Mate, Origin is the Number 1 sporting contest. Why would i want to include Vistoria. If you ever get a player able to play NRL, then he will get a choice of electing to play for QLD or NSW. just like that young Victorian you have down their. Widdop, yes he is a pom, but they moved to Victoria , you claiming him?, or isn’t he a aussie, even after he gets his citizenship. ?

M.C, league is coming to Melbourne, be a bore and get left out, i dont care, us Queenslanders and the Storm supporters over the next 5 years will gladly fill your numbers, just like your 1.6 million Vics watching the final filled your ratings . Thats only just over 1 million watching from over half the population in all main cities.
Your expansion is into areas where the game is already played, and watched. League is a expanding sport, we have new states to conquer. And we will, once we take origin to perth.
Its not about where the people come from who play the game, its the quality of the contest, you should know that. Either way, both codes are safe. The other 2 are a little shakey.

However, on that weekend, the NRL PF 2 was initially reported at 1,353,000, but, the published figure now on OzTam is 1,254,000.

The AFL GF prelim figure is now reported as 2,878,000 official. The Pre Game also was initially 1,505,000 and is now reported officially as 1,697,000.

It’s ALL Oztam data.

Normally the change from Preliminary figures to final figures is just a couple of thousand. It’s quite odd that this particular week there are variances up or down of 100,000 to 200,000.

It’s ALL Oztam data. That’s the only PeopleMeter data. Any other ‘polls’ such as Roy Morgan will tend to be relatively minute samples and often simply ask “Did you watch” the show/event.

Unlike the AFL, Rugby League still continues with the 4 Nations coming up. Something most of us League lovers are looking forward to. It’s things like this which should see the NRL get a lot more money next time around.

Same as the AFL. Greatert vfl, nothing more.

please – - how many people refer to AFL as ‘Vicball’, or try to push the ‘only one half of the country’ line claiming that NSW and QLD can’t be counted and so AFL isn’t national.

If you reckon a team of NSW and QLD lads in Melbourne and about 20 junior teams equates to being a RL state, and even less so WA with 1 ‘exhibition’ match and a handful of junior teams fits the bill too – - – then, sure as heck the AFL IS the supreme national code.

Again – re juniors – let’s avoid the propaganda and wait and see how the under 16s/18s develop – - for now, there’s 1 guy in the Toyota Cup/Senior squads combined to show. Keep your feet on the ground a tad.

btw – remember back in 1979, the then VFL had 2 ‘exhibition’ matches at the SCG, a total crowd of about 48K……did that make NSW a ‘footy’ state?? Hardly!!!

Until the NRL can run a fair dinkum State of Origin carnival with more than just NSW and QLD ……then you do realise you’re on thin ice.

The AFL could manage a pretty damn good QLD side presently, and a full NSW squad but with a lack of depth. What can the NRL patch together for Vic,WA and SA? (I bet the best you could manage is the ‘emerging states’ junior squad…..but….hey….we’ve all seen Zimbabwe do really quite well at the Under 19 cricket world cup……).

So – I’m still curious why you keep trying to claim greater than 2 states. Really, who is the one eyed supporter here???

You my friend, and your one-eyed supporters cant stop that now. You can all be ignorant, and say you dont know who the storm are, as some folk do down their, but it only shows how ignorant some people are. I am not singling out you.,, I know you know differently, but come on, some of the biase down their is just pure stupidity. We dont carry on like that up north.

The move to 5pm or 5.30 or 5.15pm…..I’m still confused about when it was meant to start…….and so it seems was GTV 9…….but, in reality, the move by 2.5 hrs is not so much a direct move from 3pm, but, it first pushed out to 7.30 so moved by 4.5 hours and then got pulled back……..after the ‘sell out’ which was the 4.5 hr shift.

This then becomes a matter of demographic semantics I guess, a bit like Foxtel ratings where the NRL is strongest – - in no small part due to NSW being the biggest state, an NRL state and having the deepest penetration on real and relative scales of foxtel subscription.

Given all the points of distinction – - i.e. the NRL GF being played at a much more ratings friendly time slot and on a weekend with no other sport up against it – - the galling thing is people trying to read too much into the figures.

I have yet to get the NRL Grand Final figures from Free TV Australia, but believe from my other 2 sources that the metro figures are 2,416,000 (which is lower than quotes elsewhere). I think we are squabbling about a few tens of thousands here or there when it comes to facts and figures, but most NRL supporters are sick of the headlines each year about how the AFL GF is the biggest football code sporting event Australia wide and dwarfs the NRL GF and yet only talk about metro numbers when many of the NRL teams are from regional Australia. It is only recently journos started talking regional figures at all (metrocentric) and that is only because they were enlightened by grassroots bloggers.

So my Metro ratings for AFL GF are 2,704,000 and for NRL at this point 2,416,000. BOTH codes and channels have upped their ratings in other publications. To quote The Australian is a big mistake. Thier attitude to Rugby League was clearly shown with no mention whatsoever at the top of page 1 of the last Weekend Australian. Plenty the week before for the AFL and that has gone on for years. Sorry if I am repeating what someone else has already said.

All those people in Melbourne , hehe trying to pump up the veiwers ratings, hehe. We beat you, hands down.
Take your medcine. As Rabbits would say, blue tablet.

The reason it’s 5:30pm instead of 7:30pm is becasue of NZ.

The old traditional time for a game of Rugby elague is 3:00 pm sunday. Moving it by two 2 1/2 hours for TV purposes isn’t that much of a sell out.

Must admit though I often miss the AFL one but I would obey the law if it was passed.