Souths Leagues Club Gone - Will Manly be next?

[HappilyManly]

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/promises-come-to-nought-as-souths-leagues-shuts-with-debts-of-55m/story-e6frexqr-1226605802512

Promises come to nought as Souths Leagues shuts with debts of $5.5m
Paul Kent
The Daily Telegraph
March 26, 2013 12:00AM

Peter Holmes a Court. Picture: Alan Pryke Source: The Daily Telegraph

THE South Sydney flyer was full of wonderful intent.

When Peter Holmes a Court and Russell Crowe made their bid to buy the building that housed South Sydney Leagues Club they issued a flyer promising to spend $3 million developing the new Leagues Club premises on level three.

They promised the football club would give the Leagues Club 100 per cent ownership of the top floor, worth $8 million.

They promised the struggling club would be debt free, with cash reserves of $4.5 million. They promised it would be operational within 18 months. Promised a Rabbitohs Hall of Fame.

And South Sydney fans, tired of never being competitive, bought it.

Yesterday afternoon, South Sydney Leagues Club called last drinks.

Instead of cash reserves of $4.5 million, as promised, the club has debts of more than $5.5 million and, after being in voluntary administration for three weeks, administrators called staff in yesterday to tell them they were jobless.

At 3.30pm, the Leagues Club that was once home to the Pride of the League closed its doors for the last time.

"Unfortunately, it's a sign of the times," Rabbitohs chief executive Shane Richardson said. Still shell-shocked, Leagues Club CEO Liam Rogers preferred not to comment.

Rogers was lured from his previous job to run the Leagues Club on January 14 and was given no clue as to its financial state until he started.

Now he is jobless, as are dozens of others.

The football club (75 per cent of which is owned by Crowe and Holmes a Court, the remaining 25 per cent by football club members) has distanced itself from the club's failings, pointing to the developer (and football club's equal partner) High Concept going into receivership last year.

In a statement from Leagues Club's lawyers, Gells Lawyers, on February 22, 2007, the Leagues Club was advised there was: "A guarantee from the football club of the developers' obligations under the deed."
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Almost the same scenario as Manly Leagues.

The Club's reconfiguration has turned it into a mausoleum and they still have $6 million in debts:-/

 

[manlyfan76]

Who owns the name and license for the Manly Leauges ( not the building)?

 

[Chip and Chase]

Same same at Balmain leagues club. Commercial property development isn't exactly a buoyant industry at the moment and also unfortunatley it is an industry populated with some less then desirable "players".

 

[Brookie]

no!!!

 

[The Wheel]

Unfortunately the Leagues Club suffers from a number illnesses apart from poor management, investment and planning over the last decade or so. It is poorly located away from residential areas in comparision to DY RSL, the poor re design as suggested by Happily Manly has left the club without purpose especially when it comes to dining options etc.

Th competition for the entertainment dollar is fierce across the Peninsula and apart for the footy 10 times a year it has difficulty attracting a client base that will lead to better business results.

There is too much tradition in that place for it die but the commercial reality bascially means that there is not much light at the end of the tunnel.

 

[RL Gronk]

Part of the Lyons den should be turned in to a permanent Poker venue there's been a few of these throughout nsw. Facilitating sit and go's and cash tournaments. It will attract people in to the club and there's money to be made from poker as well as those venues take a percentage of all entry fees to all tournaments.

 

[ManlyBacker]

Part of the Lyons den should be turned in to a permanent Poker venue there's been a few of these throughout nsw. Facilitating sit and go's and cash tournaments. It will attract people in to the club and there's money to be made from poker as well as those venues take a percentage of all entry fees to all tournaments.

Gambling is bad mkay. Or so I have been told on here numerous times!

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

I love going to the old girl for the history, but lets face nothing stays the same these days.

My business has changed hugely in 5 years and massivly in 10 years and compared to what it was like 20 years ago it is "chalk and cheese".

But the Leagues Club doesn't look much different today, nor does it do much thats different today than it did 20 years ago.

I fear for the old girl, if not in the near future certainly in the long term.

 

[DSM5]

If it was run properly there'd be lots of live entertainment there. Bands on most nights with feature bands on the weekend. Get the younger crowd in and make it a true entertainment zone. Not the tired old persons gambling hole it is now. If it stays the same it dies.

 

[bob dylan]

Many clubs are struggling these days, and the boards cant work out why.

DSM5 has hit the nail on the head. The cause of all their problems are older people being on their Boards, they think because they have been member for the past 20, 30, 40 years the club is actually their own private entertainment centre.

Many clubs will die over the next 5 to 10 years if they don't change their ways. Lets face it they have one great thing going for them, cheaper alcohol, but young people wont go for that alone, they need entertainment.

 

[The Wheel]

Interesting point Bob - the only entertainment provided at the LC is generally 60/70s revival bands.

 

[bob dylan]

Entertainment comes in many forms to young people and may not be just music.

They might like free wi-fi and an area outside with a pool/gym or god knows what. I know they don't want The Deltones or Col Elliott.

 

[Supernintendo Chalmers]

If it was run properly there'd be lots of live entertainment there. Bands on most nights with feature bands on the weekend. Get the younger crowd in and make it a true entertainment zone. Not the tired old persons gambling hole it is now. If it stays the same it dies.

this!
The area has lost a few 'original' live music venues over the last couple of years and there is a market for one to step up. You can have your covers bands / jam nights / karaoke mid week, and start getting some known acts on the weekends to get a mixed crowd through the door.

Fisho's used to attract regular 'name acts' the most of them all, that's gone now, the Sands occasionaly has some but has moved more towards the cover bands / dj's, Mona Vale Hotel used to have regular name acts, not so much anymore. Harbourd Diggers did for a while there too.

The name acts touring through town need an extra stop in a non-city place to often fill their weekends / add extra shows. If you get a band selling out their Sydney show, but have an extra date over the bridge, you start to bring the city crowd to you.

currently for an original live music fan on the northern beaches you are starved locally for options that aren't cover bands. there is definitely a spot in the market for it if they invested the right people and gave it 6-12 months to build a reputation with the main booking agents.

 

[lsz]

If bands were the answer would there not be more live music places in Sydney?

 

[Supernintendo Chalmers]

Not saying they are the ultimate answer, but at some point you have to attract the younger generation in some way as they are your future clientele. build a reputation with them at having good entertainment and they will stay local more often.
There is plenty of music venues in Sydney. But not everyone wants to go to the city every weekend. These people in the suburbs have bugger all in the way of original live entertainment, it's all soulless pokie dens with a DJ playing his ipod and mavis calling bingo in front of the smell of last nights meat tray. hardly something they will muster up a few of their other bored local mates to head down to on a friday night.

 

[manlyfan76]

As a patron I love live music. As someone who has managed licenced venues I'm neither here nor there. You need to sell a lot of beer to cover costs and if your beer prices are already cheap it's really up hill. Maybe they could focus on being the meeting place for the young'uns before they go out. They would need drinks to suit and an area where the lighting music and vibe is good perhaps a dj then courtesy bus them to Manly or wherever. The secret is to get them drunk and move them on.

 

[MWSE]

It is dire need of complete reconstruction, much like Brookie Oval. But it needs to be marketed as a pre drinking venue before heading out to Manly or the city. DYRSL has open slather on this at the moment.

A good beer garden is a huge draw crowd, along with cheap drinks and a relaxed atmosphere.

 

[globaleagle]

Pretty sure you just have to invent the 'flaming Moe' and the cash flows.

 

[Napper]

Part of the Lyons den should be turned in to a permanent Poker venue there's been a few of these throughout nsw. Facilitating sit and go's and cash tournaments. It will attract people in to the club and there's money to be made from poker as well as those venues take a percentage of all entry fees to all tournaments.

Gambling is bad mkay. Or so I have been told on here numerous times!

Don't be like that mate! Think of the thousands of people who go starving and homeless because the poker machine reached out and took that last 50 out of their pocket.

I rolled my eyes while writing this...

 

[DSM5]

Isz, the reason so many live music venues closed down is that the middling classes moved into apartments just around the corner and pressured the local councils into putting sound restrictions into venues, thereby making them uneconomic. Plus poker machines killed off the remaining few. There is a place for these venues, especially on the northern beaches. People will come as instanced by venues like The Enmore Theatre, which seems to fill up most nights with quality acts, and they don't serve booze. People do want to hear bands, and perhaps dance, and drink, or am I just old fashioned. Give the people quality and they will come. Give them rubbish and they won't.