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NRL suburban grounds debate continues

18th July, 2012
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18th July, 2012
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The Manly v Canterbury match on Friday night has sparked the suburban grounds v major stadiums argument again. Should these Sydney derby clashes be moved to bigger venues? I don’t think they should.

The Roosters v Rabbitohs match on Monday night only attracted just under 20,000 for a match that is classed as a big derby. Sydney fans don’t like to travel more than 30 minutes to a ground so why should a home team on he Northern Beaches move south into enemy territory for he sake of a couple thousand more bums on seats.

Don’t get me wrong, it would be great to 50,000 plus at a local derby, but it’s just not going to happen when ticket prices and associated costs of going to the ground are so expensive.

We keep hearing that rugby league is a business. Well if that is the case, it needs to start acting like one by pumping money into key areas such as suburban grounds. Could you imagine businesses like JB HiFi or Rebel Sport closing all of their shops in suburbs of Sydney to just have two mega stores?

They wouldn’t do it because people would shop online or find another company that sells a similar product locally. The NRL shouldn’t abandon suburban grounds for the same reason or fans will find other things to do in their down time. This may not be the best comparison, but most of you will get my point.

In expanding into new regions, the AFL has pumped millions into Skoda Stadium In Sydney and Metricon Stadium on the Gold Coast. Obviously the above grounds are not suburban venues, but the development and infrastructure of these stadiums shows the commitment AFL has in keeping their sport the number one game in the country.

The ARLC has to put money into suburban grounds to maintain the little history that this game has. We have already seen great clubs Western Suburbs, Balmain, North Sydney and Newtown die due to corporate greed.

Every kid born and raised on the northern beaches should have the right to watch a game of footy at Brookvale for the next 100 years. So too the kids living near Leichhardt, Kogarah and Penrith.

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Let’s not see our suburban grounds suffer the same fate as those great clubs of the past.

But maybe I’m being too hard on the ARLC. They have a lot of things to fix and can’t fund everything. Maybe the clubs should do more to look after their grounds. It is their home after all.

A step in the right direction would be to seek advice from English Premier League clubs that have developed suburban terrace grounds into iconic venues like Old Trafford, Whiteheart Lane, Goodison Park and Anfield, just to name a few. Of course these days, most English Football clubs have wealthy support behind them, but if you look closely at their history, they have developed their homes themselves and now some are like castles.

One thing is for sure, Friday night’s game at a packed Brookvale will look far better than a 3/4 empty ANZ Stadium.

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