00:00When Wasps Rugby Club went into administration in 2022 and were relegated from Rugby Union's top
00:05flight, the thought of the Midlands team relocating to a new stadium here in Kent
00:10was nothing short of a pipe dream. But fast forward two years and now looking for a complete
00:15resurgence, the club has announced today it's bought land and is one step closer to building
00:20a 28,000 seater stadium, becoming the county's first professional rugby side.
00:25The club's disappeared, it's trying to come back,
00:29trying to come back in the championship. You know Sevenoaks have been very welcoming to us
00:33and Kent, so we just felt this was the best place. It's got a great rugby heritage down
00:39there. There's a lot of clubs. Whilst Wasps haven't announced where they've acquired land
00:43in Kent, the club had previously asked Sevenoaks Council to include an allocation for a stadium
00:48at one of two locations near Swanley. But some residents, particularly those against
00:52the proposed 2,500 home garden village on Pedham Place, have been protesting since the plans were
00:58first put forward, saying there simply isn't enough space in the nearby villages to take
01:02so much demand. I think it would be fantastic to have Wasps, a prestigious club in Kent,
01:07without a doubt it would be fantastic to have them, just very concerned about the location
01:12and it's simply because of traffic flow, managing that on a sports weekend. Their
01:18average gates are about 8,500, so they're going to have to drive revenue some other
01:22way and we suspect that might be through using the stadium for other purposes, in which case
01:29we're going to end up with traffic much more than just every other weekend.
01:33Joe Robinson is editor at Rugby World magazine and also plays for Swanley RFC as a fly half.
01:39He says a stadium will have the power to transform Kent's sporting landscape.
01:43It should have happened 15, 20 years ago. London Wasps, as they were known back then, are one of
01:49the biggest clubs in professional rugby. It's akin to Arsenal or Chelsea going bust. I think what I
01:56would say from a sporting perspective is that I've seen new stadiums be developed in areas,
02:01so naturally the net positive that that can have on an area and a town, specifically a town like
02:07Swanley, it can really help a society and really help sort of younger people, specifically getting
02:13into sport, which we know can, you know, improve mental health, improve fitness, improve a lot of
02:18things around someone's life. Wasps rugby has applied to enter the second tier of rugby union
02:23for the 25 to 26 season, but as well as viability on the pitch, the question now is if local
02:29resistance will prove an immovable opponent off it. Bartholomew Hall for KMTV.
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