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    Swans AFLW Team and new training venue

    Hopefully this can stay here rather than go to the AFLW thread

    I know the club has defended its lack of an AFLW team due to not having somewhere to play but I think that we may have misread the tea leaves a bit re the success of this comp.

    Having said that, whilst GWS have performed admirably and above expectations it is obvious that there is no way known we can split the local playing talent in two. So I do think that is an issue and good on GWS taking the lead there.

    In terms of a venue though, when the Swans do get an AFLW team I find it hard to see how you could get a better venue than North Sydney Oval. It was too small for the men but it would be perfect for women's footy.

    In terms of the new training venue I heard through a reliable source that we are really trying to make the old Showground site next door work but I think there may be some planning issues. It certainly is a prime site and the backers there (Singo and/or Harvey I think) certainly are in for the long haul. It's a ghost town at the moment but if you had the Swans Admin, the Swans Academy, a Swans Hall of fame and Museum as well as maybe the NSWAFL set up there too then it would be a real boost for both us and the site. It really is the perfect spot for us and I just can't think of any other suitable sites ripe for development....

  2. #2
    Go Swannies! Site Admin Meg's Avatar
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    North Sydney Oval would be perfect but if timing of AFLW season remains the same in the future as it has been this year North Sydney would be used for cricket. So I suspect it would not be available.

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    Go Swannies! Site Admin Meg's Avatar
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    I agree with MP's opening comment to the effect that the Swans inability to bid for an AFLW licence is leaving us flat-footed. I also agree that it will probably be quite some years before the women's comp. is able to field two Sydney teams. Possibly it is good for the overall growth of AFL in Sydney, and specifically in Western Sydney, that GWS does have the Sydney licence. I'm still sad about it though.

    I saw an article and photo of the brand new, dedicated change rooms GWS has established for their women's team (I assume as part of the Tom Wills Oval training facilities although the article didn't specify). Very attractive and impressive. I could see the difficulty the Swans would have in doing anything similar at the present time as I strongly doubt there is any further room in their SCG change-room facilities.

  4. #4
    What about getting some funding from the AFL to fix up the surface and stands and get Henson Park as the playing and training venue of the Swans AFLW.

    The ground is in a very progressive part of Sydney and I'm sure the local Sydney Uni, Newtown, Enmore, Erskinville and Marrickville community would get fully behind it.

    You don't however want any sink holes swallowing up the players.

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by Joel Ridge View Post
    What about getting some funding from the AFL to fix up the surface and stands and get Henson Park as the playing and training venue of the Swans AFLW.

    The ground is in a very progressive part of Sydney and I'm sure the local Sydney Uni, Newtown, Enmore, Erskinville and Marrickville community would get fully behind it.

    You don't however want any sink holes swallowing up the players.
    Henson Park could work I guess, there's plenty of parking and I guess there is scope for the building development they'd want. Not sure if other sports have access to it though

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by liz View Post
    It's not especially close to the SCG. The Swans have declared that their priority is to find an appropriate site somewhere within the Moore Park precinct so that they remain close to the SCG. While they acknowledge it is a challenge to find a site in the area, comments at the AGM hinted towards them having identified at least one possibility, and that negotiations are underway.
    Not sure we'd want to be training on a synthetic surface either given we don't play on it

  6. #6
    What about Gore Hill. Council is working to turn it into a state of the art synthetic afl oval with changerooms that are appropriate for men and women?

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by barracuda View Post
    What about Gore Hill. Council is working to turn it into a state of the art synthetic afl oval with changerooms that are appropriate for men and women?
    It's not especially close to the SCG. The Swans have declared that their priority is to find an appropriate site somewhere within the Moore Park precinct so that they remain close to the SCG. While they acknowledge it is a challenge to find a site in the area, comments at the AGM hinted towards them having identified at least one possibility, and that negotiations are underway.

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by liz View Post
    It's not especially close to the SCG. The Swans have declared that their priority is to find an appropriate site somewhere within the Moore Park precinct so that they remain close to the SCG. While they acknowledge it is a challenge to find a site in the area, comments at the AGM hinted towards them having identified at least one possibility, and that negotiations are underway.
    If it's in Moore Park precinct and near the SCG, I can only think of the following venues close by:

    - ES Marks
    - Waverley Oval
    - Sydney Uni Oval 1

    These three have facilities. Drummoyne and Henson would be too far away.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Joel Ridge View Post
    If it's in Moore Park precinct and near the SCG, I can only think of the following venues close by:

    - ES Marks
    - Waverley Oval
    - Sydney Uni Oval 1

    These three have facilities. Drummoyne and Henson would be too far away.
    Hell would freeze over before Sydney Uni #1 was handed over. Plus it has multiple other users and is too small for AFL.

    I think the showground site is an absolute no brainer to be honest. It also provides a nice anchor tenant to an area that is really under-utilised, if you have a walk around there it is like a ghost town but there is just so much potential and the new owners are no dummies. Channel 9 have been mooted as moving there HQ there

    I think certainty of tenure and the long term district plan for the area is the main thing holding it up at this stage.

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Mug Punter View Post
    Hell would freeze over before Sydney Uni #1 was handed over. Plus it has multiple other users and is too small for AFL.

    I think the showground site is an absolute no brainer to be honest. It also provides a nice anchor tenant to an area that is really under-utilised, if you have a walk around there it is like a ghost town but there is just so much potential and the new owners are no dummies. Channel 9 have been mooted as moving there HQ there

    I think certainty of tenure and the long term district plan for the area is the main thing holding it up at this stage.
    You can't touch the show ground site. My 7 year old son loves the mobile water park that is placed there every year over the summer holidays. Besides they would have to rebuild a lot of the infrastructure that was torn down as part of the Fox Sports Development.

    Waverley Oval would be interesting, but it's not a venue where you can charge money for admission as people can walk around it and view the sport.

    On female facilities. This may be deemed a silly question. Does making changerooms female friendly mean ripping out all the urinals?

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by liz View Post
    It's not especially close to the SCG. The Swans have declared that their priority is to find an appropriate site somewhere within the Moore Park precinct so that they remain close to the SCG. While they acknowledge it is a challenge to find a site in the area, comments at the AGM hinted towards them having identified at least one possibility, and that negotiations are underway.
    Liz - did you attend the AGM?

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by liz View Post
    It's not especially close to the SCG. The Swans have declared that their priority is to find an appropriate site somewhere within the Moore Park precinct so that they remain close to the SCG. While they acknowledge it is a challenge to find a site in the area, comments at the AGM hinted towards them having identified at least one possibility, and that negotiations are underway.
    Henson Park is in the swans zone. I can't see why, when we get a team they can't play there. They don't need to play in Moore Park. There is no place in MoorePark capable of taking a televised game anyway.

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