk/content/view/560/72/

[SHORT AND CURLY]

I think he posted on here as Leo Sayer (may be wrong though)

[Royal Lady]

I think he posted on here as Leo Sayer (may be wrong though)

God no, that wasn't him. Titford is ok, knows his stuff at least - whereas the poster formerly known as Leo Sayer/Sun Tzu/Roger Rabbit/Behindu/David Watts et al, isn't and doesn't!

[Jackson Corner]

In the case of Wycombe the rugby team has taken over. They get bigger gates and as a result the stadium is due to have it's capacity increased.

[Stuka]

How much of a risk would you say there was to Reading? At the moment it seems the balance is strongly in favour of the football club.

[Jackson Corner]

How much of a risk would you say there was to Reading? At the moment it seems the balance is strongly in favour of the football club.

At the moment they are very much the tennants. Apart from the odd sign and stuff in the merchandise shop, you would really not know they were here. However god forbid if we went down and they won the the European cup who knows?

[Stuka]

How much of a risk would you say there was to Reading? At the moment it seems the balance is strongly in favour of the football club.

At the moment they are very much the tennants. Apart from the odd sign and stuff in the merchandise shop, you would really not know they were here. However god forbid if we went down and they won the the European cup who knows?

Yes good point, who can say what happens in sport a few years down the line.

[Fox Talbot]

That's the point. Who knows what will happen during the 20 year life of the agreement?

The odds are it won't be JM in charge of RFC at the end of it.

It might (and no-one knows) be a consortium of rugby-minded Irish business men: then what?

Wycombe fans not happy at the moment - move to a too-big, out-of-town stadium on the cards.

[Stuka]

We'll know we're bhuggered when they start replacing our royal blue seats with emerald green ones.

[Muskrat]

That's the point. Who knows what will happen during the 20 year life of the agreement?

The odds are it won't be JM in charge of RFC at the end of it.

It might (and no-one knows) be a consortium of rugby-minded Irish business men: then what?

Wycombe fans not happy at the moment - move to a too-big, out-of-town stadium on the cards.

That's the current sitation isn't it?

[Fox Talbot]

At Wycombe? Believe so. Place called Booker? It was in the news not this article.

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

That's the point. Who knows what will happen during the 20 year life of the agreement?

The odds are it won't be JM in charge of RFC at the end of it.

It might (and no-one knows) be a consortium of rugby-minded Irish business men: then what?

Wycombe fans not happy at the moment - move to a too-big, out-of-town stadium on the cards.

The nightmare scenario implied for Reading is that they'd sell the stadium to build one more suitable for London Irish - potentially somewhere nearer London.

The big problem with that idea is that much of their increased fan-base is from the Reading area, so they'd be stupid to think they could move away and still get the same support.

It would also rely on Madejski selling the stadium independent of the club, as buying the club as well, with the intention of allowing it to run down, would be prohibitively expensive. Even just buying the stadium to resell it to raise money for a new stadium seems more than a little excessive.


The problems at Wycombe are also due to the restricted access. There's nothing at all to stop them expanding Adams Park - they just wouldn't be allowed to let any more fans in. That's not a problem at Reading. We were allowed to raise the capacity to 36000 after all, so the issues at Wycombe don't exist at Reading.

[Wycombe Royal]

The problems at Wycombe are also due to the restricted access. There's nothing at all to stop them expanding Adams Park - they just wouldn't be allowed to let any more fans in. That's not a problem at Reading. We were allowed to raise the capacity to 36000 after all, so the issues at Wycombe don't exist at Reading.

There isn't much space around Adams Parks for them to build bigger stands.

As for their new stadium being out of town - Adams Park is practically that already - it has an industrial estate on one side and open coutryside on the other three.

But yes access is the main problem. and to be honest the new location at Booker wouldn't be that much better. It is on a road that runs from the Turnpike Roundabout to the Marlow/Lane End Road - all single file roads.

[Fox Talbot]

That's the point. Who knows what will happen during the 20 year life of the agreement?

The odds are it won't be JM in charge of RFC at the end of it.

It might (and no-one knows) be a consortium of rugby-minded Irish business men: then what?

Wycombe fans not happy at the moment - move to a too-big, out-of-town stadium on the cards.

The nightmare scenario implied for Reading is that they'd sell the stadium to build one more suitable for London Irish - potentially somewhere nearer London.

The big problem with that idea is that much of their increased fan-base is from the Reading area, so they'd be stupid to think they could move away and still get the same support.

It would also rely on Madejski selling the stadium independent of the club, as buying the club as well, with the intention of allowing it to run down, would be prohibitively expensive. Even just buying the stadium to resell it to raise money for a new stadium seems more than a little excessive.


The problems at Wycombe are also due to the restricted access. There's nothing at all to stop them expanding Adams Park - they just wouldn't be allowed to let any more fans in. That's not a problem at Reading. We were allowed to raise the capacity to 36000 after all, so the issues at Wycombe don't exist at Reading.

I didn't mean to imply a direct parallel between what's happening at Wycombe and what could happen over a 20 year period at Reading. The issue highlighted is some other club / sport has a stake in our stadium / neghbourhood now so our future might be less secure - despite the rent RFCget.

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

That's the point. Who knows what will happen during the 20 year life of the agreement?

The odds are it won't be JM in charge of RFC at the end of it.

It might (and no-one knows) be a consortium of rugby-minded Irish business men: then what?

Wycombe fans not happy at the moment - move to a too-big, out-of-town stadium on the cards.

The nightmare scenario implied for Reading is that they'd sell the stadium to build one more suitable for London Irish - potentially somewhere nearer London.

The big problem with that idea is that much of their increased fan-base is from the Reading area, so they'd be stupid to think they could move away and still get the same support.

It would also rely on Madejski selling the stadium independent of the club, as buying the club as well, with the intention of allowing it to run down, would be prohibitively expensive. Even just buying the stadium to resell it to raise money for a new stadium seems more than a little excessive.


The problems at Wycombe are also due to the restricted access. There's nothing at all to stop them expanding Adams Park - they just wouldn't be allowed to let any more fans in. That's not a problem at Reading. We were allowed to raise the capacity to 36000 after all, so the issues at Wycombe don't exist at Reading.

I didn't mean to imply a direct parallel between what's happening at Wycombe and what could happen over a 20 year period at Reading. The issue highlighted is some other club / sport has a stake in our stadium / neghbourhood now so our future might be less secure - despite the rent RFCget.

As long as they are merely renting, we are totally secure. We'd need some kind of financial disaster to be forced to sell our stadium to them.

Rugby is also a very expensive sport to watch. At £28 to get in, they are not going to attract football fans disillusioned with the cost of football at the Madejski.

I think the threat of kids round here growing up loving rugby instead football is rather overstated. Again, I think we'd need a real total collapse for the rugby to be the main draw.

[Stranded]

£28 is for the European games only.

Going to Irish V Sale next week and ticket is costing £12.

[Big Foot]

£28 is for the European games only.

Going to Irish V Sale next week and ticket is costing £12.

Indeed, isn't it £27 pay on the day for Reading home league games?

So you can pay £1 more and instead of watching Reading vs Barnsley, you can watch the top class of rugby in Europe

[Silver Fox]

Exactly BFers, there's no contest, even if you weren't saving a quid