Bulldogs focus on growing off-field with on-field on track

SOUTH Fremantle chief executive Stuart Kemp likes the way the Bulldogs are shaping up on the field for 2015 while his focus off it remains on creating increased revenue streams for the club while determining the future of Fremantle Oval.

South Fremantle is gearing up for the 2015 WAFL season under new league coach Todd Curley and with the returns to the club of Cory Dell’Olio, Adam Carter, Kyle Hams and Sam Lowrie, and recruitment of Blayne Wilson on top of a playing group that has stuck together, there is every reason for optimism about what the Bulldogs can do on the field.

Kemp is confident that the football side of things at the Bulldogs is on track under Curley as league coach and with a new football operations manager in David Depane and player development manager Jason Pedulla.

That has allowed him to focus on making sure the club is strong off the field and after a turnaround of over $200,000 financially from 2013 to 2014, Kemp is confident of that improvement continuing in 2015 but he is taking nothing for granted.

“Certainly off the field it has been a tough few years, let’s not hide from the fact that in 2013 we announced a heavy loss and we certainly turned that around this year to the tune of about a $205,000 turnaround,” Kemp told 91.3 SportFM.

“We are excited about that and we just need to keep looking at our revenue streams and looking at where we spend our money. Obviously we have some exciting things possibly coming up from a facilities point of view and we have to keep putting our revenue streams at the front of our minds, and getting those things right.”

Kemp is now entering his third season as chief executive at South Fremantle and has become fully aware of the difficult environment at present that WAFL clubs operate in to achieve financial security.

However, new ways of making money on top of the traditional avenues of sponsorship, membership, bar takings and gate receipts are his focus.

“It is really difficult but it is a fantastic game and one of the big things is that we all just need to find alternative revenue streams,” he said.

“Unfortunately the days are gone of having the big crowds and memberships are not where we want them to be, so it’s really about working hard at the alternative revenue streams.

“Sponsorship is so important and so is working with our key partners and people around the football club to grow our revenue base, that’s the most important thing. It is difficult but we have some exciting stuff happening at South Fremantle going forward.”

Another big part of South Fremantle’s future is determining what will happen at Fremantle Oval going forward.

With the prospect of the Fremantle Dockers departing for Cockburn, there is the chance for the Bulldogs to set up a co-tenancy with East Fremantle that could help secure the long-term future of both clubs, but Kemp knows that can only happen if both Fremantle WAFL teams are on board and if it is in the best interests for everyone involved.

“Both clubs have got together and our facilities are 50 years old, their facilities are probably 50 or more years old as well and unfortunately they are just falling apart. Again it’s about a way of making our football clubs sustainable and saving on our costs,” he said.

“Obviously we are in discussions with East Fremantle for a co-tenancy possibility and we’ve got a business case committee put together with the City of Fremantle and the Dockers, and basically we are working closely on working on that about where we head in the future with the site here at Fremantle Oval. There should be some exciting things going forward.

“Both clubs are realising that for us to both stay around for another 100 years, we have to look at these sorts of opportunities or options. That’s not to say it is going to happen, but the business case will explore where we head with it and it could be really exciting for West Australian football and for football in Fremantle.”

Kemp is also confident that South Fremantle is set for a strong season on the field after a couple of years of building up a youthful playing group. And he is confident that Curley is the man to lead the Bulldogs back to the finals for the first time since 2011.

“We had to be patient with our players. In 2013 we were probably the youngest side, along with Peel, in the competition and again last year we were one of the youngest groups in the WAFL. We’ve got a really exciting group and some of those guys have an extra 10, 20 games into them now and hopefully we are pushing to play really well this year as a group,” Kemp said.

“Todd’s been outstanding so far. He’s got a great pedigree and he comes from working under a fantastic line of coaches, and he’s really put his stamp on the group. He’s obviously been involved at the Dockers as well so he’s got a great pedigree and we are really exciting to have him working with the boys.”