Whether you love him or loathe him, Australian rugby league fans have got him for another four years. Within the last fortnight David Gallop has been reappointed NRL CEO by the Independent Commission for another four years.
In my humble opinion, he’s been exactly what the league has needed since he first got the job 10 years ago. Considering the state the game was in when he took over the reins, he’s done an outstanding job.
He brought rugby league back from the brink, helped it to find it’s identity in the professional era and has begun to grow the game in the right direction, albeit at a very slow and controlled pace.
Moving into 2012, (a year that the much hyped Independent Commission is set to come online and the NRL rivers should be flowing with gold after the negotiation of a record TV deal) the game is at the dawn of a new and exciting period.
Rugby league will be able to move ahead bravely and boldly with full faith in its product. A far cry from the cautious and guarded initiatives that the games administrators have employed to gradually grow the NRL over the last decade.
With this in mind, one must wonder if Gallop is the right man to lead the game into this new era. After signing on for the next four years Gallop is quoted as saying, “we are entering a new period of opportunity that I am excited to be part of”.
This gives me hope that David is ready to turn over a new leaf in his managerial style and make some big and exciting decisions to drive the game ahead, while still exercising his signature decision making approach of controlled growth.
Considering the large amounts of money that are set to flow into the game in the coming years, our CEO must create a clear and defined vision of where he wants to take the game, taking a similar approach to his AFL counterpart.
What has to override this is the desire to make the NRL better for the fans. There is one simple way that this can be achieved that has a flow on effect to many different aspects that all contribute to making a stronger product for the fans.
Very simply, more fans means more money coming into the game from sponsors, the media and from the fans themselves. More money means a better product.
Gallop has been at the helm during a period when some of the games biggest stars turned their back on the NRL in favour of Rugby, Super League and most recently the AFL. This cannot continue to happen.
There’s one simple answer to this problem and its money. With the salary cap expected to increase to anywhere between six and eight million dollars in the coming years, things are being done to ensure the player drain is a thing of the past.
However, the NRL must maintain this position as one of Australian sports best payers to keep its biggest and most talented stars. rugby league fans in this country deserve to see the best rugby league players in the world playing in the toughest competition in the world week in week out.
Paying players accordingly will ensure that the playing talent in the NRL is as strong as it can be and some of the games biggest draw cards remain where they belong.
More money (as a result of more fans) in the game can also create a better viewing spectacle for the fans on so many different levels. Obviously ensuring that the playing talent is at maximum strength and spread across the league helps with this too. As well as this there is the potential for developing better venues for fans to go and watch games from.
More fans in general means more fans actually going to games which creates a better viewing experience for spectators at the game as well as those watching on TV at home.
A stronger following also ensures the game will have better media coverage. Three free to air games per week (only one of which is live) isn’t exactly a strong position in the media for rugby league to exist from.
All of these factors combine to create a stronger product for those new fans entering the game as well as those of us who are already invested but always wanting more. But the question remains, how does David Gallop do his job of capturing the hearts and minds of as many people as possible to build a better league?
I believe there are two strategies he can use to take full advantage of the wave of good fortune that the NRL is set to ride.
The first and most publicised is expansion. In the past I have put forward and argued with many of you over the merits of dropping the Sydney NRL clubs into a second tier and beginning again at the elite level in that area.
I’ve proposed a streamlined 12 team competition that would include new teams from Perth and Gosford as well as a full time team in Wollongong and two new sides in Sydney.
I still believe this format would be the optimum model for the game to take on to be as efficient, professional and economically stable/prosperous as possible.
The problem is that realistically I don’t believe any current or future CEO possesses the manhood to put these Sydney clubs in a second tier where they should belong and create a competition structure at the elite level that is more up with the times.
For this reason, we have to come to terms with the fact that the game will have to grow around the Sydney suburban competition structure that it was born out of in this country. As this is the case, I believe that all Sydney clubs need to remain in their current form. Dropping one or some will just isolate fans (case in point- North Sydney) and the NRL must work out how to grow while continuing to prop up these clubs.
It won’t allow the game to be as economically prosperous as the model I’ve suggested, but the extra money flowing into the game should ensure these clubs can continue operating in the NRL.
So now that we’re keeping the 16 teams as is, what other parts of the map does DG need to put a tack into? While capturing the hearts and minds of as many people as possible is vital for the games growth, it isn’t as simple as putting a team where people are and obviously a number of different factors need to be weighed up.
As I’ve suggested above, Perth, Gosford and a full time team in Illawarra are my first three choices for the locations of the next NRL teams.
Perth’s merits have been argued on this site and others so I won’t go into much detail. A quick summary includes the fact that Perth is our fourth largest city, booming and has a large population of NSW, Queensland and New Zealand expats.
The demographics say it all but what’s also important is that for the game to grow substantially, it must make moves into uncharted territory and the west coast represents a great opportunity for rugby league.
Gosford’s merits have also been extensively argued in other posts. Put simply, it’s a rugby league heartland, located between Sydney and Newcastle in an area that isn’t represented by an NRL team.
There’s currently a large population there and it’s going to continue to grow as more and more people move north from Sydney and other parts of the country. The stadium’s there ready to go and they absolutely deserve a shot after being neglected for so long.
I also believe that Wollongong deserves a full time NRL team just as much as these two areas. The argument for this takes on a similar form as the argument for a team on the Central Coast.
Wollongong’s current representation in the NRL is an involvement in a team that doesn’t use their traditional strip or logo but to keep locals engaged in the sport they’re thrown a few Dragon’s home games each year. This isn’t good enough for a city the size of the ‘Gong.
Just like Gosford, it’s growing at fast pace as affordability in Sydney becomes an increasingly problematic issue. Illawarra is also one of rugby league’s greatest heartlands and the region deserves far greater representation than the Dragons merger offers.
Take the Illawarra out of the Dragons and the next closest team is in the Shire which is an hour away from Wollongong. I propose a de-merger of the Steelers and the Dragons with the two teams going back to the future with one playing explicitly out of WIN and the other out of Kogarah.
If these teams were to be admitted it would create a 19 team competition which is a bit of a messy number. To bring it up to a neat 20 I would reluctantly bring in a second Brisbane team. I say reluctantly because although I believe a second team can be a success in Brisbane, it will come at a cost to an existing NRL club (the Broncos).
However, the Broncos are in the best position of all NRL clubs to absorb any such cost and over time a strong rivalry can be built between themselves and a new club that has the potential to make rugby league even stronger in the greater Brisbane area.
What also has to happen with a second team in Brisbane is the model that the ‘Bombers’ are putting up has to be put on the scrap heap (including the name). If a second Brisbane team were to enter the league it would have to provide a point of difference to the Broncos. Currently the Broncos are based and play out of a venue on the north side of Brisbane.
I believe the point of difference should be establishing a team on the south side of the river. This could involve renovating QEII or building a boutique 30-40,000 seat venue close to a large commercial centre on the south side. With the Roar playing out of a venue that is far too big for them, there could be a case for building such a stadium. By tapping into the north/south divide that already exists in Brisbane, there is the potential for developing a great rugby league rivalry in the town.
This would create a 20 team competition. It would be up to the powers that be as to whether they bring these teams in all at once, two at a time or at a steady flow. Regardless, this is where I believe the NRL should be heading. Past this, cities such as Adelaide, the Sunshine Coast and Rockhampton are the next places they should be looking at but this 20 team model would suffice for the next 5 to 10 years.
Having decided what areas to expand to in the short term, the next aspect that needs to be looked at is creating an exciting competition structure that meets the needs of players and fans.
With these 20 teams I would structure a league that involves 5 pools of 4 teams. The competition draw would involve teams playing each team once then the 3 teams in their pool a second time.
This would create a 22 round season with 11 home games. You could still include a bye for each team during the Origin period to create a regular season length of 23 weeks. A slightly shorter season is one issue that I think the NRL must come to terms with to address player burnout while continuing to develop the representative scene.
The five pools I would have would be structured like this;
A Queensland pool that involves the Broncos, Brisbane 2, NQ and the Gold Coast.
A Western Sydney pool involving Parramatta, West Tigers, Canterbury and Penrith.
An East Sydney pool involving Cronulla, St George, Souths and Easts.
A North/Coastal New South Wales pool involving Manly, CC, Newcastle and Illawarra.
And finally a Southern pool involving Perth, Canberra, Melbourne and NZ.
These pools would create a more meaningful competition that involves extra games against regional rivals, thus generating more ‘blockbuster’ games that have the potential of attracting strong crowds/viewers and of course more money for the game.
At the end of the regular season the final series would involve the top team from the top 4 pools and then the next 4 highest ranked teams after that regardless of what pool they are in. This structure would help build on the rivalry between the teams in each pool as there would be an emphasis on finishing first in the pool to have a 4 in 5 chance of guaranteeing a spot in the finals.
This is my vision for the NRL given the reality that there will never be any big shake up of the structure of the game in Sydney. Given that you’re reading this particular rugby league article, I’m sure you have your own vision that could be similar or nothing like what I have proposed here.
For the benefit of the game moving forward and becoming an even better product, I just hope and pray that the only guy who really matters in all of this has his vision that he is ready to unleash upon all of us and drive the game to new heights in this country.
Charles
Guest
From a business point of view, companies like McDonald's spend a lot of time doing their homework before they open up a store. They research the market thoroughly and ensure there is plenty of room between stores, to allow growth. The same criteria should be done with Rugby League, but the problem is, it is a sport, and are all vying for the one trophy It is also done on a National level, limiting the amount of teams that can participate From a business point of view, you would want to maximise potential for growth! In that case you would prefer 20 teams in each state rather than 20 teams nationally. Then on top of that you would still have room to add another 20 teams for a National Competition and show the elite in the sport This would mean that a State and a National competition is the best method, to maximise growth! As we have a National competition now and not enough for a state competiton in each state, this would be difficult to implement Imagine having ten teams as an example, spring up in the next five years, which is so easy to do All we need to do is ensure the competitions are in place that accomadate growth, and enhances the product! The question I ask is that with so many potential teams, that meet the criteria, are knocking at the door wanting to particpate in the greatest game of all, why would we want to stifle growth. Every team that is in an area of their own, is promoting the game and allowing participation at grass roots. I feel shock and horror when people say we must cut down the Sydney teams, especially as they have over 100 years of tradition and promotion of the game. All that work and we want to discard them as insignificant. Tell that to an advertising expert and they will tell you that you are taking away their best weapon, for advertising. So many personalities and stories to tell from those teams, an archive of material It is about time the greatest game of all, went to its potential, by going Local, State, National and International
Rob9
Guest
I agree with a few of the things you say charles. Firstly you're dead right, the IC needs to decide if it wants to continue on with the structure of the current national competition that was born out of the NSWRL in the 80's. Or do they drop the Sydney suburban clubs back into a state format and start again in Sydney at the elite national level. This will require a lot of work but placing teams in large population centres with more than a street corner between each (as is the current situation in Sydney) has the potential to generate a significantly greater amount of revenue for the game while not being burdened with having to prop up the suburban clubs. Very tough call for them to make cause if they decide to maintain the current structure they must ensure the survival of ALL Sydney clubs so not one single fan is isolated. I'd suggest they'll decide to maintain the current framework of the competition which wont be the end of the world, it just wont be the most efficient model. The Sydney clubs can still move towards all making a profit but they need to be supported by the IC to ensure they're playing in competition that's structured in a way that atracts the most amount of fans. My idea with this is they should be aiming for a 20 team comp (involving the teams ive suggested above) within the next 5 or 6 years. Ten years after that, start to introduce the next 4 which should definately include Adelaide, the Sunshine Coast, Rockhampton and the 4th spot probably going to Coffs Harbour. After then it's too hard to predict when the next round of expansion should occur but Cairns and country NSW with Albury, Wagga and Tamworth should be on the cards. This would create a 28 team league. That's still not too many for one tier and in my opinion we'll never need or should have numerous divisions that use a promotion/relegation system. All of the major leagues in America involve 30 plus teams and like them we're not interested in teams underneath the top tier. We want to see all of our teams operating on the one equal playing field with our team having a chance of being there on that one big last day of the season. There should be some interesting months ahead and completly agree there's a lot of pressure on them to get it right!
Charles
Guest
1st of all Rugby League needs a blue print of where they want to go for now and the future, nationally and internationally Next they need to decide if they want a State and National Competition or just a National Competition If they only do a National Competition, to what size is feasible and who do they let in! If they only let in the selected few, say 20 teams for example, does that mean no other team can get in the competition? What happens when Australia population grows? Would that mean some of the the Sydney based clubs will perish? In any business you want growth and the Super League did the opposite, by cutting out teams If they have a selected amount of teams they will not nuture growth They probably have two possible choices; Have a State and National Competition Have a National Competition with a first and second or even a third tier if needed, then relegation based on performanace Whatever happens there will a lot of pressure for this new commision to get it right and it is not an easy task
clipper
Guest
Beowulf, if this was the case, they can't have been solid league fans. A lot of the northern suburbs has been Rugby territory and there is a lot of Aussie Rules support. This is different from the west and south, which if they lost a team would still be league fans. When Fitzroy and South Melbourne left the AFL, did their fans suddenly become league, football or Rugby fans?
Renegade
Guest
For me, the goal for our competition in 10,15 or 20 years time would be a 20 team comp which includes the existing 16 clubs and 4 new teams being Perth, Adelaide, 2nd Brisbane and 2nd NZ. The perfect scenario would be to also see the Central Coast represented as one of the 20 teams however i think for that to happen either a sydney team would have to die or relocate. This would be the ideal NRL and what hopefully the IC are aiming for.
Rob9
Roar Guru
Appreciate your time reading Renegade and I accept your vote. I’ll concede that under this conference system (just as with all conference systems that play into a finals series), there is a chance that the top 8 may not consist of the best 8 teams in the comp. Absolute worst case scenario under this system is that the 13th strongest team gets a finals berth. But regardless the strongest 5 will always be there and more often than not these things work themselves out (as in the best 8-10 will/should get there). I’ve looked at it over the past 4 years of finals series (obviously not including the 4 teams I’ve added) and not a lot would have changed. You could also argue that under the current system where everyone plays everyone once and second fixtures against 9 of the 15 other teams isn’t fair. The only truly fair way is if everyone plays each other twice before locking in the top 8. The finals system is only part of the proposal. The key points of the idea is bringing in 4 new teams and creating a competition structure where there are more local derbies that the Rugby League loving public want to see (as the crowd figures suggest). People don’t want to see Parramatta vs the Cowboys at Parramatta stadium just 6 or 7 weeks after the teams met at Dairy Farmers. At the end of the regular season you could have another finals system all together if you wish. This just made the most sense to me because it increases the meaning and value of the conferences (while taking away home and away games in the regular season between clubs with no real rivalry) and as a result makes those derby games even bigger and better… while at the same time getting rid of the rubbish McIntyre system which I’m not a fan of one iota.
tony
Guest
Bring back the mighty Illawarra Steelers!
Rob9
Roar Guru
Big Marn, WIN has touch ups here and there and regardless it still holds 20,000, just as many as Kogarah. It’s a very lopsided relationship the Dragons/Steelers merger and the side that’s getting shtoocked by it are in a good position to do something about it considering the market they’re in. I still have no doubts that if a demerger were to occur the St George supporter base and brand would see them in a far better position than they were in when the merger took place and not to mention in a better position than most of the current Sydney clubs today.
Big_Marn2000
Roar Pro
Speaking as a St George Illawarra supporter, I know for a fact that this is not the case. The only reason in recent years that there has not been an even split in home games for the Dragons (6 at Kogarah and 6 at Wollongong) is because one of those stadiums is under construction. Add to that the fact that the Dragons train 100% of the time in Wollongong. Look, we can argue about whether or not the Illawarra is adequately represented in the NRL till the cows come home. The bottom line is that neither St George or Illawarra can survive on their own. They need each other, so this merger is here to stay. Over a decade of hard work has been put into making St George Illawarra a success. It would be stupid and pointless to split them up now.
Renegade
Guest
Sorry Rob9, I admit i must have got confused along the way with other peoples comments regarding the 2-tier system and your lengthy post. With that said i'll give you credit for thinking outside the square however if i was one who had to vote on this concept it would still get a NO from me. Conferences don't work for example....what if the 8 best teams in the comp were in 2 of the pools, strong teams with genuine title hopes would miss out on the finals and you would have a weak team with a record that has more losses than wins from a weak conference make the finals instead. So yeah, what your saying makes sense but it's still not a great idea.
Rob9
Roar Guru
I’m afraid it is the case big marn. How many players are born and bred Melbournians playing for Melbourne or any other team in the comp for that matter? Melbourne having a team that Melbournians can get behind means that Melbourne is adequately represented at the national elite level. This isn’t about what corner of the country the players come from. If anything the number of players coming out of the South Coast adds weight behind the claim for a fulltime team from Illawarra. I can’t remember more than 5 games a season being played at WIN. That’s not good enough for the countries 9th largest city that is as Rugby League mad as they come.
Rob9
Roar Guru
Q-Cup is a strong and successful second tier that adds support to the NRL.
Thom
Guest
We already have second tier competitions... I can't really comment on the NSW equivalent, but the Intrust Super Cup (Q-Cup) is an excellent competition, which is not supported. For the standard of play I think the following is disgraceful. I blame the QRL for this. Promotion/relegation is not relevant in this country historically, and it is not a culture that can be introduced in my opinion. It is really surprising to me how many people here want more teams. No one seems to be happy with the current competition. The NRL is an extremely even competition... Why mess with that? I think we should look for ways to improve always, but it is the rest of the world who should be looking to our model of an elite sport. Great job DG! Would those here advocating promotion/relegation like to see the NRL be like the EPL? Do you want the same four teams topping the ladder every year with only 3 or 4 clubs having a genuine chance at the championship???
Rob9
Roar Guru
Pretty similar page there CC (if we are to keep all the Sydney teams as is and I know you being a Cronulla fan like myself this is definitely your preference). A couple of points of difference, I don’t think Central Queensland is quite ready. I’d have them up on the next serious round of expansion along with Adelaide and the Sunshine Coast. To me it’s never made sense to have clubs that overlap existing clubs ie St George Illawarra with us in between. The Gong is big enough, a separate city from Sydney with it’s own identity and it’s a league heartland. That demerger should happen to create a nice round number of 20. Then the conferences I’ve talked about above (4 teams of 5) are based around geographical rivalries to create the desirable situation where the competition’s heart and soul are these blockbuster local derbies. To me with the geographical locations of these 20 teams, 4 teams of 5 conferences seems to work the best. I like the idea of 1 round being taken to a regional centre but personally I’d rather see a more formalised preseason involving 2 rounds with each team designating a city/town to play their ‘home’ trial. Finally I’m not sure where people are getting the promotion/relegation idea (if you’re referring to my article). I’m seriously against a second division. All of this (20 teams) should operate on the one tier with everyone having a chance to be there on the final Sunday of the season.
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
Any second tier will rapidly cease to be strong as it is abandoned by fans and sponsors. Within living memory, you could earn two thirds of what you could in the big league playing in the Brisbane rugby league comp, the SANFL or the WAFL. Today, you earn about 10% of that you earn in the big league.
Big_Marn2000
Roar Pro
"Wollongong’s current representation in the NRL is an involvement in a team that doesn’t use their traditional strip or logo but to keep locals engaged in the sport they’re thrown a few Dragon’s home games each year. This isn’t good enough for a city the size of the ‘Gong". That is not true. The traditional Illawarra strip is always used for home games at WIN Stadium. And the reason there was only a few home games at WIN Stadium at the end of last year was because the stadium was being renovated for the whole season. In the Dragons' first grade squad there are 3 high profile St George juniors: Jason Nightingale, Chase and Kyle Stanley. This is compared to the captain and vice captain (Ben Hornby and Dean Young), Matt Cooper, Ben Creagh, Brett Morris, Dan Hunt and Mitch Rein, who are all Illawarra juniors. Not to mention the fact that before Nightingale and the Stanley boys came along, Mark Gasnier was the only St George junior in a team full of Illawarra juniors. The Illawarra is represented more than adequately in the NRL, as is the St George district. St George don't have the juniors to survive and Illawarra don't have the money to survive by itself. They won't be unmerging in the immediate future.
Big_Marn2000
Roar Pro
I personally am not a fan of a conference system. I think in terms of competition structure, the one that we have now is fine. The only flaw in the current structure is that some teams play each other twice, while some only play once. We need to get to a stage where each team plays each other team once in the regular season. Obviously this can't happen with 16 teams - the season would be too short. We should be aiming for a 20 team competition within the next 10-15 years. Ideally, all the current 16 clubs would survive and we would add Perth, Central Coast, Ipswich/Brisbane Bombers and Wellington. Should 1 or 2 clubs go bust (e.g. Cronulla if their property development deal gets rejected) they could be replaced by Adelaide or a central QLD team (e.g. Rockhampton). Then we could cut the season back to 19 weeks + the finals series. This would then allow time for State of Origin to be played in the month following the grand final (or for a month of standalone rep footy during the regular season), followed by the usual Four Nations or World Cup.
Beowulf
Guest
There is no dilution - Bears fans in general did not become Sea Eagles fans! They became Swans/Waratahs fans. Dilution would be adding a second Brisbane side. David Gallop has said the game has lost 40,000 fans with the Bears out of the comp, I can assure you there are as many that maintain interest in the hope the Bears are returned. Deny them now, thats it for League for northern Sydney, ever. Which also means no team ever for the Cnetral Coast. If they have any strategic vision, its the easiest decision of all. They'll have to bring in 2 teams regardless, so it well may be Bears and WA. The Titans are in a huge financial hole, bigger than the Sharks according to Phil Rothfield. No SEQ team will be entered whislt they're vulnerable, and Rockhampton is not big enough for a side yet.
Meesta Cool
Guest
Good in principle, but have you considered the travelling costs for group 1 and 2 against group 3... can't work!.
Rob9
Roar Guru
It’s easy to jump on and say there’s no money there but support that with some facts! Greater Wollongong has around 300,000 but the Illawarra/South Coast region is double that. All that this massive league heartland has representing them is a part time team that is clearly favouring the other side of the merger. Not good enough. And Wollongong is such a far cry from the working class steel town that it was in the 90’s when the Steelers were forced into a merger with a team two clubs away that shares their colours. It’s a bustling seaside metropolis that’s growing quickly. The port projects on the south coast are some of the biggest operations of their type in the country. The corporate dollar is there to get behind a team that wholeheartedly represents the South Coast and I’d suggest the people of the South Coast would feel much more passionate about their own team than the patchwork merger (of which their getting the seriously spiky end of the pineapple) that currently represents them. The place has come such a long way and as one of league’s true heartlands it deserves its own fulltime team just as much as Gosford.