Wishful thinking

I read on the City board a couple of weeks ago an article asking whether it was possible to support two clubs. I came out of the forces in the sixties and saw pretty much every home Bristol football game over the next twenty years; one club or the other in the ascendancy at any one time. I saw Rovers go unbeaten the first 27 games of the season for promotion under Don Megson, but even when City got into the top flight with Alan Dicks, nothing was really impressive, dull football systems (we shall not lose (the ball or the game)) with few exciting players (apologies to Atyeo and few others). So I believe you can support two clubs, but I also believe that the only way we will ever have decent football in Bristol is with one club. Our fan base for each club is too small. The potential is there, but many of the larger gates are due to the fact that some supporters go to see a game against a major (now or has been) club or the venue attracts them (Wembley or the Millenium). In the present financial climate only clubs with the largest gates will eventually come out on top, unless a backer with deep pockets steps in. I reckon if we all buried our differences and combined our energies we Bristol fans could have a major team in the Premiership. Of course it will never happen because we are all too ingrained with our bigoted views.

 

i agree and said this a few times. we will only have real success if we had 1 club. nearly happened in 1982 mind when bcfc died but unfortunately they were reformed into bcfc 1982 ltd only joking.

i think the fans would never allow it even if they admitted it would be the only way prem football every existed in bristol. 1 big stadium which we can host other events during the summer and 1 club called bristol utd. build it by the old rolls royce building or by temple meads. both close to trains/motorways so easy to get to. city has millions apparently being funded by lansdown. if we sell the mem that would make us debt free as well. so many benefits but will never happen.

 

Thanks for the comment CJS. Both clubs have nearly disappeared over the years thro poor finance or bad management. What is particularly interesting is the association between Rovers and UWE IF it comes off (I am told that Rovers were offered Gypsy Patch Lane). I have spent many years producing coaching resources for International and Olympic sport. Durham University employs ex-international coaches and players to head up their sporting threads. It cannot go un-noticed that Durham CC have relatively recently achieved County status and now top the 1st Division.; their hockey teams have risen from oblivion and Durham are now one of the top sporting unis in the country attracting the best student/players from all over the world and all of the associated kudos. With 43 acres UWE have the largest campus in the UK and it seems to me big sporting ambitions. They would have the best football stadium on campus, IF….With regard to the fan base, they are out there- the City have taken 30,000+ to the Millenium and Rovers over 40, 000+ to Wembley. We just need to persuade local supporters to chuck away their Man U and Chelsea shirts and go and watch a better local team. It can be done. A bunch of local lads 4 – Busby Babes 0, Eastville 1956. Oh and compromise on the kit – Lose the Man U copies and the squares, get Blue and Red Stripes. Ooops!!! Barcelona…..We can all dream.

 

think we would have the largest stadium at a uni in the whole of europe. obviously we would have very young talented players joining uwe for this reason and hopefully we can dip into this resource. the good thing about our stadium is that there is room for developement and the stadium capacity can be increased by a lot so there can be potential there for a joint club. build it and they will come. but it needs to start now to get the youth of today more involved. more needs to be done to get them interested into the local sides and not the man utd, arsenal and chelsea shirts. more offers for kids like free tickets, a few players visit schools to take a training session and then give out football gear like shirts from last season if they want to be a bit cheap and leave training balls and kits etc. much more can be done to get our youth on board into the local sides. they are the future.

 

It is very often small turning points that lead to major changes. Once the ball starts rolling, no-one knows what may evolve

 

If you sell the Mem, we all know where the money will end up - you sags wont see alot of it, just like all your famous strikers that have been sold, where did the money go

Into the coffers for Mr Dunfraud, you are all deluded thinking you will get a new stadium, your board are taking the piss, stringing you along since you left eastville

 

That depends on who is actually the major shareholder in the Memorial Stadium Company

 

If either club offered cheap season tickets to the other's fans, I wonder how many would take the bait?