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The Roar

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For continued growth, rugby league must go back to the future

29th August, 2016
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Is it time for the Illawarra to get some A-League action? They have a good stadium. WIN Stadium in Wollongong.
Expert
29th August, 2016
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With another cracking day at Leichhardt loomng when the Tigers take on the Raiders, I am convinced the NRL needs to develop a funding and marketing strategy that calls for increased use of suburban grounds.

In a recent Sydney daily newspaper survey of fans, 84 per cent of respondents said that more games should be played at suburban grounds such as Belmore and Leichhardt because they “love the atmosphere.”

When there are NRL games at traditional grounds and lower grade fixtures at venues such as Henson Park and North Sydney Oval my social media feeds light up like a beacon. There are photos of rugby league tragics soaking up the game day atmosphere with a pie and a beer on the hill while mingling with likeminded members of their supporter community.

Tweets and Facebook posts run with the themes of “this is real rugby league” and “a day for the true believers”.

When I say suburban or traditional grounds, I am also including country venues. The Canberra Raiders put on a pre-season game at Seiffert Oval in Queanbeyan early this year that had fans regaling stories of battles past and yearning for more Sundays sitting on the hill. Penrith have successfully engaged footy fans in the country by taking games to Bathurst.

Now I know there are strong and credible business arguments for centralised stadiums. The AFL model and the NSW Government stadium strategy where all games should be played in modern, albeit sterile facilities that give the fan the ‘ultimate game day experience’ complete with good wifi, functioning toilets and drinks delivered to your seats.

A number of Sydney teams have locked in financially rewarding deals at Homebush and Moore Park informing their fan-bases that it is the only way they can move forward financially.

Other clubs such as Manly will have to make difficult decisions around their traditional home on the northern beaches or whether they move to Moore Park – or perhaps worse still for their supporter base, Homebush.

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This would not be the Manly Sea Eagles. Their much loved, or for the majority hated, identity is entrenched in privileged northern Sydney surroundings.

While the trend for Sydney clubs to play out of Homebush has increased over the last few years attendance at NRL games has steadily dropped. Television ratings are still strong but declining crowds are a worrying sign for the NRL.

It would seem that traditional supporters are walking away while younger fans are not being drawn to attend games.

Broadcasters and viewers would agree that 16,000 screaming fans at Campbelltown has a better screen presence than the same amount of supporters dotted around Homebush Stadium.

The people that run our game should give clubs significant funding to improve facilities and provide marketing support to take selected games to traditional grounds. Old and new spectators would enjoy the game day experience of standing shoulder to shoulder on the hill with the tribe while hearing the groans of the players and seeing the sweat spray that comes with a big hit.

Games can be planned and promoted ahead of the season. While the big matches – any game that will attract 18,000 plus spectators – should still feature at the big stadiums, there is a case for more than just the out-of-town games at traditional venues.

It may seem this doesn’t make financial sense and in the short term it won’t but if the NRL wants to grow attendances long term they need to go back to what made turning up to games attractive in the first place.

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Rugby league and AFL are not only two very different codes, the same can be said about the two different supporter bases. If you want to talk about sport as a business, surely every successful corporation reflects on why consumers were attracted to their products in the first instance when future planning.

As a rugby league supporter I love being so close to the action that I am calling for the ball.

I have a hunch that the inner city hipsters that turn up to Henson Park to watch the Newtown Jets on a Saturday afternoon for a game day experience are ‘on trend’ – and a pointer to the future for rugby league.


NRL average crowds for the regular season last five years

2012 – 16,415
2013 – 15,940
2014 – 15,906
2015 – 15,078
2016 (YTD) – 15,069

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