A letter, which unambiguously recommended the relocation of the Swans from South Melbourne to Sydney, was among the new additions to the Sydney Swans Heritage List at the 2018 Sydney Swans Guernsey Presentation and Hall of Fame Induction Dinner, presented by Volkswagen.
In late 1980, the AFL received a report titled “The Sydney Solution! VFL at the Crossroads,” which concluded that a VFL team based in Sydney would be viable based on 6,000 members, a national sponsor, over the longer-term 17,000 matchday attendees, and continuing VFL assistance.
At the same time the financial plight of South Melbourne had seen it, independently of the VFL, contemplating an interstate move to guarantee its survival.
Then chairman, Jack Marks, was a lifetime Swans supporter and had become the chair of his beloved club at the most critical time in its 106-year existence.
His letter dated July 17, 1981 was sent to all members in act of extraordinary bravery – given it was his signature on the letter, it was Marks who bore the brunt of supporter outrage.
An edited version of the letter is as follows:
”Dear Member,
The following is designed to reiterate the position of your Board of Directors on the proposal that the South Melbourne Football Club play some of its games in Sydney next season.
After examining all possible alternatives, the board is still strongly of the opinion that playing a number of games in Sydney each season is the only way that South can continue to be viable and, more importantly, challenge for a V.F.L. premiership.
It is financially impossible for South to continue to play nine home games a year at the Lakeside Oval and have any hope of improving its position on the V.F.L. ladder.
But by playing 11 games in Sydney next season, we could tum a projected loss into a profit.
The fact of the matter is that South Melbourne has accumulated losses over the years and these are growing at the rate of at least $100,000 a year. In other words, we’re going out backwards to the tune of $100,000 a season.
It is only the generosity of the club’s directors and other guarantors that is keeping it going.
The Board is adamant that we must play in Sydney, using the Sydney Cricket Ground for 11 day-time matches that would be televised direct to Melbourne on Sundays.
South’s proposed move dovetails with the VFL’s own desire that a Club playing in Sydney be part of the V.F.L. competition.
We simply cannot continue at the Lakeside oval under the existing circumstances.
Our ground development funds have been “frozen” and there is no way that the club can afford to redevelop, or upgrade, the Lakeside Oval without incurring unmanageable debts.
We have already pointed out that it would cost some $3 million to build a new 3,000-seat grandstand at the ground and, at $4 a head to see a game, only $120,000 a season would be derived in revenue, well short of the minimum $500,000 a year that would be required to service a loan of $3 million.
Of course, if there is a benefactor with a spare $10 million to give to the club, we might be able to continue in Melbourne.
All of the directors hold South Melbourne and its traditions dear and the decision to recommend playing in Sydney was not taken lightly.
We don’t want to share a ground with another club, which would lead eventually to amalgamation; because we want a strong, viable club playing in South’s famous red-and-white and which is its own master.
Playing in Sydney would guarantee at least $30,000 net gate receipts a game, plus all existing finance allocated by the VFL. Add to this the income from television rights and sponsorship and we would be in a position to buy top players and restore South Melbourne to a football power.
As it is, we are a club with a proud tradition heading nowhere.
The restrictions placed on us by the Lakeside Oval - and the attendant problems - mean that South would be consigned to the bottom half of the V: F.L. ladder for all time.
What can be the future for a club that, despite tireless recruiting and every possible effort, has not won a premiership since 1933 and not played in the finals since 1977?
The Board of Management of South Melbourne Club Ltd. has done all in its power to come up with a solution. that would “Keep South at South”.
It is not a case of doing the VFL’s bidding: it is more a case of ensuring that a club that has produced some of the finest players in football history continues into the 1980s and beyond.
It is not realistic to “Keep South at South”, but we could say that playing in Sydney would “Keep South Alive”.
It’s not a matter of a loss of confidence on the part of the South Melbourne Board, rather we are facing the facts of economic life in sport.
It is also important to note that the players have endorsed the proposed move and that coach Ian Stewart has said he would go along with whatever was best for the club.
It is signed:
J.B. Marks,
Chairman of Directors,
South Melbourne Club Ltd.”
The letter finished with a biblical flourish, highlighting the passion the issue had inflamed. It said: “QUO VADIS South Melbourne”. Quo Vadis in Latin means “where are you going?” so, it effectively said to all Swans members, “where is your club heading?”
More than a quarter of a century after Jack Marks’ line in the sand letter to members, his vision has been realised: a financially secure club wearing red and white called the Swans, with sustained on-field success.
Jack Marks passed away on August 28, 2002.
