NRL must hold its nerve on expansion plans
Roar Guru By Steve Kaless, 12 Apr 2010 Steve Kaless is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- Central Coast Bears, David Gallop, Newcastle Knights, NRL, NRL expansion, Rugby League, South Sydney Rabbitohs
Related coverage
The Central Coast Bears must be wondering whether their curse is set to continue after their rally at the NRL match between Souths and Newcastle came at a time when expansion is a dirty word in Australian sport.
While the farce of the A-League’s push in Queensland develops daily, the lessons of their ill judged move into North Queensland and the Gold Coast should not be lost on the NRL bosses.
While many football fans and media commentators in Australia were initially in a chest beating mood over Clive Palmer and his wealth, their gloating over his involvement must now cause them to wince with embarrassment.
The whole business model of relying on the largesse of one tycoon when it is patently obvious their investment will suffer heavy losses has been seen to be seriously flawed.
But from the wreckage of the Fury and Gold Coast United, it has become clear that three things are vital to make new franchises work.
A ground-swell of public support, a broad based ownership structure and the commitment of the governing body to firstly carry out proper due diligence on the bids and to be prepared to support these expensive experiments.
It’s obvious to anyone that in the rush to show everyone how ambitious and bold the A-League was they cut corners and pushed through the two Queensland clubs.
It’s a stark contrast to the plight of the Bears who despite having an enormous amount of support from the rugby league public, a solid business case and possibly even the moral highground they’ve had to wait a torturous length of time hear whether they have got the green light.
If anything their actions on Saturday could well be construed as reminding the NRL that they were still waiting patiently to be granted a licence.
Only in the past week has David Gallop finally stated in public that the NRL may consider expansion in 2013 with the Central Coast and Perth his personal preferences.
The Western Reds are also hoping that their softly, softly approach of appeasing the NRL bean counters will also be successful. It’s certainly a long way from Clive Palmer, his bullish statements and helicopter rides. But the Reds have been in constant contact with the NRL over a return to the top flight.
Their decision this year to enter the National S.G Ball competition over the NSW Jim Beam Cup came after discussions with the governing body ended with the decision that the former would be viewed more favourably when it came to decision on expansion.
With their focus on youth development their expensive waiting game continues.
The Reds would undoubtedly need more support by the NRL or whatever governing body controls the purse strings in 2013, but like the AFL with the Gold Coast and Western Sydney, it’s decision which must be supported for the good of the game. If the NRL decides it is in the financial position to back their decision.
Finally, the failure of Gold Coast United should also be a hammer blow to those who were hoping to see an NRL team based in PNG in the next 30 years.
With Clive Palmer again the man behind that bid, the idea that his long term commitment to such an incredibly expensive operation could be trusted is fanciful.
PNG may have a population that loves rugby league but they also have a country seriously lacking in infrastructure.
It may seem that every man in his dog knows someone who has trekked the Kokoda Trail these days, but that does not mean they have anywhere near the facilities to handle an NRL franchise.
The population, as much as I’m sure they would love to see NRL players in the flesh every fortnight, would probably prefer the money spent on providing more basic amenities.
Recommend this story.
The Turkey 10
The Turkey 10 teams have now been selected, as Wild Turkey Bourbon's sport sponsorship kicks into the next exciting phase.
Choose which side you're going to support and get in the running to win $2,500!
Simply visit Wild Turkey Australia on Facebook for your chance to win.
Find out more.
April 12th 2010 @ 12:44pm
M1tch said | April 12th 2010 @ 12:44pm | Report comment
Why the love for merge teams?
Yes we have had some success but we cant merge anymore
The games strength is probably its weakness in that its a tribal suburban game in Sydney, with all the other codes coming into sydney its the worst thing to think of merging or relocating sydney teams
April 12th 2010 @ 1:23pm
Bob said | April 12th 2010 @ 1:23pm | Report comment
League needs to have 4- 5 syd based teams max.
Ditch / Merge – Souths, Sydney Sydney Rabbits
Merge – Cronulla / Manly – Manly Sharks
Merge – Bull / Parra – Parramatta Dogs
Keep – St G / Ill, West / Tigers
to make room for new teams
dont start on tradition as tradtion went along time ago. as we have megred other club successfully.
April 12th 2010 @ 2:56pm
wallythefly said | April 12th 2010 @ 2:56pm | Report comment
Bob, Souths have the highest membership in the league and now are making a small profit (many many clubs make losses) and that’s without pokie money but they should merge or be ditched?
Cronulla and Manly are on other ends of the city but should merge…
Dogs have a huge supporter base but have to merge…
And this is to start up new teams completely from scratch that may or may not make it long term
you may think tradition is gone from the league but sitting in the stands on a weekend and knowing loads of other league supporters i have to say your wrong
April 12th 2010 @ 2:59pm
JP said | April 12th 2010 @ 2:59pm | Report comment
Hell will freeze over before souths & roosters come together ……
April 12th 2010 @ 3:36pm
Bob said | April 12th 2010 @ 3:36pm | Report comment
Western Magpies merging with Balmain ??????
who would of thought……
I am really concerned that the area where Rugby league is strong has reached a saturation point. How many more people will watch the game live?? Why not get a full stadium when the merged teams.
its not about tradition, if the NRL wants to stick with tradition it will be over run by AFL, soocer and union.
League simply cannot afford the time to mess around with this expand or die, get the teams in place and let the team and crowds grow. The NRL has a great game and people will naturally watch it.
You think the A – League is a little competition that is a joke ( it is now) but soccer simply wont away. AFL is twice as big as the league. League needs to secure Qld in towns that already have a strong league following. And 2 new teams in Adelaide and Perth.
April 12th 2010 @ 4:39pm
Springs said | April 12th 2010 @ 4:39pm | Report comment
Both clubs would have folded. Wests Tigers is a success, now Norths and Manly who would have thought? And guess what, it didn’t work out. That’s what would happen if those six teams you mentioned merged.
April 14th 2010 @ 7:23pm
Emperor Penguin said | April 14th 2010 @ 7:23pm | Report comment
The Wests and Balmain merger was about a joint venture maintaining something of their heritage and jerseys being better than being swallowed by much larger clubs (Wests with Canterbury, Balmain with Parramatta).
St George merging with Illawarra was different again. The Dragons wanted a larger junior base and were worried about the Sharks dominating the south (which they did 1999-2003) who were given $20m for their role in SuperLeague (money they squandered).
Illawarra were happy just to have games played in Wollongong in a red and white jersey. That and St George gave them a $10m loan, which has only just recently been payed back in full, which basically made the Illawarra St George’s bitch.
The Northern Eagles was never going to work as it was a forced merger between two sides that hated each other. A North Sydney-Central Coast side would have worked, but forcing Manly to be the senior part of the side just didn’t work.
There is a leason in all this: Mergers only work if all parties want it to work.
Souths / Easts = St Geo / Cronulla = Penrith / Parramatta = disaster
Adelaide is a waste of time for the NRL. Perth is a must though. But so is a second NZ side, and 2 QLD sides.
April 12th 2010 @ 11:29pm
The Answer said | April 12th 2010 @ 11:29pm | Report comment
Who’ve lost your mind if you think the Bulldogs and Eels would work. That is just crazy..for about a billion reasons…think Northern Eagles times a billion.
It’s like merging Carlton and essendon in the AFL if you are trying to cut down on Melbourne clubs.
Then again good luck for having the guts to propose such nonsense.
April 12th 2010 @ 1:12pm
Bob said | April 12th 2010 @ 1:12pm | Report comment
How about the Central Qld Bears.
Shared between Bundaberg (67) , Rockhampton (77K) and Mackay ( 87 K). Approx. 161,000 people. not including regional areas. proabably closer to 200K.
or
Sunshine Coast Sharks ?? popualtion ( 247K)
or
Toowoomba Womabts ( pop. 130K) not including regional area. includign regional areas probably 220K
what im saying is cut a Sydney team and have another team in Qld.
April 14th 2010 @ 7:25pm
Emperor Penguin said | April 14th 2010 @ 7:25pm | Report comment
Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles is the closest anything like that has come.
April 12th 2010 @ 2:38pm
Corey said | April 12th 2010 @ 2:38pm | Report comment
Bob I agree, get rid of Roosters, people show their colours for the roosters up here in Brisbane but they had the Broncos vs Roosters traditional Good Friday game and they only got 17k, and this is a traditional game with the Roosters expected to win. Tradition loses its value when it loses its relevance- this is the Roosters, get rid of them.
April 12th 2010 @ 8:53pm
Norm said | April 12th 2010 @ 8:53pm | Report comment
-”get rid of Roosters…this is the Roosters, get rid of them.”…Corey go back to bed.
April 12th 2010 @ 9:09pm
Corey said | April 12th 2010 @ 9:09pm | Report comment
Sorry Norm if I offended you, but truth be told you guys have terrible crowd attendance for a team that calls itself SYDNEY roosters, you should be filling the stadium with 30-35k each game. And when did you last produce your own juniors? Come on mate, its getting old. I used to love watching the Roosters in 2000-2004, they were my most hated team (Broncos beat you guys in the 2000 GF) and yet you guys, along with us, didn’t capitalise on the selling point SYD vs BRIS, Good Friday Clash. If you advertised it like that, and Channel 9 should have been helping, you would get followers from elsewhere that don’t have a team in the NRL to follow, like Glebe, Newtown etc. Bring the traditional game up to Brisbane and we will sell it off, and probably make it a show-piece.
In my boxing club I am the only Broncos fan, we have another 3 Titans fans, 2 Union Crusaders fans and the rest (8 of them) are Roosters fans- and they go to all the games in SE QLD with the Roosters, yet they admit the crowds for the Roosters are bad for the game. Come on mate, get more of your guys to turn up to the game. Lets see at least a constant 20k turn up.
April 12th 2010 @ 9:15pm
True Tah said | April 12th 2010 @ 9:15pm | Report comment
Im sure Channel 9 has an agreement with the NRL that the Roosters must get as many TV games as possible.
April 12th 2010 @ 11:24pm
The Answer said | April 12th 2010 @ 11:24pm | Report comment
I read theory on this site that david Gyngell had helped get the Roosters the Steggles deal, so it is likely he sweetened the deal by giving them maximum exposure.
How else could the wooden spooners get the first five weeks on free to air. It would take the Raiders nine years to get that much.
April 12th 2010 @ 4:50pm
Crosscoder said | April 12th 2010 @ 4:50pm | Report comment
It can also be argued rl missed the boat with the initial failures on the Gold Coast.It reemerged successfully (a 20,000 crowd against Melbourne last weekend suggests they are doing more than OK.
If the NRL has missed the boat and has supposedly litlte hope of getting back into Perth,then the AFL with the planned GWS is hardly going to be smooth sailing.Regardless of the money pumped in.
Perth may well be full of AFLrs.Sth Africans and Englishmen,but would have more than a fair share of Easterners with the mining boom and cheaper housing,Englishmen from (Yorkshire and other rl areas Lancashire and Cumbria).NZedders and no doubt Pacific Islanders.So from that disparate lot,no doubt there would be a reasonable base for a team.The bid team apparently believe so,and the crowds at trials and nRL matches seem to confirm so.
Compare the Storm starting from a dot on the radar junior base ,to crowds which now appear to be based around the 15-20,000(the new stadium will be the guide).Perth is in a far more ideal position to rebirth the Reds.Junior numbers according to Gallop,are back to the Reds days.
The Force has taken what market? The current market which involves ru people and some disenfranchised rl supporters.There are rl supporters in that city with no doubt with interest in rl only,plus throw in those interested in both codes,and a few converts(it dooes happen).
Having a rl team in Perth may complement the Force as may the Rebels in Melbourne to the Storm.
For anyone to suggest more merging of Sydney teams,ignores the disasters of the Eagles/Norths example.All mergers have done is throw some supporters into the arms of other codes.Learn by history’s mistakes.
A club going down the tube is the only way a club will move.To merge Manly and Cronulla is the height of geographical and communal stupidity.The Sharks have an asset well over $30m with a $12m debt.Development approval has been given.They have a pop base not much less than the Sunshine Coast.
Rugby league has the luxury and the time and patience,with the backdrop of better Tv revenues to expand into a miriad of areas.They have not to date, gone within cooee of saturation point.
In no particular order
Central Qld
Logan SEQ
Nth Brisbane(Sunshine Coast)
Central coast
Perth
PNG
Wellington
Adelaide
April 12th 2010 @ 5:06pm
King of the Gorganites said | April 12th 2010 @ 5:06pm | Report comment
CC, i think your missing the point about the Force. IMO western australians now get there fix of contact sport from the Force. RL made a fatal error in selling out the Reds. Time for the game to concentrate on other markets.
so 8 more expansion sides? do you honestly believe the Australian sporting marketing can support os many teams? IMO – no. lets get rid of some sydney teams. im thinking Cronulla, Roosters, Manly.
In regard to your expansion plans i note the following:
Central Qld – no small a base. where do they play out of?
Logan SEQ – ditto
Nth Brisbane(Sunshine Coast)- plnety of merit. my preferred option.
Central coast – must happen
Perth – as discussed above – no.
PNG – dreaming.
Wellington – 1 NZ team is enough. NZ RL league need to build player numbers first.
Adelaide – no base to grow from. SIlly idea.
KoGs
April 14th 2010 @ 7:37pm
Emperor Penguin said | April 14th 2010 @ 7:37pm | Report comment
Central Qld has been promised a Skilled Park style stadium in Rockhamption by the Qld Gov if they win an NRL licence.
Logan’s bid has been talked about, they had community consultation meetings, tentatively planned a stadium halfway between Ipswich and Logan, but haven’t been able to get anywhere without help from the NRL.
Sunshine Coast is definately a great option. Turn the stadium at Kawana Waters into a proper +20k stadium. Redcliffe Dolphins, Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles (Manly) are the most likely backers.
You are right, the bears are a must.
Perth is a must. In terms of TV ratings and advertising revenue, it is the only place in Australia that really matters that the NRL has no presence. They have demand for a club, and are building it on their own for themselves, much better than just plonking a side somewhere like AFL is doing. I think the Rebels will actually be good for the Storm, and the Reds good for the Force in AFL dominated states.
Wellington/Christchurch is a must, but not as urgent as other places. It is one of the key recomendations of the recent NZRL structural reform, but in order to get the nod, the NZRL need to convince the NRL that it is better for the game than another Australian side, which will be the hard part.
Adelaide is lol. Almost as lol as GWS.
April 12th 2010 @ 6:01pm
Hansie said | April 12th 2010 @ 6:01pm | Report comment
I don’t think the Bears can do much more to get back into the competition. They have a lot of community support, are financially viable and are not reliant on the mood swings of a billionaire.
April 12th 2010 @ 6:42pm
Col the Bear said | April 12th 2010 @ 6:42pm | Report comment
and we have our 102 year history to look back on.. we are an old club with a new touch…. The Central Coast Bears.. reborn.. and out of hibernation….
April 12th 2010 @ 6:10pm
Col the Bear said | April 12th 2010 @ 6:10pm | Report comment
Hey Bob how about not.. we’ve worked to hard to just roll over and give away the CC and the NS to someone else..we have done all the right things, we have got the sponsors, we are getting the paid up members.mate we’ve even sold the CCBears foundation jerseys,. all these football starved fans all signed up to be Central Coast Bears.. not some other locality..It’s either the Central Coast Bears for us or nothing.. and thats final…end of story…
We have the support and we proved that the other night at the Souths NRL game..at Bear stadium Gosford..couldn’t believe the amount of Bears jerseys there the other night, I saw the Avco strip also the Norths leagues, Citibank and BBX, but most of all I saw the kids and the parents wearing the new CC Bears jerseys, by the end of the night we had sold out, with just a few kids ones left, we ordered more first thing this morning..
It’s RECLAIMATION for us not expansion.. reclaiming 2 areas that were NRL until SL come along..The Bears should have always been there..and it would of worked except for some hybrid team called the NE favouring the colours and name of arch rivals Manly.. thanks but no thanks.!!!.. we have the sponsors and more coming, we have the business’ on the North Shore coming on board.. we have the Juniors from Milsons point to Lake Munmorrah..we have 1 mil pop without a team to call their own.. well thats all about to change guys..because we are not going to be denied for a 3rd time..
Expansion will probably come after Perth and the Bears are added, possibly for the 2017 season.. then it should be C Qld and PNG…but this time, this time.it’s ours. we have waited long enough.. we want to finally play at the stadium we built at Gosford, THE BEARS DEN.. and I’m sick of people saying, this club should be there or that club should be there.. we are not going to hand that over.. we still own % 20 rights to that stadium, and the rights were for 21 years.. still 11 years to go in my calculations..I’m confident… extremely confident .. that this time is the Bears time… and god if any club deserves it it’s the BEARS!!!!! 16 100 there the other night, and that was paid patrons, what about all the kids that got in for free with their junior league pases and staff from the juniors leagues, they weren’t counted,, so you can add quite a few more onto that tally..
The Bears day is coming.. and rugby league will be better for it.. look at fellow foundation club Souths.. how ironic the Souths and the Bears who played their very first game against each other on april 20th 1908, are still working with each other to help the Bears, and to get reinstated.. enjoy it everyone, because HERE COME THE BEARS..
April 12th 2010 @ 6:25pm
Col the Bear said | April 12th 2010 @ 6:25pm | Report comment
Someone mentioned why isn’t there another Brisbane team..well where’s their website, whose putting their hand up.. whose out there everyday saying we want in.. whats Souths Logan doing??.. are they committed?? , sure doesn’t look like it..yes I was for a Brisbane 2nd team for sometime as people know on this site.. but they’ve missed the boat I feel, you can’t sit back and say”Oh we will wait until the NRL are going to expand” the CCBs have been active for 10 years.. a decade the Bears have kept at it.. the only other website besides the http://www.centralcoastbears.com worth a look in is the central Qld bid at least they are having a go..and you know what I hope after the Bears and the Reds are in, they are next given the nod, because they have shown they want it also.and goodluck to them..,, all they can do is stay resilient, keep at it and make sure you get in the next time round.. Central Qld bidders , the Bears have been there twice before.. but we never gave up..and if they want it as bad they won’t give up either..get your stadium built..and keep working, you will get there..
April 12th 2010 @ 6:39pm
Col the Bear said | April 12th 2010 @ 6:39pm | Report comment
You don’t get rid of anyone..no one has to go through not having their team..you don’t merge anymore either..been there done that..the clubs just have to work harder to get sponsors, hell if we can find them and if we can sign up over 1200 members in 4 months,and not even in the NRL WHY can’t everyone else…WHY!!! the questions has to be asked don’t you think…
April 12th 2010 @ 6:53pm
Col the Bear said | April 12th 2010 @ 6:53pm | Report comment
PNG bid has also come out now publicly supporting the CCBears bid..as reported by Roy Masters last week..
Everyday the CCBears bid team have been out there working hard to get sponsors, everyday they are out there in the community of the CC..we had our box at gosfrod the other night.. and now our TV commercial is out through NBN.. it’s all good, and we are as enthusiastic as ever…2012 will even do us Mr Gallop…..