The groundbreaking new Manchester gym offering free membership for a year
Inside is an indoor running track, a 20-metre sled track, CV garden, performance room, free weight area, resistance equipment, assault course – with monkey bars, rope regain and cargo net, full free motion cable suite, and a climbing wall – a first for a gym in Manchester.
A brand new gym is coming to Manchester – offering a “fitness sanctuary to restore, re-energise and revive”… along with a full year’s membership for one lucky winner.
GSquared Health Club is set to open in January in the vaults of Royal Exchange Arcade – boasting 12,000sq ft of training space.
Inside is a running track, a 20-metre sled track, CV garden, performance room, free weight area, resistance equipment and an assault course (with monkey bars, rope regain and cargo net, full free motion cable suite, and climbing wall) – a first for any gym in Manchester.
Launched by Royal Marine Commando-turned-Personal Trainer Andy McGlynn, this state-of-the-art fitness space takes a “multi-faceted approach to fitness and wellbeing” – with some of the best exercising resources anywhere in the city.
The venue will have a luxurious front of house – with members able to book sports rehab massages and get their kits freshly laundered.
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Members will also have direct access to The Remedy Kitchen – Manchester’s first and only free-from café concept in the city.
CEO McGlynn said: “I knew that Manchester had to be the first location for the first GSquared Health Club, which I believe is set to be a gamechanger for the fitness industry. We are shaking up the norm to become one of the world’s leading health club brands.
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“Taking all the learnings and experiences from the fitness industry as a whole, I wanted to create strengths from the recurring issues that often let members down. For example, our new site is substantial enough in size to accommodate a club membership in excess of 3,000 members, but it will actually be limited to 800, meaning that members will never have to wait for equipment – it will be a much better experience all round.
“We’ve also created a unique, 7-part, optional, introductory screening for members, known as ‘YouSquared’. It’s arguably one of the most in-depth, diverse, accurate, informative, educational and useful yet non- invasive member experiences of any gym in the world, and I take that statement seriously.”
GSquared Health Clubs also plans to support the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on a long-term basis with a seven-figure contribution every year – with the facility’s aesthetics (aquarium, garden and stone) showcasing a “gentle connection to nature.”
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Membership tiers available at GSquared Health Clubs include: Executive at £95 per month; Platinum at £150 per month; and Platinum Plus at £225 per month.
Memberships can be purchased by contacting [email protected] or by calling the membership team on 0161 669 4562.
To be in with a chance of winning a year’s full membership to GSquared – head over to The Manc Instagram.
Sport
Salford Red Devils granted another adjournment over unpaid debts
Danny Jones
Salford Red Devils have been given one more adjournment and yet another stay of execution, being given another two weeks to find the money to cover their unpaid debts.
The local rugby league side, which has been wrapped in all manner of struggles both on and off-pitch over the past year or so, reportedly needs to pay around £700,000 to HMRC alone and still owes roughly £5 million in total to various creditors.
To no surprise, regular matchgoers, neutrals and even rivals alike have expressed their continued disappointment with the club, mainly at the lack of transparency and clarity from the organisation throughout this long, drawn-out process.
This is coming from a wire fan but no club deserves to be left in the dark even longer than they already have done it’s nothing but a disgrace to the sport of rugby those owners and the court should be ashamed of themselves.
Updating fans on social media, this is all the information they have communicated at this time: “Salford Red Devils can confirm that HMRC have granted the club a two-week adjournment, providing additional time in which to secure the necessary funds.
“We would like to reassure supporters that we are working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure a positive resolution. Further updates will be shared as soon as possible.”
It’s worth noting that the current owners have reiterated that they inheited around £3m in existing debt before they took over the club, but assurances over their own investments have still come to nothing; meanwhile, with many still waiting on wages, players and staff alike have now left.
Having been propped up by loan players and emergency loans, the team is now closer to a skeleton crew than it is an outfit capable of competing in the premier division.
Either way, the outrage remains and is only growing stronger. One user wrote on X: “A good approach by them if they was legit would be to engage and bring in The 1873 to bridge the communication black hole (they created).
“The problem with that is if they did it would expose them for what they are… Extortionists using the club as a vehicle.”
More alarm bells were raised recently when assistant coach and Krisnan Inu – who was also director of the company set up to take over the business – withdrew himself from a key position behind the scenes.
Speaking of The 1873, the outspoken supporters trust took no time at all in issuing a response of their own, adding: “The judge presiding over today’s case has adjourned by 14 days. This adjournment has dragged the uncertainty on even longer.
“Every delay makes planning for 2026 harder and keeps the club stuck in limbo when it desperately needs clarity and direction.
“The fans, the players and the future all deserve better — The 1873.”
You can see the rest of their statement in full down below, but for now, what do you make of this seemingly neverending saga, Salfordians?
Andy Aspinall issues update on Tom’s eye poke injury and calls for changes in the UFC
Danny Jones
Andy Aspinall – father of Manc martial artist Tom Aspinall – has shared a lengthy video interview on his son’s YouTube channel discussing the latest regarding his son’s eye injury.
More importantly, as a concerned parent, he’s also called for better safeguarding and/or tighter rules in the UFC regarding fouls and, in particular, eye poking.
In case you missed it, this past weekend, the Greater Manchester MMA star took on French fighter Ciryl Gane in his first title defence since being named the undisputed heavyweight champion. Unfortunately, the main event match had to be cut short after Aspinall was left unable to see following an eye poke.
Although this is an illegal move in the sport, not only could it not be proved whether it was accidental or perhaps even intentional, as some have speculated on social media, but the only outcome was for the bout to end in a no-contest. Updating fans online, Andy reiterated priorities, dubbing this “just a job”.
🚨BREAKING🚨
Tom Aspinall “𝙎𝙏𝙄𝙇𝙇 𝘾𝘼𝙉’𝙏 𝙎𝙀𝙀” out of his right eye following Ciryl Gane’s double eye poke at UFC 321, his dad Andy has revealed 😳
“His right eye, he still can't see anything.He said it's just grey.
As you can see in the main clip above, Andy says that the Atherton-born fighter still “can’t see anything” out of his right eye, describing his sight as little more than “just grey”; meanwhile, his left eye is said to be at roughly 50% vision, having struggled to get more than a few rows down on a Snellen chart.
Essentially, the short version is that after the pain of the controversial eye poke, the muscles in his eye still aren’t healed and will be going for even more eye tests, including an eye test.
However, arguably the most salient points to take away from the video were those regarding his son’s overall welfare and the safety of the sport, as it is clear that Andy was talking chiefly as an understandably worried father rather than his coach.
“For me, everything is about his health. It’s not about the fighting – that’s just what he chose to do as a job”, he says, also clarifying that he isn’t accusing Gane of any ill intent, personally, and that the referees need to have more powers when it comes to fouling.
He also reminded those watching that the Wigan native has a wife and three kids to think about, stating, “This is just a job that he’s doing at this period in time, and he’ll do another job”, before going on to add, “What [will] it take?” for the UFC to get stricter around fouls like these.
You can watch the most recent update on Tom Aspinall from his dad, Andy, in full down below.
Andy Aspinall also had plenty to say in terms of what the UFC can do to better protect fighters/improve the rules.
Andy also made a point of suggesting once again that Tom should maybe turn to boxing instead of MMA, not only because of the added safety measures but because of the bigger paydays.
Do you think the UFC needs to be more stringent when it comes to not only protecting its fighters but also the rules and punishments surrounding serious fouls, such as eye pokes?
AND, alternatively, do you think Tom Aspinall would be well-suited to a boxing ring?
In the immediate aftermath of the injury, he was the first to admit that “this is a dangerous f***ing sport”; whether or not coming this close to permanent damage has made him reconsider, only time will tell.
The Manc -
24th November 2020 
