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I’m not writing this to say that the AFL is going to take over Queensland, but even the most pessimistic AFL follower would have to be pleased with developments on the Gold Coast in recent times.
With less than a month until the official AFL pre-season starts, it’s worth taking a glance at the position of the newest club in the AFL fraternity, the Gold Coast Suns, and evaluate their readiness for the times soon to pass.
Here’s a brief summary of what’s gone on.
The AFL has come under some vitriol from within its own ranks and considerably more from people outside of its supporter base, who believed – and still believe – that a Gold Coast-based AFL club simply cannot work. After all, you can’t do market research and create a club from scratch.
The concept had its share of doubters. They are all about to be proved wrong.
They’ve got supporters, and more they have members. In fact, surprising many, the club website claims nearly 10,000 members. Not 10,000 foundation members (that target was reached in September 2010), but 10,000 full membership paying persons.
This compares favourably with local rival, the NRL’s Titans, with almost 7000 members – and several years headstart (and with that said, it’s worth noting that until recently membership wasn’t an NRL priority). It compares well with other established AFL clubs, including state rival the Lions (14,000) and North Melbourne (15,000).
The Suns have spent the years entrenching themselves into the Gold Coast. Like the Titans before them, this can only help increase support for the club.
Surprisingly perhaps, the Gold Coast get reasonable coverage in local media. The Gold Coast Bulletin runs regular updates on the club’s progress, all of which seem to be favourable.
Club officials have appeared on local radio and television. It quite possibly hasn’t hurt that Travis Auld and Guy McKenna haven’t gone out to try and start a code war with the Titans or United. If anything, the atmosphere is quite peaceful compared to what GWS will expect next year between nine NRL clubs and a feisty Kevin Sheedy.
With the AFL backing it all the way, the Suns are as well sponsored as any other team in the AFL. HostPlus have been a major sponsor since 2009, and Virgin came on board towards the end of 2010.
They also benefit from the backing of the Southport Sharks QAFL club – one of the most profitable clubs outside of the AFL itself. It passed its sponsorship benchmark (one major, 10 secondary and 100 tertiary sponsors) in October 2008.
Administration wise, it’s apparent that the AFL sought out the best and brightest it could get.
Former Brisbane chief Graham Downie, Southport director Allan Mckenzie and John Witheriff have done a sterling job to date putting together the team, including Travis Auld as CEO and Guy McKenna, the champion former West Coast dual premiership player.
The team’s good establishment goes beyond administration to the playing list. Not only did they snare a player many regard as the best in the league in Gary Ablett, they then loaded up the inexperienced team with some handy and experienced players – more than most expected.
In addition, they’ve managed to draft some of the best players in the junior leagues, ensuring the team continues to develop together. In addition, there are 16 players from Queensland currently on the playing list for the Suns – that’s one-third of the 48-man squad.
Not bad for what is considered rugby league heartland (and not to be snide, but how many Victorians have played or even been recruited for the Storm after since 1997?).
Having obviously learned from the Bears’ establishment, the club will be based and play out of Cararra when it’s complete, thanks to funding from the Queensland Government, the Gold Coast Council and the AFL.
For mine, 25,000 is the perfect size for the new club, at a ground controlled by the AFL, and not subject to the needs and demands of other codes at this time.
Crowds are going to be hard to gauge – the Bears experience not comparable for a wide variety of reasons, and more recent matches featuring a variety of North and Melbourne matches have had mixed results. The VFL match in Cairns attracted thousands of people, and a full fledged AFL match versus Richmond will be played there this year.
The team’s success has continued at the TAC level, where they played finals in 2009, defeating the Northern Knights in an elimination final. Then in 2010, at VFL level, the Suns finished 10th (out of 14) with six wins and a draw, against clubs which more or less serve as AFL reserves.
Their next test is the NAB Cup, where they travel to Blacktown on February 19 to play the brand new GWS Giants and the original expansion team, the Sydney Swans.
There’s still a lot of work to be done on the Gold Coast, but at the same time it’s important to note that these guys are ready to go. I’m a lifelong Carlton supporter, but as a Queenslander, it’s hard to not get excited about the Suns.
It’s time to sit back and watch the Suns rise.
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