Tim Moltzen attacks during the NRL Round 24. AAP Image/Action Photographics/Grant Trouville
The leadership of rugby league is finally expected to be taken over by the long-awaited Independent Commission. These eight commissioners will be immediately faced with some huge issues currently facing the game.
Firstly, the much-talked about television deal that will be by far and away the biggest in the game’s history.
As fans, obviously we’re all hoping and expecting the biggest deal possible so the rugby league rivers can again run with gold.
The next issue facing the game, which is being driven by the media and a number of franchises trying to make an early splash, is that big ‘E’ word – expansion.
A few years ago when the Titans were making their push into the NRL, there were only three options seriously being considered. The Gold Coast, with its large and growing population and the (at the time) empty sporting market that existed there, was really the only way to go.
This time around there’s a heap of possible expansion areas being thrown around with no clear favourite emerging. Making it even harder to predict is that we’re still in the dark as to how many (if any) teams will be granted entry into an expanded competition.
As one of the hot topics in the game at the moment with so many possible areas to expand into, the elephant in the room when expansion is talked about is relocation. As a diehard Cronulla Sharks fan it’s a likely reality that sends shivers down my spine.
However, with a seriously cluttered Sydney market in which many teams are struggling to survive, it’s starting to become a matter of when, not if.
As the capital of the rugby league world, the game is hardly prospering in Sydney. I’ve sat with another 5999(ish) people in the Shire watching the Sharks play the Titans. Bulldogs and Rabbitohs home games at ANZ look terrible and it’s a similar situation for the Roosters at the SFS. With the Panthers having an ordinary year, crowds at the foot of the mountain have been poor there too.
However, while crowds look good cosmetically and are one important aspect of cash flow, they aren’t the be all and end all. But when you look further than just attendances, unfortunately the Sydney rugby league landscape paints an even poorer picture.
The Sea Eagles weren’t able to bask in the glory of winning the NRL grand final, with news that the club is posting a loss of a million dollars.
This comes from a team that’s been strong for a number of years now, finished the 2011 regular season in second place and geographically holds a monopoly north of the harbour. This is a common story across the clubs in Sydney, with many of them bleeding money.
All of this boils down to the fact that within the one city there are nine clubs competing for the ‘hearts and minds’ of the public. They also need to compete for the corporate dollar available in Sydney while also sucking on the NRL ‘teat’. This is an unsustainable situation.
The new commission now has the chance to transform the world’s premier rugby league competition from a suburban Sydney backyard league into a truly national and professional league involving clubs that can survive on their own two feet (which must be the goal of all professional sporting leagues across the globe).
While recognising something has to be done to the cluttered Sydney market, there are huge challenges that come with changing the landscape.
In 1999, when clubs were faced with the ‘merge or face the consequences’ ultimatum, the North Sydney Bears joined up with Manly to form the Northern Eagles. A tough pill to swallow for both clubs as prior to this the teams had been bitter rivals.
After the 2002 season the club ceased playing regular games in Gosford and changed their name back to the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, a move that effectively isolated Bears fans.
For those in the Shire, if the Sharks relocated or were dropped from the competition all together, geographically the closest option for fans is the Dragons. A team we have been brought up to loathe. The league is kidding itself if they believe Sharks fans will filter off into other NRL teams that made the cut.
I would imagine it would be the same if any other Sydney based club was to be dropped or relocated. Just as Bears fans have been forgotten about by the NRL, continuing to tinker with the Sydney landscape has the potential to isolate even more fans.
Another thing that makes the process of deciding which club is dropped or moved unfair is that all Sydney clubs have experienced their highs and lows over history. The league’s leaders are making a decision based on a snapshot of the current situation.
Sure, at the end of the day that’s all they can really do, but is it fair on the clubs? Not so long ago things were in a much better state down in the Shire. With the $300 million development on club land close to being signed off on, the coffers will be filled once more which will see the sharks as one of the top Sydney teams again.
As the weakest team in Sydney right now, it wouldn’t be fair on the club if a decision were made today to send them to Perth or drop them from the NRL.
With the cluttered Sydney market in an unsustainable state long term and the potential to do damage if the Sydney landscape is altered, we’re left with a catch 22. Something has to change but history has shown us that certain strategies have come with negative side effects.
My suggestion for this problem we’re faced with is as follows:
Drop the nine Sydney based clubs out of the NRL and start again. Yes something has to change and this is the only fair way to go forward without isolating large chunks of the league public in Sydney. A very controversial move but stay with me.
Start two new franchises in Sydney, one in the east playing out of the SFS and one in the west playing out of ANZ. As much as it hurts to admit it, the Broncos are the benchmark for not just our League but professional sporting leagues across this country.
They’re the strongest sporting brand in Australia and have average crowds in excess of 30,000. The simple reason for this is Brisbane is a one team town for rugby league. Brisbane has a population of two million people and being the only team in this sized market helps it operate very successfully.
With Sydney’s population of four million people we should divide the city into east and west and build up these two new franchises. The Broncos are the model that clubs should aim for. With nine teams competing in the Sydney market, not one of these clubs could ever hope to reach the level that Brisbane operates on (in business terms).
When creating these two new franchises, ensure that the clubs in Sydney’s east (Dragons, Sharks, Rabbitohs, Roosters, Manly) are involved in establishing the team playing out of the SFS. Do the same with the current club’s in the west (Tigers, Bulldogs, Eels, Panthers) for the team playing out of ANZ.
It would be very important for the old clubs to be involved to create this link with the new franchises so fans remain engaged and the spirit of their old club lives on in the new one.
Then with the nine Sydney clubs, create a league under the NRL that operates on the same level as the Q-Cup so these clubs can live on after no longer existing in the national league. These clubs can also feed the new franchises that they are linked up with which will continue to strengthen the bond between the nine old clubs and the two new ones.
I know a lot of criticism will come from the traditionalists. Some of the great league clubs are these suburban Sydney teams, but in today’s professional sporting environment and for the long term sustainability of the league, there is no place for these sort of teams in the competition.
I fully respect the tradition of not just the Sharks but all these teams, and it’s why I have proposed creating a strong second tier for these clubs to operate in. In the Q-Cup, clubs such as the Redcliffe Dolphins and the Ipswich Jets are steeped in tradition and have very proud histories while effectively operating outside the national comp. Under this proposal the spirit of these nine clubs lives on in the new teams they are aligned and they can continue to operate in their local league.
If this is all done and promoted well, there is no reason for fans to feel isolated. The clubs live on in a new name and colours, but the system favours no one particular team so no fan can feel isolated. We can actually get back the disconnected fans in Sydney’s north under this structure.
The team in the west could catch the fans of the four clubs in that area and potentially get crowds of around 50,000 at ANZ. Hardly the cavernous feel during a Rabbitohs game. In the east at the SFS, we could go close to selling out each home game.
Obviously the draw could be structured to ensure that one of the teams is playing in Sydney on any given weekend to truly maximise attendances. And imagine the derby game!
So effectively cutting seven spots from the NRL creates a nine-team league – definitely not enough. I would have a 12 team league with teams from Perth, Gosford and Wollongong. The Central Coast is far enough away from Sydney to avoid the clutter that these decisions have been based on in the first place.
There’s a big enough population (that’s growing) to support an NRL team and a great stadium that was built in the first place to attract a team for their residence that have been crying out for their own club for years. A team here can also serve to cater for the people in Sydney’s northern reaches who may be geographically closer to Bluetongue than the SFS.
This entire situation is mirrored to the south of Sydney which is why I’ve included a team from the Gong. A large enough town in itself while being located far enough away from the big smoke to justify their own team playing exclusively out of WIN Stadium.
Finally, I’ve included Perth. Australia’s fourth largest city and we simply need a presence there. A lot has changed since the days of the Reds. The mining boom has dragged over a lot of people and corporate dollars from the east coast.
Besides that we must make more of an effort to grow our game nationally. AFL… enough said. While a move to Perth is justified, the NRL has to get on the front foot about moving into some markets where AFL is number one. With a great rectangular stadium ready to go and broadcasters looking at where the pins are on the map, Perth is a must for expansion.
With these changes, the new NRL would look like this:
North Queensland Cowboys
Brisbane Broncos
Gold Coast Cowboys
Newcastle Knights
Canberra Raiders
Auckland Warriors
Melbourne Storm
Perth (Reds or something fresher)
Sydney (East – name TBA)
Sydney (West – name TBA)
Wollongong/Illawarra (Steelers)
Gosford/Central Coast (Bears or something new)
Twelve teams would make for a great 22 round competition with each team playing 11 home games a year. This reduced format identifies 12 strong areas and means that each club gets a larger slice of the NRL funding pie to continue to grow the game in their regions and pay their players a salary that competes with other codes.
Reducing the amount of teams also magnifies the talent pool. I think at origin time we’re still looking a bit stretched, certainly stretched enough to question increasing the number of teams above 16.
Reducing the size of our national league by four would also strengthen the semi pro leagues such as Q-Cup and the league I proposed for NSW that would involve the nine existing Sydney clubs.
In the mid term we could look at expanding again to places such as Adelaide, Rockhampton and the Sunshine Coast. In the longer term expansion could occur into growing places such as Cairns and Coffs Harbour. What is key though is that any new teams need to be placed in areas that don’t already have an existing NRL club close by.
Obviously this proposal is a dramatic change from the status quo and I don’t expect to win too many friends out there who will agree with this sort of structure. I’m sure people will say that it’s easy for me to suggest such a change because my club is one of those on the chopping block.
But as a fan of the Sharks the one thing that’s bigger than my club is the game of rugby league and all that I want at the end of the day is my game to prosper and hold it’s own in this competitive sporting environment that leagues have to compete in these days. It’s time to come to terms with the fact that the situation in Sydney isn’t sustainable and is holding back the league.
What I’ve suggested is a solution that attempts to solve the clutter issue in Sydney while providing a real alternative for fans there to ensure the game doesn’t loose them all together.
At the end of the day, the NRL is trying to operate a business that generates money for the game and all of its entities. Under the current format this objective isn’t achievable (ie. self sufficient clubs).
The new leadership that we’re intrusting with the future of the game has the chance to make decisions that bring the game into the current millennium, ensure it operates to the best of it’s ability and carve out a path that creates an exciting future for rugby league.
I hope these eight commissioners pay the NRL the respect its due and start treating it like a business in order to create the sort of professional national competition that rugby league deserves in this country.
Fixing the Sydney problem while making strategic moves into new markets is the way forward and must be the Independent Commission’s priority.
dekker28
Guest
Looks like the model of Super League (circa 1994) rehashed.
UPL 10
Guest
There is a solution if you are open to having a look. The administration is well aware of it. It has been on paper for almost 20 years. They wont allow Rugby League players to test & trial it because they dont own the Intellectual Property & every time the creator of the rules gets close to having them tested, a sledge hammer comes down on the development officer wanting it to happen. It is called Universal Pro League. Played over 3 x 30min periods, 10 Players on the field, 5m defence, no markers, no scrums, no points scored from penalties & more.
Australian Rules
Guest
Oikee - you're losing the plot here mate: - The Broncos brand is somehow related to the Denver Broncos? (I won't even go there) - You're leveraging SOO crowds into the Broncos' brand? - "Just because people don't go to games doesn't mean they don't support" (yes they seem passionate from their armchairs) - If someone disagrees with your points you'll meet them on the streets with the banners and jerseys (hmmm) The fact is: the Broncos are the only NRL club in a city of over 2 million people yet cannot fill their own stadium each week. You blind parochial support for all things Queensland is slightly endearing, but other than that, you're comments are drivel.
Jimbo
Guest
All talk of expansion is moot, unless you get kids playing the game. Simple. If you don't get kids playing it, then the game will feel the effects in 10+ years time. AFL are focusing on Sydney. All talk of league clubs suffering/becoming defunct in the past was one thing. But it never had to contend with an aggressive AFL push, increasing recognition of soccer, & professinal rugby union. And I reckon the NRL realise this. Cull Sydney clubs (which have carried the sport for years), & you lose a huge factor of it's future.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
QGIRL Can't agree .the grassroots was healthy in 1995 ,when SL intervened.The result ,grassroots was hammered and numbers dropped substantially,fans both young and old disappeared from the scene for the likes of the Bears ,Souths and to a lesser degree the merged entities. When the Bears and souths were given the flick,who were the beneficiaries,not other NRL clubs,but the Tahs and the Swans. You say clubs replaced would only lose older fans,what happens to the younger fans who attend at this very moment.Lose them to other codes. When the sharks played the Roosters,on a sunny sunday afternonn ,with nearly 14,000 in attendance at Shark Park,thousands of young Shark supporters on hand. It is not a simple matter of the wave of a pen,or pins on boards,there are competitiors in Sydney just waiting for new registrations.The I.C. has to be very cogniscant of the fact. You must ensure the GC gets back to the 18-20,000 average and the Broncos should be around the 40,000 on a regular basis,else what you may do in sydney will prove neither here nor there.
Rob9
Guest
Yea good point. I guess the main thing is that the NRL can’t really afford to maintain the current situation for a decade or 2. It’s a real shame that the national competition that we now know as the NRL was formed out of the NSWRL and a ‘true’ national comp wasn’t formed in the late 80’s when the league started to spread beyond the suburbs of Sydney. That period of the in the history of the game presented the perfect opportunity to leave the state leagues as is and just build a truly professional national league to operate above the Q-Cup and NSWRL comps. I’ll admit that since RL has gone down the path it has it will be a harder sell than it would have been back then but what’s key is coming up with a model that has the vision of keeping all fans engaged in the game. IMO having the Sydney suburban clubs operating in a localised League like they did in the NSWRL prior to the late 80’s and creating two new Sydney teams that stand for a specific but larger area than the current do provides us with a model that can still capture all league fans in Sydney and around Australia. This is opposed to culling or relocating 5 or 6 teams to create a more sustainable number. I believe this isn’t fair to the clubs that would be dropped and such a move would isolate large chunks of Sydney’s League population. Moving forward would be hard because only so many people will relate to the St George Dragons compared to a team that is born out of and represents the entire eastern half of Sydney. The appointment of the new IC is another landmark occasion for the game that presents an opportunity for decisions to be made that secure a sustainable future for Rugby League national competition.
Queensland's game is rugby league
Guest
They 9 Sydney-based clubs are the problem because they're needed to a degree -- keeping fans in the game -- yet they're holding the game back. I think the best thing the NRL can do is focus on the grass roots game over the last decade or two, then look into culling half of the Sydney sides or replace them all with just 2 or 3 new teams. If the grassroots level is healthy then the game can afford to lose a few disgruntled older fans.
Queensland's game is rugby league
Guest
"That said, most people are not supporters of a code – they are supporters of a team. If their team is dies or is killed, some of them find something else to do with their Saturday afternoons." Are you saying Sydney doesn't have many rugby league fans, just team supporters? Sydney cannot be called the "world capital of rugby league" if it has very few rugby league supporters. Brisbane proved it is a rugby league city when it embraced the Broncos.
Rob9
Roar Guru
I think we're on thinking along the same lines here Charles. One aspect of my proposal is re-creating NSW's second tier the way I have suggested above so all of Sydney's traditional clubs can continue on outside of the top tier in the same way the Q-Cup clubs do. However, as well as carrying on their proud historys and building a stronger NSW second tier, the puropse of this is to develop a stronger national league that involves clubs that have a realistic goal generating money and being self sustainable. From one of your posts above it sounds as if you are keen to go back to the 80's with only state leagues operating? I'm all for strong state leagues involving all (NSW and QLD) traditional clubs but I believe we still need a more streamlined professional national league that involves the nations top players.
Charles
Guest
In other words what you proposing is what I proposed, a State Competition? As I have said all along you have to have a state or 2nd tier competition otherwise we cannot support growth!
Rob9
Roar Guru
hmmm looks like my original response has been lost in the mess with the fiddling around the roar has done with their site today. In a nut shell AB fan (if you didn't catch it before), the lack of interest in Super Rugby in NZ is a reasonably new problem. The Super Rugby format has been a success for over a decade and I think there are a number of factors that contribute to it's recent fall from grace across the ditch. There's some work to do but I've got no doubt that the concept isn't dead in the water there and it will once again rise to claim it's top spot within the NZ sporting landscape.
Rob9
Roar Guru
Charles, nobodies forcing them to amalgamate or perish. Far from it. Under this proposal, teams would build an association with one of the new Sydney clubs but continue on as their own seperate entity. As it is we have a 2nd tier in Rugby League, the Q-Cup and NSW Cup. It's recognised that Q-Cup is the stronger competition of the two and being the next best thing behind the NRL. IMO this is the case because the suburban league in NSW is what we know as our national competition. In Queensland there are currently 3 NRL clubs in 3 very distinct population centres, not the suburban structure that exists in NSW at the elite level. This proposal is all about pushing these suburban clubs in Sydney into a strong 2nd tier in NSW and creating a professional structure in NSW similar to the situation in the NRL in QLD. i.e. a number of teams in distinct population centres. The model is all about creating a streamline professional league with 12 teams and having 2 strong state based leagues underneath the elite level that feed this top league. I envisage that this proposal can actually strengthen these suburban clubs in Sydney. Operating outside of the national league means that their costs are dramatically deminished. To become further connected to the community I would imagine they could once again recieve backing from their respective leagues clubs as they would no longer be the money suckers that they currently are. They can play all of their home games at their suburban grounds and to build that link to their professional club they could use initiatives such as shuttling fans from their home ground and leagues club to the SFS/ANZ (depending on their location and who they are associated with) to watch the main event. This is far from doing away with tradition. It's happend in QLD 22 odd years ago and the NRL's most successful clubs (in terms of off field performance) come from there. As I said I believe such a proposal can strengthen the Sydney clubs' position and ensure their proud traditions live on while building new traditions at the national, elite level. The clubs I would have participating in this 2nd tier NSW league would be- In Sydney: Cronulla, St George, Easts, Souths, Manly, Newtown, Balmain, Wests, Norths, Parramatta, Penrith, Cantebury. Outside of Sydney: Newcastle, Gosford, Illawarra, Canberra and also other major regional centres such as Coffs Harbour, Tamworth, Wagga and Albury. As you can see such an idea brings back some of the great Sydney clubs of the past, un-merging clubs who had to previously merge in order for them to participate in a national league and also include some regional centres like the Q-Cup does to keep fans in these areas engaged with RL. This would provide NSW with an equally strong 2nd tier (to Q-Cup) and be the perfect competition for these historical clubs to operate in and carry on their proud traditions while feeding the elite clubs in the NRL.
Charles
Guest
Rugby League is like any other business that has had to toy with the idea to centralise or decentralise! However in Rugby League there is too much tradition and passion, to simply cut out teams, forcing them to amalgamate or perish! With sport, you have to create opportunities for children to participate, teach those skills and have the families involved too, which bring more crowds to the game! There is much more to consider in sport than just having customers buys an item from you in business. In creating a national competition before a state competition we are going to cut out the tradition when it is not necessary to do so. In the end, if we want growth, we will need a 2nd tier competition, so why put the horse before the cart and create anguish by forcing fans, not to enjoy seeing their beloved team playing! Those that propose these amalgamations for a national competition, first need to understand the consequences before any change are made! There is no doubt, pressure is on RL to support growth, and it is long overdue. It is one of the reasons why the clubs have trouble surviving financially! I cannot believe they have not had a blueprint in place to cater for growth! i think they have relied too much on TV rights instead of working on their product!
allblackfan
Guest
Not wanting to sound like a troll but I think the NZ Super rugby model offers a few clues about how the ``consolidate to expand'' theory may work for NRL fans. The five NZ Super rugby franchises are what you call ``super'' provinces, or regional entities formed by merging players from a handful of different provinces under the one regional body. The franchises can draw on players from the 14 elite provinces (and, in theory, the other 12 rural provinces as well) thanks to a draft and central contracting system operated by the NZRFU. Couple of problems with this. These sides cannot be identified with their major regional base (ie the Blues are based in Auckland but are not called the Auckland Blues) because of tribalism; a franchise's ``junior'' partners do NOT want to be associated with their traditional (domestic) big brother. This tribalism also extends to the fans. NZ crowds find it hard to relate to these regional franchises because they're not really a local team. AND because these regional teams are made-for-pay-TV entities. I suspect that soon we may see a crowdless game of Super rugby in NZ (like the Sheffield Shield!!) That's why the NPC (NZ's domestic rugby competition) has undergone a bit of a resurgence over the last couple of years. Crowds are flocking back to THEIR teams because they can identify with it (and also because more games are held during the day!) I say that if Sydney NRL clubs are to consolidate, players' contracts may need to be handled more centrally to ensure the talent stays in the competition.
Rob9
Roar Guru
Ian, can we define 'perfectly viable'? To me 9 clubs out of 9 suffering losses year in year out isn't exactly 'perfectly viable'. If 7 or 8 clubs were operating in the black then you could argue the situation in Sydney may be 'viable'. 9 clubs out of 9 covering costs with crowds averaging up over 20,000 is a 'perfectly viable' situation. The reality is far from this. This isn't a new problem the Sydney clubs have recently been struck down with either suggesting the financial issues aren't going anywhere unless some proactive changes are made.
Rob9
Roar Guru
Ads I think most (all) people who were fans of the Gold Coast Gianst, Chargers and Seagulls are now fans of the Titans. I don't believe that the Gold Coast has lost any fans over the years, far from it. A perfect example of a town with a strong RL history that has hoped from club to club and now has finally seemed to settle on a model that actually works. With a good business plan and strong backing there is no reason two new clubs based in the east and west of metropolitian Sydney can't gain the same scale of support that the Titans have experienced since they entered the league. I'm all for maintaing tradition which is why I've suggested the Sydney clubs become involved in a strong state comp. to operate underneath the national league. Q-Cup teams, with their proud history have managed to do just this while the Broncos have played in the NRL. The NATIONAL Rugby League is supposed to operate as Australia's professional national league. It's current structure lends itself to the old NSWRL, not a model for the future.
oikee
Guest
I mentioned earlier we need to start progressing, and this day and age is a new dawn, so a relocation of a Sydney team to Brisbane would probably be embraced. As for a derby, look, 2 Brisbane teams would absolutely rock this cities world, yes we would still embrace the North Queensland and Gold Coast derbies, but having a second Brisbane team adds another 3 derbies to the Queensland games. 3 Extra derbies. that is big business. The Brisbane Sharks would be a good fit. Then you could include the Perth Western Reds as well and bring back the bears. That would be 18 workable teams.
oikee
Guest
Fair enough, but outside Collingwood, other AFL teams are even less invisable, where-as the Broncos have a waiting list for sponsers. One would only have to drop the salary cap to sort the men from the boys. Put it this way, i know the Broncos sponsers are WOW, NRMA, not sure of others, as for Collingwoods, mate do i buy their brands, i have no idea of why these sponsers even bother, i would go as far to say, they are wasting money, hand over fist if this the case. I would be inclined to intice some of these sponsers to invest in the next Brisbane league team, get them more coverage here and abroad. , That is just me with my business head on. Even Suzuki with Billy Slater gets more recognition.
go warriors
Guest
Oikee doesn't the Gold Coast Titans give you the derby that you are after. I dont know Queensland very well but I would have thought two teams within two hours from each other would create a really good rivalry. I know Brisbane could easily support another team but wouldnt it be better to introduce a new team in a city that does not currently have a team eg perth, adelaide, PNG, wellington, christchurch.
Rob9
Roar Guru
NF Completly agree it will take a strong case to convince fans to remain engaged with with RL. I think the argument that this is the way forward to create a league that involves financially viable clubs is a hell of a case to go into bat with considering the state of the clubs in Sydney. Like all other Sydney RL fans, it involves their club not competing in the national competition any longer, but they are provided with a new club that represents them geographically that they can build an association with. Just in the same way that Sydney soccer fans had to do 6 years ago with Sydney FC. Fans aren't forced to build that an impossible association with another existing Sydney club that they previously loathed for many years. There's no reason it can't work. I think fans were disillusioned last time there was a big shake up in Rugby League because it was effectively based around a power struggle. This shake up on the other hand is about creating a new professional environment for the game we love to thrive under. No evil (Murdoch) intentions.