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Being a mad Aussie Rules fan, I’ve been enthralled by the latest big change to our game: its move into new and untapped areas. I’ve been scratching my head over the new questions emerging;
Can Karmicheal Hunt actually play? Is GWS sustainable? Can Gold Coast really win a premiership in five years?
But amongst all of these questions and issues that keep me up at night, one seems to hang heavy over them all.
It’s not so much a White Elephant, as we all readily discuss it. It’s more like an event in the planning, the date and influence of which is up to speculation.
I’m talking about what effect the expansion will have on the NRL.
For those outside of the AFL bubbles of Adelaide, Perth and Melbourne, I should explain that there is a real sense of doom surrounding the NRL.
No matter how many times our players or clubs get caught up in controversy, league’s failures always seem to rate higher.
We might not discuss them as often, but there is an underlying understanding that every indiscretion, every poor crowd attendance, every struggling club is another sign of impending doom for the ‘No Neck Box Heads’ up north.
Let’s face it, we’re doing well, and the epitome of this wealth is our expansion.
England didn’t colonize half the world because it was struggling; Rome didn’t rule the known world simply because it was there. And the AFL has been able to take the bold step into league heartlands knowing simply that they, as the supposed strongest code, have no reason to fear the locals.
The only way for the NRL to exude strength back at its expansionist neighbour is to match like-for-like.
When the bids for expansion are looked at, David Gallop and his men must look hard at how best to show the AFL that it’s not dealing with a backward local inhabitance, but are defiant and proud people willing to fight back.
The two places that need to be looked at with special interest are:
1. Perth, for its growing population, wealth and strong rugby and league following. Strike back in the heartland.
2. South East Queensland. The NRL need to show the AFL that it is not welcome and a second team would hurt new investment, The Suns, in a big way.
The NRL thus far have been brave in the face of AFL aggression, but now it’s time to hit back and hard.
Show the AFL it’s not welcome in outh East Queensland, and by reviving the Western Reds, show that its own backyard is far from secure.
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