Would original expansion clubs have greater support if they named themselves after a state/area?

[bzparkes]

Reading the GWS thread got me thinking that perhaps this was a great naming convention, by not limiting themselves to a suburb like calling themselves the 'Penrith Giants'.

This, of course, got me thinking about West Coast vs Fremantle in regards to naming.

Not that I'm suggesting Fremantle could've done much different but was naming the Eagles 'West Coast' instead of 'Perth' a stroke of genius to garner long term support, and could've other expansion clubs had the same effect?

The point of this is to say that people from Margaret River to Geraldton can identify with 'West Coast' far more than a specific place, such as 'Fremantle'.

This isn't a slight at Freo, for you blokes who may get your back up...

This is more relevant for Adelaide/Brisbane. Obviously SA is a massive footy state and now QLD, especially the southeast, is growing massively. Could those 2 clubs have had even more of a monopoly on their respective states if they'd had a broader naming convention? SA Crows/QLD Lions, for instance, or do people think this wouldn't have made any difference?

Interested to hear the though of others and is it more relevant to have premiership success to garner support?

To use the WA example, what if the premiership tally was reversed, would WCE still have the same support, or would Freo reign king? Personally, I'd think Freo would be on top of they were the club with the flags and not WCE, as casual fans are fickle and follow success. The die-hards will follow their club to the end however...

 

[Kappa]

The biggest mistake GWS made was the G… should’ve just called themselves Western Sydney Giants. No one in Sydney knows what greater west Sydney means, it’s hard to feel attached to it. When u see it in written form the casual fan also has no idea what state they’re from

 

[catters05]

change name to west Sydney once Canberra comes in and play all games in west Sydney.

Not sure if a lot of people care about Gold Coast teams, but they will succeed.

 

[Kwality]

Reading the GWS thread got me thinking that perhaps this was a great naming convention, by not limiting themselves to a suburb like calling themselves the 'Penrith Giants'.

This, of course, got me thinking about West Coast vs Fremantle in regards to naming.

Not that I'm suggesting Fremantle could've done much different but was naming the Eagles 'West Coast' instead of 'Perth' a stroke of genius to garner long term support, and could've other expansion clubs had the same effect?

The point of this is to say that people from Margaret River to Geraldton can identify with 'West Coast' far more than a specific place, such as 'Fremantle'.

This isn't a slight at Freo, for you blokes who may get your back up...

This is more relevant for Adelaide/Brisbane. Obviously SA is a massive footy state and now QLD, especially the southeast, is growing massively. Could those 2 clubs have had even more of a monopoly on their respective states if they'd had a broader naming convention? SA Crows/QLD Lions, for instance, or do people think this wouldn't have made any difference?

Interested to hear the though of others and is it more relevant to have premiership success to garner support?

To use the WA example, what if the premiership tally was reversed, would WCE still have the same support, or would Freo reign king? Personally, I'd think Freo would be on top of they were the club with the flags and not WCE, as casual fans are fickle and follow success. The die-hards will follow their club to the end however...

Perth was not an available name when the national comp was evolving.

 

[KnaveyBlue]

Would’ve been cool to see the expansion states take the Metro/Country route like the U18s.

A NSW Country team would have had massive genuine support right off the bat. But in reality they could have just called the second NSW team NotSydneyFC and it would still have more soul than the ‘GWS’ moniker.

 

[RUNVS]

The biggest mistake GWS made was the G… should’ve just called themselves Western Sydney Giants. No one in Sydney knows what greater west Sydney means, it’s hard to feel attached to it. When u see it in written form the casual fan also has no idea what state they’re from

You do see "Greater Western Sydney" used but it is mainly in government infrastructure proposals.

 

[WesternSydneyHawk]

GWS would almost certainly have had greater support if they were called the Western Sydney Giants, or even the Parramatta Giants.

Given the rapid development of the Parramatta CBD, a case could be made that the club should be based in Parramatta and play it's home games there, rather than at Olympic Park.

 

[WillHayward]

GWS would almost certainly have had greater support if they were called the Western Sydney Giants, or even the Parramatta Giants.

Given the rapid development of the Parramatta CBD, a case could be made that the club should be based in Parramatta and play it's home games there, rather than at Olympic Park.

Probably wanted to differentiate themselves from the Eels as well.

 

[Iago]

Weren't the original expansion clubs Richmond and University? Or are we talking solely AFL?

 

[kozi]

The biggest mistake GWS made was the G… should’ve just called themselves Western Sydney Giants. No one in Sydney knows what greater west Sydney means, it’s hard to feel attached to it. When u see it in written form the casual fan also has no idea what state they’re from

Trust the AFL to find a term used nowhere outside politics think it’ll be the clincher in getting Joe from Bonnyrigg on board

 

[owen87]

Reading the GWS thread got me thinking that perhaps this was a great naming convention, by not limiting themselves to a suburb like calling themselves the 'Penrith Giants'.

This, of course, got me thinking about West Coast vs Fremantle in regards to naming.

Not that I'm suggesting Fremantle could've done much different but was naming the Eagles 'West Coast' instead of 'Perth' a stroke of genius to garner long term support, and could've other expansion clubs had the same effect?

The point of this is to say that people from Margaret River to Geraldton can identify with 'West Coast' far more than a specific place, such as 'Fremantle'.

This isn't a slight at Freo, for you blokes who may get your back up...

This is more relevant for Adelaide/Brisbane. Obviously SA is a massive footy state and now QLD, especially the southeast, is growing massively. Could those 2 clubs have had even more of a monopoly on their respective states if they'd had a broader naming convention? SA Crows/QLD Lions, for instance, or do people think this wouldn't have made any difference?

Interested to hear the though of others and is it more relevant to have premiership success to garner support?

To use the WA example, what if the premiership tally was reversed, would WCE still have the same support, or would Freo reign king? Personally, I'd think Freo would be on top of they were the club with the flags and not WCE, as casual fans are fickle and follow success. The die-hards will follow their club to the end however...

West Coast got in first, so they became the default AFL club for a lot of football viewers in WA.

Gold Coast should have been Southport and would have had a lot more local history to fall back on, and a pre-existing supporter base.

 

[Purple Suit]

It would make no difference. First team gets more support, see Adelaide vs Port. Adelaide didn’t miss out naming themselves after the capital city.

WC having more imagined country support due to their name means nothing for the bottom line. All the fans are in Perth.

 

[pz5151]

It would make no difference. First team gets more support, see Adelaide vs Port. Adelaide didn’t miss out naming themselves after the capital city.

WC having more imagined country support due to their name means nothing for the bottom line. All the fans are in Perth.

What's the support like for each team/others in regional WA?

 

[Spiritof82]

The biggest mistake GWS made was the G… should’ve just called themselves Western Sydney Giants. No one in Sydney knows what greater west Sydney means, it’s hard to feel attached to it. When u see it in written form the casual fan also has no idea what state they’re from

I live 3 km from the plastics home ground and no one in the area really care anything about them or know they exist. The only time you know they are playing is when they advertise free admission for kids and $2 food deals to try and get people to attend their games, this has gone on for the past 2 seasons and doesn't work.

 

[JackFlash]

It's a shame the name "Perth" isn't used. GWS is a mouthful and should've just been Western Sydney with NSW colours in their strip somewhere. Gold Coast is okay, but again a terrible colour scheme. I hope they get Tasmania right with both colours and nickname...

 

[Walshawk]

The biggest mistake GWS made was the G… should’ve just called themselves Western Sydney Giants. No one in Sydney knows what greater west Sydney means, it’s hard to feel attached to it. When u see it in written form the casual fan also has no idea what state they’re from

Some of your best work Kappa. Spot on. Nobody is from ‘GWS’. But we are told two million people are from ‘Western Sydney’.

Consider the missed opportunity every time the meaningless phrase ‘GWS’ appears in the media, the people of western Sydney coupd have seen/read/hear the words ‘Western Sydney’. You know, the part of Sydney to the west of Sydney. Where the new team is.

 

[WesternSydneyHawk]

I live 3 km from the plastics home ground and no one in the area really care anything about them or know they exist. The only time you know they are playing is when they advertise free admission for kids and $2 food deals to try and get people to attend their games, this has gone on for the past 2 seasons and doesn't work.

Really good point. They do an absolutely horrendous job of promoting themselves in the surrounding suburbs.

I have to travel fairly regularly through the nearby suburbs — Strathfield, Burwood (the Sydney one), Rhodes, Wentworth Point, Newington — and I can't remember ever seeing anything promoting their existence.

No posters. No billboards. No banners. No autograph sessions in the local Westfield in Burwood. No signs in shop windows.

Keep in mind these are the suburbs immediately surrounding Sydney Olympic Park.

Speaking of Olympic Park, it's a pain to get to, and they would probably have been better off being based in a stadium in Parramatta itself.

While trains can run from Sydney Central, they often don't for GWS games. Instead, they operate as a shuttle service from platform zero (?!) at Lidcombe station.

Which means that for many trains that pass through the nearby Strathfield station, including the Central Coast and Newcastle line, you have to change at Strathfield and change again three stations later at Lidcombe.

The main road to the precinct is basically a traffic jam all weekend as it passes by Homebush DFO.

Both of the bus lines there get stuck in the DFO traffic jam. The 526 takes you on a scenic trip through the old Olympic Village and Wentworth Point on its way to Rhodes. The 525 runs the long way from Parramatta via Silverwater Jail — it's literally the same bus the crims catch when they're released from prison.

Then there's the Olympic Park ferry stop. It's in the next suburb.

Yes, I'm sure it will get better once the Western Sydney Metro and phase two of the Parramatta Light Rail are built. But given they're major infrastructure projects in NSW, you'll be waiting a while for 'em.

Meanwhile, Parramatta CBD is booming. The Wanderers and the Eels got themselves a shiny new stadium there, a short walk from the cafes along Church St. Meanwhile, the Giants are stuck playing in an abandoned baseball diamond in Olympic Park.

 

[Purple Suit]

What's the support like for each team/others in regional WA?

No idea really. You see Dockers and Eagles gear everywhere but a lot of people in the regions didn't grow up there too.

Population of WA is about 80% in Perth and the other 20% spread over the entire state. Take out the South West and it's bugger all so not exactly a huge market to tap into.

The Wildcats & Scorchers both use the Perth name and they have both been the most successful teams in their entire competitions. It's probably more to do with no local competition though in their sport. As soon as you have a competitor, everything gets a little bit harder.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

It's a shame the name "Perth" isn't used. GWS is a mouthful and should've just been Western Sydney with NSW colours in their strip somewhere. Gold Coast is okay, but again a terrible colour scheme. I hope they get Tasmania right with both colours and nickname...

Island State Turbochooks

 

[radiojake]

Perth was not an available name when the national comp was evolving.

Why so?

 

[WesternSydneyHawk]

It's a shame the name "Perth" isn't used. GWS is a mouthful and should've just been Western Sydney with NSW colours in their strip somewhere. Gold Coast is okay, but again a terrible colour scheme. I hope they get Tasmania right with both colours and nickname...

The name Perth is used.

Why so?

Two main reasons: There was already a Perth (along with an Easy Perth and West Perth) in the WAFL.

Secondly, the WA Football Commission thought it was adding a team to the VFL until a genuinely national competition came along.

We're still waiting for it.

 

[Spiritof82]

Really good point. They do an absolutely horrendous job of promoting themselves in the surrounding suburbs.

I have to travel fairly regularly through the nearby suburbs — Strathfield, Burwood (the Sydney one), Rhodes, Wentworth Point, Newington — and I can't remember ever seeing anything promoting their existence.

No posters. No billboards. No banners. No autograph sessions in the local Westfield in Burwood. No signs in shop windows.

Keep in mind these are the suburbs immediately surrounding Sydney Olympic Park.

Speaking of Olympic Park, it's a pain to get to, and they would probably have been better off being based in a stadium in Parramatta itself.

While trains can run from Sydney Central, they often don't for GWS games. Instead, they operate as a shuttle service from platform zero (?!) at Lidcombe station.

Which means that for many trains that pass through the nearby Strathfield station, including the Central Coast and Newcastle line, you have to change at Strathfield and change again three stations later at Lidcombe.

The main road to the precinct is basically a traffic jam all weekend as it passes by Homebush DFO.

Both of the bus lines there get stuck in the DFO traffic jam. The 526 takes you on a scenic trip through the old Olympic Village and Wentworth Point on its way to Rhodes. The 525 runs the long way from Parramatta via Silverwater Jail — it's literally the same bus the crims catch when they're released from prison.

Then there's the Olympic Park ferry stop. It's in the next suburb.

Yes, I'm sure it will get better once the Western Sydney Metro and phase two of the Parramatta Light Rail are built. But given they're major infrastructure projects in NSW, you'll be waiting a while for 'em.

Meanwhile, Parramatta CBD is booming. The Wanderers and the Eels got themselves a shiny new stadium there, a short walk from the cafes along Church St. Meanwhile, the Giants are stuck playing in an abandoned baseball diamond in Olympic Park.

Agree, I'm in Meadowbank and the one game I've attended at that ground (Dogs Elim final a few years ago) apart from driving and paying a days pay to park is to catch the train to Strathfield, wait for a train to Parramatta that stops at Lidcombe then to Olympic Park, close to an hour trip. Other way is to catch the ferry across the river ($6 for a 500m trip) then hope the buses to the ground are running.

As you said the Olympic Park area is a wasteland, its too hard to get to and park, traffic on all roads out that way is crazy and once you get there you may find one or two cafe's open to get food. Its mostly a residential area now, they should just level the main stadium as I think it is vacant for 99% of the year and just build more apartments, at least they'd get some use out of the area.

 

[Speck]

Really good point. They do an absolutely horrendous job of promoting themselves in the surrounding suburbs.

I have to travel fairly regularly through the nearby suburbs — Strathfield, Burwood (the Sydney one), Rhodes, Wentworth Point, Newington — and I can't remember ever seeing anything promoting their existence.

No posters. No billboards. No banners. No autograph sessions in the local Westfield in Burwood. No signs in shop windows.

Keep in mind these are the suburbs immediately surrounding Sydney Olympic Park.

Speaking of Olympic Park, it's a pain to get to, and they would probably have been better off being based in a stadium in Parramatta itself.

While trains can run from Sydney Central, they often don't for GWS games. Instead, they operate as a shuttle service from platform zero (?!) at Lidcombe station.

Which means that for many trains that pass through the nearby Strathfield station, including the Central Coast and Newcastle line, you have to change at Strathfield and change again three stations later at Lidcombe.

The main road to the precinct is basically a traffic jam all weekend as it passes by Homebush DFO.

Both of the bus lines there get stuck in the DFO traffic jam. The 526 takes you on a scenic trip through the old Olympic Village and Wentworth Point on its way to Rhodes. The 525 runs the long way from Parramatta via Silverwater Jail — it's literally the same bus the crims catch when they're released from prison.

Then there's the Olympic Park ferry stop. It's in the next suburb.

Yes, I'm sure it will get better once the Western Sydney Metro and phase two of the Parramatta Light Rail are built. But given they're major infrastructure projects in NSW, you'll be waiting a while for 'em.

Meanwhile, Parramatta CBD is booming. The Wanderers and the Eels got themselves a shiny new stadium there, a short walk from the cafes along Church St. Meanwhile, the Giants are stuck playing in an abandoned baseball diamond in Olympic Park.

I think the Showgrounds weren't the worst idea to start with, but their medium term plans should really be to build a stadium at Old Kings Oval behind CommBank Stadium.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

The biggest mistake GWS made was the G… should’ve just called themselves Western Sydney Giants. No one in Sydney knows what greater west Sydney means, it’s hard to feel attached to it. When u see it in written form the casual fan also has no idea what state they’re from

I do hope they rebrand and call themselves just West Sydney and get a different nickname.

 

[Coolangatta]

Gold Coast Sharks
Western Sydney Giants

Should’ve been the names.

At least they’ll get Tasmania Devils right.

If they do (they shouldn’t) go WA3 I hope it’s Perth Sharks. We need a damn it.

Don’t think the Suns will ever change their name.

Maybe the Canberra Loansharks