2009 could be a watershed year in the history of Australian Rugby League as the balance of power tips from the corporate supporters of the NRL to the human supporters.
And this means, for a change, David Gallop must listen to us or else risk the slow and painful death of his code.
Phil Gould’s March 8 column in the Sydney Morning Herald, once one looks past the customary linguistic grandstanding that characterises the majority of Gus’ commentary, highlights a pertinent reality facing the NRL in 2009.
That is that fans, or customers as we would be more aptly described, can look forward to an unprecedented sense of control as League becomes further mired in an ultra-competitive market ailing under the vicelike grip of the global recession, and the powers that be desperately search for answers.
And its about time, too.
For years, supporters have been unequivocal in their demands for more day games and less fixtures in stadiums with as much atmosphere as the moon.
Far from ill considered calls for modernisation, particularly the ludicrous suggestion of merging the two Rugby codes, David Gallop should acknowledge the will of the fans to reconnect Rugby League to its suburban roots.
League lacks the international appeal of Football and Union, as well as the national appeal of Australian Rules.
Ask most Rugby League supporters why the game appeals to them and they will respond with a series of clichés immediately associated with the suburban tribalism of footy in the 1980s.
It’s no coincidence that the games that get the newspaper and television pundits salivating are the sellouts at Brookvale and Leichardt, venues drenched in the code’s famous history, where supporters slightly long in the tooth can still envisage Graham Eadie toe poking one between the sticks, or Blocker Roach patting Eddie Ward on the head.
Gallop’s sycophantic compliance to the wishes of News Corp TV broadcasters continues to erode this appeal, with only two games a week played in daylight hours and a spate of big, flashy stadiums paying big, flashy cheques to clubs willing to betray their supporters for the benefit of their bank balances.
I, and I suspect most Rugby League fans, couldn’t care less if the footy was only broadcast on the ABC if it meant they could once again enjoy a Saturday afternoon at Henson Park with a cold tin of beer in one hand and a crisp sausage sandwich in the other.
This is the appeal of Rugby League, this is what the fans will part with their hard earned cash to go and watch.
Not empty stadiums, not TV dictated Monday night fixtures impossible to attend.
As the world plunges into financial turmoil, it is imperative that the NRL boosts the number of people rattling through the turnstiles – and regardless of the immense pressure from TV broadcasters, Gallop must succumb to the will of the supporters to ensure a surge in the numbers of bums on seats.
If not, there will be no more consumers left to sustain the product.
The very hand that is apparently feeding Gallop will be the hand that strangles his code to death.
Tommy Smith
Roar Rookie
Good point Brett. I agree that any club who mismanages its finance to the point of extinction is indeed betraying its fans. But I guess what I'm asking for is a bit of 'short term pain for long term gain'; sustaining some short term losses (which, granted, may be unrealisitic in the current climate) in order to boost the overall appeal of the code. I think I read that it costs Wests Tigers 100,000 to put on a match at Leichardt (it may have even been slightly more). If the code in general is more attractive to broadcasters (and it is my opinion that League will be more attractive to broadcasters if the game returns to its traditional suburban roots as opposed to alienating fans by playing at homogenous stadiums at inconvenient times), the NRL could negotiate a far better TV deal and support this shift back to all suburban grounds. Admittedly, this shift would be costly in the short term, and the financial support may not be possible from the NRL. But as a previous poster said, there is nothing wrong with pipe dreams :P Even just in moderation, I think the fans deserve to see some effort being made to respond to their demands. Even if it was just a few games more at Campbelltown every year it will at least symbolically express the fact that the NRL is listening to the needs of its supporters. Its promising to see Todd Greenberg is looking into maybe hosting 2 games a year in future at Belmore, and it will be a huge releif to see the Big Red V back at Kogarah this year. All improvements on last year!
Brett McKay
Expert
Just a quick question Tommy, as a lot of what you say is very valid, and certainly worthy of discussion. Would a club be betraying its fans more by accepting "big, flashy cheques" from stadiums to boost club coffers, or by rejecting them (and other 'flashy" corporate deals) and disappearing by natural (ie. financial) attrition?
Col the Bear
Guest
I figured that Skull..The Norths boys trained down at Redfern Oval today with the Souths guys..nice set up down there, I really hope that one day the Bunnies get the approval to build another stand on the other side and turn it into a 'boutique' NRL ground...nice bloke that Danny Irvine, coach of the U/20s played for the Bears back in 2007 the year when Peach looked pretty good in Red and Black, and the year we lost the grandfinal with 8 secs to go...maybe we'll see Wesser in the Red and Black this year also...
Skull
Guest
Just joshing with you Col, seriously would live to see the bears back.
John Ryan
Roar Pro
LAS sinking ship CRAP
Col the Bear
Guest
The NRL control the u/20s and the top grade ..and the NSWRL run the NSW cup,Bundy red cup, and the U/18s and the U/16s..I don't think you'll be seeing 3 top grades of footy on the same oval and on the same day in the near future.(ie NRL:NSW CUP and TOYOTA CUP).The NSW Cup is a great tight comp, but you wouldn't know about it, as it doesn't get promoted well enough, hopefully that may change this season...Hey it's round 1 and the Bears are already on top of the ladder Skull, and we didn't kick a ball..once again the Bears get a bye round 1.
Col the Bear
Guest
as I posted elsewhere today..see what David Gallop has said in the sun weekly in the central Coast press yesterday..
Col the Bear
Guest
Hey easy up on the old ,,Skull..
Skull
Guest
Poor old Col and his drop bears. Why would we want Norths back to battle for the wooden spoon every year? Tommy I do agree with your sentiments after all I spent many a Sunday arvo on the hill at Leichhardt (before Blocker & the boys) and they were great days when you could watch all 3 grades for about $1 admission fee (cant reember exactly) but time stands still for no man and unfortunately since 1998 TV calls the shots now and thus for evermore. However its good to see more teams such as Saints moving back to their grass roots.
onside
Guest
Tommy Smith For goodness sake mate ,lets have pipedreams.Lets remember the good old days.This site allows us talk in a vaccuum.No one hears us.So its nice to hear somebodys dreams.Its not a waste of time,its therapeutic, swapping notes and having a little rant. Mr Gallop is between a rock and a hard place. Newslimited and the ARL.Caught offguard I can imagine him saying,"if it wasn't for Newslimited and the ARL board it would be a good job."
Tommy Smith
Roar Rookie
Sarcasm noted. I agree Gallop has always known what supporters have been demanding...this is no scoop. What I'm arguing is that it might be these unique economic circumstances that prompt him to actually make changes, as now more than ever the NRL needs to boost the ailing appeal of the code.
Col the Bear
Guest
What, Manly arrogant?? no I don't believe it..you mean to say it's taken the NRL a decade to see this...Well you know what we want David, do we have to keep spelling it out.. CCBs... :-)
oikee
Guest
Being brought up in Sydney one might think that way. Living in queensland i dont really think it matters. Friday night at the footie is good, sunday arvo at the footie is equally as good, so maybe sharing times as they do is the way to go. I noticed last year they had the tigers game during the day and got a full house. If this works for them at home then all the club has to do is sedule home games around this time. I love nothing better than friday night games. Even at that big ground which seems deserted at times i still love watching those games. And if i was a supporter i would be happy to turn up knowing i would get a good seat. But having said this, yes you are right, we need better times for teams who draw crowds at that time. Give the night games to teams who like to play night games.The away team will have to play that time so wont miss out on playing at night or day.
Tommy Smith
Roar Rookie
Granted, my argument is a bit of a pipe dream - it seems likely that the NRL's decisions will remain dictated to by the broadcasters because of the huge News Corp stake in the NRL itself (a shareholding upon which the NRL is reliant). However, the wishes of News Corp (i.e. inconvenient night time fixtures) diminish the appeal of the code and therefore diminish the quality of the product that News has a vested corporate interest in. What I am calling for is a return to several of the values that make people love League - basically, convenient daytime fixtures in suburban grounds - despite their conflict with the current wishes of News, and their broadcasters. Essentially, this article is a critique of the short sightedness of the NRL's compliance to News, and the demands of News itself, because it was killing the product. The resulting heightened appeal surely makes League in general, including League on TV, more attractive to the broadcasters. I think this is supported by the latest TV deals of the AFL and NRL respectively. NRL gets bigger ratings on TV, but AFL gets more bums on seats. Who got the bigger deal? The AFL. A more appealing NRL - one staged in suburban grounds in daytime hours - shoulds concurrently boost TV numbers, and hence increase the amount the broadcasters are willing to pay for the rights (there is a whole other story regarding the conflict of interest between an NRL half controlled by News negotiating a TV contract with the News-controlled broadcasters). But, granted, News is here to stay. But if they want people to buy their newspapers and watch games on TV, they need to make the product more attractive by comprimising some of their current demands which are alienating supporters.
Central North
Guest
It's all well and good Tommy, I'd love a return to the days where I watched the Steelers at Wollongong Showground on a Sunday arvo then caught the odd away game - whenever the hapless Steelers were deemed worthy enough to get on TV - which was usually on the ABC of a Saturday afternoon. Here's where you lost it for mine: "I, and I suspect most Rugby League fans, couldn’t care less if the footy was only broadcast on the ABC..." More bums on seats is a noble idea - but all the bums in the world aren't going to replace TV dollars. And in a time of global recession, you'd be cutting off your nose to spite your face by turning down ANY form of funding. So where's the middle ground?
sportsfanslife.com
Roar Guru
Great insight Tommy, I even asked myself the question of why Rugby League appeals to me, and the answer was rather long winded, but it all began with Sunday afternoons on the hill at Lidcombe Oval, and later at Campbelltown Stadium, watching the Magpies. Thanks for a great read....Cheers
LeftArmSpinner
Roar Guru
He should be doing this, and to an extent, he is, but he is simply a pumped up spokesman, not a decisionmaker. He ship is sinking. I thought that the NRL acted well once the facts became known, at least on the Stewart front. However, the Watmough issue is more clear cut and has gone unheeded.