Footscray Name

[GoScrays]

Hi all,

Im sure people on here would be in the know about the chances of us ever using 'Footscray' as our name again. Can you guys enlighten me? Has the club achieved what it set out to do with the 'western' name?

I loved reading the tributes to the great Charlie Sutton this week that referred to him as a Footscray legend.

Cheers

 

[FFCbulldog]

Would love it to happen but cant see it happening

 

[_STREET_]

not this thread again

 

[Fossie 32]

Interesting idea

 

[Fossie 32]

Welcome to the board GoScrays. Please excuse my smarta$$ response.
To answer your question properly, the matter has been debated here several times before. Posters have expressed a wide spectrum of views, from those [few] who strongly believe we should return to the Footscray name [see http://www.fnwb.com.au/ ], to those who preferred the name but do not want to change, to those who prefer WB, some of who would say Footscray is associated with a loser mentality / accepting mediocrity etc.
I think very few would disagree with FFCbulldog saying they 'can't see it happening'.

Personally, I would have liked to have kept the Footscray name [yes, we still trade as FFC ], as it is part of our heritage but would not want a possibly disruptive change at this stage - perhaps we could celebrate with a change after we win The Big One.

 

[BallaratBulldog]

I enjoy reading the rumour each year that we will change our name to Footscray again.

 

[Sights]

There are basically two qualifications that would need to be met (hypothetically speaking) for any change back to the name Footscray:

1) The club has to be doing very well financially, i.e., self-sufficient to the point where we don't need AFL money to stay afloat. This is the only thing that would properly prove the name 'Western' had done its job. We are clearly not at that stage yet.
2) Enough supporters would have to want to change the name back (this is clearly a prerequisite for the club actually doing it).

[I don't know if anything like these are officially stated anywhere but this is the situation as I understand it.]

Personally I don't see it happening any time soon, and in fact it may never happen. The point of the name change was to identify with a larger part of the city and thus create a larger supporter base. Supposing at some point we can say that plan has worked like a charm (satisfying the first condition), I doubt the majority of the new supporters who don't live in or near Footscray would be terribly interested in changing the name, especially if they are unfamiliar or uninterested with the history of the club (leaving the second condition unsatisfied).

It is always possible to dream of situations where these conditions would not need to be met. For instance, years in the future after the adoption of new teams into the competition, the AFL might decide that the name 'Western' was too vague or generic and would encourage the club to re-identify with a specific geographical location. While something like that is always a possibility, I can't say that I would think it happening would realistically be very likely.

 

[dogsbody]

There are basically two qualifications that would need to be met (hypothetically speaking) for any change back to the name Footscray:

1) The club has to be doing very well financially, i.e., self-sufficient to the point where we don't need AFL money to stay afloat. This is the only thing that would properly prove the name 'Western' had done its job. We are clearly not at that stage ....

Short of a dramatic increase in memberships or game attendances, we will never be at that stage, the club still has the lowest or second lowest membership of Victorian clubs despite having had its most successful era since the mid '50s and arguably its most successful era of sustained success since it entered the VFL. The unanswerable question is whether it would have been any different had the Western name not been adopted - I believe not. More simply, the use of the name to embrace the area beyond the old Footscray city hasn't produced an increase in membership in comparative terms, I think the Western name has not achieved anything but as long as Smorgon is president, there will be no reversion. The popular acclaim that accompanies reversion to the old jumper indicates that there are sufficient numbers of a historical bent to be able to drive change in the future but I can't see the club tampering with names before a premiership is achieved.

 

[staphy]

Here we go again

 

[bontshow]

Perhaps we could celebrate with a change after we win The Big One.

Yep, just as our expanded supporter base erupts in jubilation we should tell them we don't represent them anymore

 

[Fossie 32]

Yep, just as our expanded supporter base erupts in jubilation we should tell them we don't represent them anymore

OK sorry! Bad idea!

 

[bontshow]

OK sorry! Bad idea!

Sorry for biting your head off. Raw nerve there, as someone from Melton who started supporting the club when the name change and community engagement came in.

Of all the name changing & home game selling across the AFL in the last 15 years, I think if we have learnt anything it is that it needs to be part of a serious long term strategy. It is not something you do lightly or just for the short term.

Hawthorn have done the best job at developing a secondary market with home games, we have done the best job at expanding our brand with a name change. Hawthorn are much better off than us and still selling 4 games a year to ensure their success, our name and 'Western Front' campaign are what is allowing us to play 10 games in Melbourne.

Our position in Melbourne's west, one of the fastest growing areas of the country, and our campaign to own that region will engender GC & GWS style support from the AFL to help grow the game. Any notion that the 'Western' name has fulfilled its purpose is far from the truth.

 

[GoScrays]

Hi all - thanks for your responses. You have given me insight into this topic which it appears can be a bit contentious. I think I will simply watch this space and as per Fossie32's suggestion 'dont mention the war'. HA! GoScrays!

 

[acker]

I'm optimistic the club will return to the name "Footscray"

Nobody really has an emotional tie to the directional term "Western" which could be put in front of various things including another AFL Club Greater "Western" Sydney

Add to that on a National level our clubs emblem "Bulldogs" outside Southern Australia is mostly associated with the Canterbury Bankstown "Bulldogs" Rugby League team

I think returning to the unique name Footscray would strengthen our brand and help us standout more clearly in the modern Australian and Global sporting landscape

The name was changed in the late 1990's a few years after the movie "Romper Stomper" put the image of "Footscray" in a less than favorable light.

I think 15 years on peoples attitudes on things related to "Footscray" have changed, just as many sinister things have happened in Carlton or St Kilda as have happened in "Footscray" - niether of them changed their name, and there brands are strong including the side that like us is stuck on 1 VFL/AFL Premiership.

I think increased popularity around the club from 1989 is more from a period of consistent strong leadership under Peter Gordon and David Smorgon, plus 6 Preliminary final appearances since 1989 including 5 since we took up the name "Western" in 1997

In my personal opinion the increased membership and support for the club is mostly because of the 1 in every 3 Year average Preliminary Final appearance average since we have been called "Western" rather than any added benefit in taking on the name "Western"

I'd like us to go back to the name we won our Premiership with "Footscray" the name which never really left us and the name that Mick Malthouse still calls us.

 

[VitalDread]

I'm against changing the name, only soul reason is for marketing outside of Footscray.
It would be really hard to get supporters in other areas of melbourne or australia, since some people may feel that you only have to live in Footscary to be a true blue supporters.

 

[Butane]

I think 15 years on peoples attitudes on things related to "Footscray" have changed, just as many sinister things have happened in Carlton or St Kilda as have happened in "Footscray" - niether of them changed their name, and there brands are strong including the side that like us is stuck on 1 VFL/AFL Premiership.

This is an interesting point. One of the main reasons we changed from Footscray was because of the negative connotation of the area. Now though, Footscray has one of the fastest growing property prices in Melbourne and crime statistics show Footscray is becoming one of the safer suburbs.

It's foreseeable that in the next 20-25 years that Footscray will become an 'upper-class' suburb. Now a lot of us know Footscray is already unfairly judged by the snobby or ignorant but once they bang a few boutique clothing shops on Barkly and lose a few of the over the used-by-date food shops I think we'll have a lot of more Mercedes(not bought with drug money) around the neighbourhood.

 

[acker]

I'm against changing the name, only soul reason is for marketing outside of Footscray.
It would be really hard to get supporters in other areas of melbourne or australia, since some people may feel that you only have to live in Footscary to be a true blue supporters.

I wonder if the Footscray Football Club board would have went ahead naming the club Western knowing another club 15 years later would also use the name Western

"Greater Western Sydney" which is fighting in the same market as the "Canterbury Bulldogs"

Sometimes I think our name sends a muddled message to people outside Melbourne who don't know we were formerly Footscray - that may also hurt us in the future with advertising if corporate sponsors (who don't always live in Melbourne or Australia) are concerned our name is not easily identifiable as belonging to the AFL market

 

[SonOfScray]

I agree with Acker. FNWB and all that. Will get stuck into the debate if anyone puts forward anything ridiculous and anti Footscray which regardless of where you stand in the debate is the name of the club you follow. We are the Footscray Football Club.

 

[BallaratBulldog]

I'm against changing the name, only soul reason is for marketing outside of Footscray.
It would be really hard to get supporters in other areas of melbourne or australia, since some people may feel that you only have to live in Footscary to be a true blue supporters.

Then how does Essendon, Geelong, Collingwood, Richmond, Hawthorn, Melbourne, St Killda etc can all get above 35k or more members than what we can now without a suburb name? Yet we can only barley break 29k. I think it's more our culture and performances\ success than our name. But even then.

 

[acker]

In US Baseball probably the team which had the most reasons to change it's name after being Nationally shamed match fixing in the 1920's the "Chicago White Sox" kept their name and even enjoyed recent success.

 

[trophies]

This is a seriously bad idea which fortunately has zero chance of being adopted.
I've been a supporter for a very long time, but offhand I can't think of a better decision by the club's leaders than adopting the Western Bulldogs brand. Rebranding was absolutely vital to the future of the club and at least allows the club to compete on equal terms for unaligned support.
To quote a chartered-accountant friend; "It's all marketing". The word "Footscray" has seriously negative connotations throughout the community, whether it's justified or not. The club has to fight the other AFL clubs for every bit of support it can get and needs a positive name and image to that end. Using Footscray as its moniker would be a huge disadvantage - rather like renaming Coca-Cola to "Catspee". How do you think sales would go?

 

[staphy]

This is a seriously bad idea which fortunately has zero chance of being adopted.
I've been a supporter for a very long time, but offhand I can't think of a better decision by the club's leaders than adopting the Western Bulldogs brand. Rebranding was absolutely vital to the future of the club and at least allows the club to compete on equal terms for unaligned support.
To quote a chartered-accountant friend; "It's all marketing". The word "Footscray" has seriously negative connotations throughout the community, whether it's justified or not. The club has to fight the other AFL clubs for every bit of support it can get and needs a positive name and image to that end. Using Footscray as its moniker would be a huge disadvantage - rather like renaming Coca-Cola to "Catspee". How do you think sales would go?

Will it taste the same?

 

[dogsbody]

.... The word "Footscray" has seriously negative connotations throughout the community, whether it's justified or not. The club has to fight the other AFL clubs for every bit of support it can get and needs a positive name and image to that end. ...

The "negative connotations" about the word "Footscray" are the making of the club. Had it shown a bit of initiative and looked after the players better in the early '50s, had it forged a better relationship with the City of Footscray in the '60s and got the social club running, had it appointed decent, hard working blokes to its boards, administrations and coaching panels who would go out into the commercial community to seek backing and value league succes over club success instead of drunks, self seekers and braggarts in the '70s, then it would have had success. Clubs like Collingwood knuckle down and make success their goal instead of taking the soft option of adopting a sexy name to solve its problems. From the '90s, the calibre of people at the club has been excellent and that's reflected in some success but the big one still avoids us. If it's part of the culture to be inward looking and to worry more about image and self rather than grinding towards a premiership, I say it is, then the adoption of the Western "brand" is symptomatic and should be condemned rather than applauded.

 

[acker]

This is a seriously bad idea which fortunately has zero chance of being adopted.
I've been a supporter for a very long time, but offhand I can't think of a better decision by the club's leaders than adopting the Western Bulldogs brand. Rebranding was absolutely vital to the future of the club and at least allows the club to compete on equal terms for unaligned support.
To quote a chartered-accountant friend; "It's all marketing". The word "Footscray" has seriously negative connotations throughout the community, whether it's justified or not. The club has to fight the other AFL clubs for every bit of support it can get and needs a positive name and image to that end. Using Footscray as its moniker would be a huge disadvantage - rather like renaming Coca-Cola to "Catspee". How do you think sales would go?

I thought branding was about differentiating your product - we are one of 2 AFL Clubs using the name Western and one of 3 using West

Our clubs branding is about as definitive as a free range egg at Woolies or Coles

 

[trophies]

The "negative connotations" about the word "Footscray" are the making of the club. Had it shown a bit of initiative and looked after the players better in the early '50s, had it forged a better relationship with the City of Footscray in the '60s and got the social club running, had it appointed decent, hard working blokes to its boards, administrations and coaching panels who would go out into the commercial community to seek backing and value league succes over club success instead of drunks, self seekers and braggarts in the '70s, then it would have had success. Clubs like Collingwood knuckle down and make success their goal instead of taking the soft option of adopting a sexy name to solve its problems. From the '90s, the calibre of people at the club has been excellent and that's reflected in some success but the big one still avoids us. If it's part of the culture to be inward looking and to worry more about image and self rather than grinding towards a premiership, I say it is, then the adoption of the Western "brand" is symptomatic and should be condemned rather than applauded.

Huh? What is this about? The OP is about using the name Footscray Football Club, not that there have been a series of shambles over a long period.
By any measure the FFC was an incompetent group over a long period both on and off the field. Just look at the results.
Thankfully there has been a change in culture and the management group are at least trying to implement professionalism and a modern approach to the club. I say give them the support they need to get to the top.
Fitzroy resisted change, and look what happened to them. Collingwood and WCE are as modern and professional as they come; how are they doing?
The WB probably owe our continued existence to the fact that we are the only club in the expanding western suburbs of Melbourne, and have a growing population ripe for recruitment as supporters. We must not waste this resource and the club must do everything it can to market itself in a very positive light to these future customers. "Western" in the name is clearly an attempt to appeal to that particular group.