" FAO Those wanting Blues out. "

Don't want the Blues to go under because 2 boys from my local Rugby Club are with the Blues Academy and both are real prospects with my mates son having recently played for the Wales 7's team scoring 11 trys in the recent World series. They are a Welsh side and i want to see all Welsh sides do well never mind what the sport.

I do however think for the good of the Blues it might be best if they moved but i don't think Arms Park is the answer because the WRU are still trying to purchase it from the Athletic Club so they can fill in 'Glanmors Gap' and build a media and hotel complex.

From Cardiff Citys point of view if they moved out it would obviously benefit the pitch which is getting damaged by the rugby however can we really afford the loss of the rent and the contribution the Blues make to the running of the CCS so i think we need to be careful what we wish for

Fear not, it'll happen eventually.

Year ending May 2010, Blues accounts make interesting reading. Loss of about 750k from what I can tell, total debt now just over 5m.

Utterly skint, losing STs year after after as people boycotting/not renewing.

Can't afford to buy their way out of the contract so expect them to go under at some point in the short/medium term.

Most "rugby fans" only come out to play for the big events, namely the Wales games. The regions aren't supported well, possibly because they aren't proper regions, like they are in Ireland, for instance.

"Our national game?" - I don't think so.

They belong at the arms park. All they need to do is sign a deal with us to play their Heineken cup game here, possibly 5 a season.

I am sorry, but I would not like to see the Blues go out of business. I would like to see them go back to the Arms Park for the sake of the Cardiff Blues, I think its their only option to survive

You have to wonder if the Blues would quit CCS because the other three regions will soon have brand new stadiums of their own. Oyspreys (Liberty) Scarlets (Parc y Scarlets) and the Dragons at a revamped Rodney Parade would leave the Blues as the poor relation in Welsh regional rugby with regard to facilities.

TBH £5m may look a lot but I believe Peter the Pie will always bail them out and there are plenty of rich benefactors in Cardiff who love the egg who would chip in. Also I think the regions receive about £3m in TV payments from the WRU (which isn't far short of what we get off the Football League), so carrying a debt of £5m is similar to our £30m on turnover of £20m.

You have to wonder if the Blues would quit CCS because the other three regions will soon have brand new stadiums of their own. Oyspreys (Liberty) Scarlets (Parc y Scarlets) and the Dragons at a revamped Rodney Parade would leave the Blues as the poor relation in Welsh regional rugby with regard to facilities.

TBH £5m may look a lot but I believe Peter the Pie will always bail them out and there are plenty of rich benefactors in Cardiff who love the egg who would chip in. Also I think the regions receive about £3m in TV payments from the WRU (which isn't far short of what we get off the Football League), so carrying a debt of £5m is similar to our £30m on turnover of £20m.

Not really.

Pieman wants his money back before dementia/death kick in. He's already been bailing them out, accuring 392k in interest due as of the 09/10 accounts.

Several directors have apparently left the Blues the last few years.

TV payments? Great. Except rent has gone up from 100-150k to around 500k in the move. ST sales have fallen, walk up ticket sales have fallen. No lucrative clubhouse at CCS. Can't compete wage wise with the French clubs.

If those rich benefactors wanted to chip in, then they already would have. Christ, even when getting to the European final a few years ago, from memory before coming to CCS, they still posted a big loss. So less income, higher expenses on a plastic franchise already losing money. SO, pay less wages, poorer squad, less interest/spectators. And that for a franchise already playing at the highest possible level.

What we know is that every season they've been at CCS, they've lost money. They've lost paying customers. If the 10/11 accounts show increased losses then they are basically fucked, because it's been a downward spiral with no white light at the end of the tunnel. Football, you can at least see Tan getting involved due to the money in and around football, merchandising, promoting companies. There's nothing comparable in rugby.

That's why the debts aren't remotely comparable. We could raise money by player sales. The transfer market in rugby is nothing like that in football. Less evolved, less potential purchasers hence fees lower.

Don't want the Blues to go under because 2 boys from my local Rugby Club are with the Blues Academy and both are real prospects with my mates son having recently played for the Wales 7's team scoring 11 trys in the recent World series. They are a Welsh side and i want to see all Welsh sides do well never mind what the sport.

I do however think for the good of the Blues it might be best if they moved but i don't think Arms Park is the answer because the WRU are still trying to purchase it from the Athletic Club so they can fill in 'Glanmors Gap' and build a media and hotel complex.

From Cardiff Citys point of view if they moved out it would obviously benefit the pitch which is getting damaged by the rugby however can we really afford the loss of the rent and the contribution the Blues make to the running of the CCS so i think we need to be careful what we wish for

Agreed on the first paragraph. Although I'm a City fan, I'm also (instinctively) proud of when the Blues do well, along with Glamorgan cricket and the Cardiff Devils, despite having only seen about 3 Blues matches through an old corporate hospitality job I had, 1 Devils match back in the early 90s and not one Glamorgan match. It's good for the area, and good for our national image.

I'm not keen however, on the way Cardiff RFC fans were shafted by corporate greed (same old story) in their lust for Conference facilities and the profits the land of the CAP could reap, and their subsequent 'forced' move to the CCS. Luckily, the CAP shareholders appear to have remained firm and true to their beliefs, and have proved a real thorn in the side of the developers.

I don't agree with your second line though - the most interesting development in this story of late has been the new Conference Centre plans unveiled in Walesonline below:

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales ... -29900996/

That would suggest the greed driven CAP Conference plan has fallen through, and that the RFC will soon be moving back there IMHO. I'll bet their fans can't wait to get back there. I know I would, what with it's history, ease of transport and proximity to the wealth of pubs / clubs / restaurants in town.


.

They said in the Echo yesterday they have no intention of returning to the Arms Park and are viable at our ground

They would get bailed out by the WRU. Cardiff Blues is a franchise remember. They won't go under and they won't leave CCS. Over time they will gain support but it'll take a generation to build and will also take on field success. They're going nowhere i am afraid. They not getting that much less than they did in the arms park.

They said in the Echo yesterday they have no intention of returning to the Arms Park and are viable at our ground

Hardly likely to come out with reality are they? Media aren't going to pore over the accounts.

They would get bailed out by the WRU. Cardiff Blues is a franchise remember. They won't go under and they won't leave CCS. Over time they will gain support but it'll take a generation to build and will also take on field success. They're going nowhere i am afraid. They not getting that much less than they did in the arms park.

Any bailout would not, I'd wager, be well received. Equally, how long would any bailout go on for and how would it work exactly?

"Here's money, it'll cover your debts, come back next year and we'll give some more"?

It's all very well saying they'll gain support, needs on field success, but it's chicken and egg. Losing plenty of paying supporters, no money to get better players in. Vicious circle and all that, relying upon getting high profile European home ties to make some money.

Not getting that much less - numerically, that's debateable. What's more telling is the number of freebies. You can have X thousand at a game, if a fair number got free tickets... doesn't help you financially.

I really feel they will eventually go under, just to get rid of their massive debts, then of course there wont be any contract with us, so thats how they will be able to get out of the contract, then prob start up again.

Don't want the Blues to go under because i appreciate the people who watch them and have been watching them for years, I just want them to move out of the CCS and back to arms park.

Well said we shouldn't be wishing badly on the Cardiff rugby team it's part of our great cities make up. Hope they move back to the arms park what a great stadia that is! Hopefully well crack on to the premier and then in sure financially it woul be no problem to renegotiate them moving out.

I heared the same when with save jones at the training ground there's a power struggle at the vale between the WRU and city. And training facilities with the WRU not allowing city access to the indoor pitch there!

Don't want the Blues to go under because i appreciate the people who watch them and have been watching them for years, I just want them to move out of the CCS and back to arms park.

Well said we shouldn't be wishing badly on the Cardiff rugby team it's part of our great cities make up. Hope they move back to the arms park what a great stadia that is! Hopefully well crack on to the premier and then in sure financially it woul be no problem to renegotiate them moving out.

I heared the same when with save jones at the training ground there's a power struggle at the vale between the WRU and city. And training facilities with the WRU not allowing city access to the indoor pitch there!

Cardiff RFC are a part of our great cities makeup.

Cardiff Blues are not. They've little to no history, an artificial entity created by the WRU.

Best case scenario, Blues go bust, WRU scrap the region garbage, Cardiff RFC reclaim gloary at CAP.

I aint got a problem with the blues at CCFC, as long as the playing surface isn't effected, we need as much revenue as we can get our hands on to pay off the crippling debt that we are in.