Twenty-seven long years ago in a faraway time, three new clubs joined the NSWRL. The Brisbane Broncos, Newcastle Knights and Gold Coast-Tweed Heads Seagulls were the new boys on the block with an exciting journey ahead.
Since 1988, the Broncos and Knights have become cornerstones of the National Rugby League, winning premierships and producing some of the greatest players the game has ever seen, icons like Andrew Johns, Allan Langer and Darren Lockyer.
But while the Broncos and the Knights continue to strive for excellence as key weapons in rugby league’s everlasting battle with rival codes, the Gold Coast have spluttered their way through deaths, rebirths, facelifts and mascot changes all in the name of a desperate and arguably unjust thirst to make the arranged marriage between rugby league and the sunset strip work.
On Friday night, the NRL All Stars are back on the Gold Coast and you’d suspect a packed crowd of more than 25,000 on hand to see the likes of Greg Inglis and Johnathan Thurston. After a few forgettable years for the Titans, surely the chance to see Inglis, Thurston and Kieran Foran and some high quality pre-season footy would be too good to stay away from.
Apparently not, however, with just over 10,000 tickets sold for the match. The Gold Coast that once chewed up and spat out the Giants, Seagulls and Chargers is rearing its ugly head once more.
But is it just rugby league?
Only last year the Australian Wallabies played Argentina in a Rugby Championship match at Robina Stadium, headlined by one Mr Israel Folau. On that September night, a tick over 14,000 was announced as the official crowd, but even that figure must have been questioned by the most one-eyed rugby supporters with empty blue seats as far as the eye could see.
For the Titans, they start 2015 without a major sponsor.
There was once a time when a sponsor-less jersey wasn’t a big deal but in this day and age a jersey without a major sponsor sticks out like a thousand sore thumbs.
The Titans are in a bad place and the squeeze will continue as we get closer to the new television rights deal and expansion is finally, truly investigated. Perth, New Zealand, Central Coast and other Queensland bids are knocking down the door and the Gold Coast are not only in the firing line, the bull’s-eye is on their collective heads.
NRL All Stars is a drawcard event that deserves better than the likely scenario of an embarrassingly low crowd on Friday evening.
Gold Coast, in their latest form, have been blistered by financial crisis after financial crisis and only recently The Courier Mail revealed that an anonymous consortium were willing to buy into the Titans.
“Several are substantially wealthy individuals with a passion for rugby league,” a consortium spokesman said.
“But from a business perspective it would need to be a viable investment.
“I’ve spoken to the consortium of guys. They have been looking at a few NRL clubs and they have indicated they are happy to progress conversations and make a formal approach to the Titans.”
No lover of rugby league who has the growth of the game in their heart wants to see the Gold Coast fail. But how many times can you pull bullets from the wound?
Friday night is the first of many acid tests for the Gold Coast over the next few years. It’s time for the people on the Gold Coast to finally man up and give their club half a chance.
Scott
Guest
The interesting thing is then who else will get caught. I am fairly certain it is not just one club which has players taking drugs.
Scott
Guest
Awful stadium to get in and out of -- I live centrally and need to drive 15 minutes to a train station to catch a train to the ground. If you drink you can't get home as no taxi's from the train station. The one thing that is truly awful on the Gold Coast is the public transport, not the local Rugby League team.
Scott
Guest
The locals will not support a Brisbane team and people from Brisbane will not travel to the Gold Coast.
Scott
Guest
Annual pass to the theme parks is a much better and cheaper option. I live 10 to 15 minutes from SeaWorld and it was much better value than the Chargers (my kids are now older).
Scott
Guest
Riewoldt spent at least part of his childhood on the Gold Coast. I would put Marcus Ashcroft as the most successful local product for AFL but I don't really follow the sport.
Scott
Guest
The Gold Coast has never been more linked to AFL than RL. The AFL is strong because the Southport Sharks has more money than the majority of AFL clubs and too many Victorians have moved here in the past 30 years (which has helped real estate prices so thank you). Some of the dates being tossed around are incorrect but Southport Tigers was established in the early 1960's (I believe) playing initially in Brisbane prior to moving to the Gold Coast competition. The population of the Gold Coast in 1954 was 20,000 compared to the current figure of more than 600,000 so I don't see how the historical position is of any real relevance.
Scott
Guest
Very interested in how you are forming this opinion. The Gold Coast has grown considerably over a long period which must mean that rather than being transient it has a population which has moved here and stayed. For reference refer to the recent KPMG report on the Gold Coast looking forward to 2050. Some population figures which need to be taken into account: 1981 177,000 2013 605,000 2031 893,000 (forecast) The Gold Coast has expanded considerably since 1988 when the Giants were founded and it is just plain dumb to state there is no place for Rugby League in the area. The Suns however had the correct idea in targeting the new residents (you become a local after more than 30 years). Their focus was on being the parents second team and the kids favourite team.
Scott
Guest
Simple fact is the Giants were underfunded from establishment, Seagulls fell over due to the Leagues Club falling over (which had nothing to do with the on field performance or issues) and the Chargers were easy to get rid of when the ARL / Super League merged. The Titans issues again relate to their previous owner rather than the location and if they move to Brisbane they will lose whatever support they had locally. In relation to the All Stars game it was moved to Brisbane a few years ago which is the reason I did not attend this year -- if it draws a crowd it gets moved and if it doesn't it shows that Rugby League is not supported on the Gold Coast. The Rugby Union test last year, which I did attend, was the most poorly advertised sporting event I have ever seen with a lot of local Rugby Union fans not knowing it was on. In addition more than 50% of the local fans are from NZ and have no interest in seeing Australia play, The All Blacks would draw more than the Wallabies. The Gold Coast is a stand alone city, which is the 6th biggest in Australia, it is not and never will be a suburb of Brisbane.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Champion private ownership." In the case of South Sydney,Warriors,Manly to a lesser degree,just from the point of survival and resurgence,I support it. Did I suggest private ownership was devoid of risks.And memeership also has risks .That is also taken into context of where sport in this county lies.I have given the Sharks as an example where membership club can go awry.We know what happened to Fitzroy and the former South Melbourne,they moved North for survival. Therefore both type of club controls have to measure.Neither are foolproof . Of course membership is the preferred model.But one cannot also rely on poker machine profits to underpin membership clubs. Souths have achieved the best of both worlds: majority private ownership,percentage membership ownership and 30,000 plus football club members .
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
If as I suggested, the Titans pay the State Govt X amount to ensure management rights of the stadium ,they may well be in a better positon to make decsionjs on food and beverages. Bear in mind,circa 2012 the last year of Gallop's reign and the awful Tv deal,the NRL was not making a profit.Consequently was in no position to provide decent sums of money to any State Govt ,to get some control over infrastructure. It is only in the last very profitable two years the admin has provided more financial assistance to clubs such as the Sharks,Newcastle,Tigers and the Titans.Finally the NRL would be well aware of the problems the Titans had/have with Searle still a major shareholder.Until that is resolved and his shares sold the Tiatns are just wading in the water. Parking within reach with shuttle ,if the Sharks can do it,no reason the tiatns cant if they want to survive and thrive. Getting Annesley on board is a good start,and getting a star player such as DCE would be ideal. The NRL is not going to let the club fold.The area has again secured a big increase in local juniors,a stadium which the Govt established.It needs parking facilties ,and a board minus Searle . It caters for Nth NSW a strong rl area also. " Convincing the NRL to spend millions" .Depends on the number of millions,depends on whether they want a GC team or give it up to a competitor .The point of the future fund is aiming for infrastructure which Smith has clearly enunciated ,that would include no doubt management rights.
Danny
Guest
The game was the most watch program on Sydney TV last night & 2nd in Brisbane.
The Barry
Roar Guru
I don't think it's inflating expectations. It's a relevant question why the GC have all of those problems at once.
Rob9
Guest
The Barry, regarding your assessment of the Titans situation; No sponsors- they certainly wouldn't be the first club this far out from the season kickoff to be without a major sponsor. You don't have to look too far into the history books to identify a few. Declining crowds- a problem that is by no means confined to the Titans. They also wouldn't be the first expansion team in sport to experience the novelty factor phenomenon. Obviously this has been compounded by some other issues that will be forgotten about or corrected with time. Again though, they're still a fair way off the bottom when you gauge their average crowds against the other 15 clubs. No money- once again, something that by no means starts and ends with the Titans. No identity, no local engagement- both opinionative suggestions. Living on the Gold Coast, I disagree on both counts. I concede, there's work to do on those fronts but most clubs are in the same boat, particularly when in comes to effectively engaging their respective communities. Those 15 other clubs have the benefit of a longer history to call upon also. In business, sustainable success takes time and investment. The AFL have recognised this and in time, they'll be stronger for it. The Barry, by no means am I trying to suggest the Titans are a success. But the fact remains, very few clubs in the NRL can claim to be in 2015. Why should we inflate our expectations for the youngest club in the league? This isn't a 'Gold Coast problem', it's a rugby league one.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Semantics . They may not have fallen over but there's been four iterations in 26 years and no Gold Coast team has had anything resembling sustained success. They have no sponsor, year on year decreasing crowds, no money, no identity, no local engagement and every other problem here. They've been in the comp in various iterations since 1988. They're the only team not to have made a GF in that time. There's no metric by which you can call them a success. But the question is why? There's obviously (some) passionate people. Rugby league heartland, junior nursery, etc. This is really what needs to be answered before there can be more expansion.
alicesprings
Guest
Thats a fair call. But the point remains that it only takes one brain snap for things to turns sour. Sad when sporting clubs are the play things for millionaires.
Rob9
Guest
Imagine how many Sydney teams there 'should' be considering cities like Townsville, Newcastle and Canberra are involved in the comp. Again, I'm not questioning how many teams there are in Sydney but if we want a professional game that's played beyond the 2 capital cities where RL is dominant and in significant regional centres, the Gold Coast has to play a part in that.
marco
Guest
Expansion at a time when so many teams like the gold coast in rugby league heartland areas are doing it tough just seems crazy. Some of the boys at the top of the NRL must be living in la la land. If a league team cant get support on the Gold Coast then what are the chances of Perth making a go of it? It would help if channel 9 gave a bit more exposure to the titans instead of sucking up to the broncos all the time.
Hamnur
Guest
You cant blame the customer. If the NRL serves up a so-so meal then of course the punters wont attend. The All Stars game is...well...an artificial rivalry that noone cares about. And rugby league culture is also to blame. It raises brats every single year. Was it not Scott Prince to told schoolkids to photocopy his signature?
Ken
Guest
'while the Gold Coast still represents the country’s 6th largest market and the 3rd largest within rugby league territory which has drawn the NRL back.' Those numbers may well be correct but a proper analysis needs some scale here. Checking GDP numbers (wikipedia - yeah I know, sue me, but it's easy and for these purposes suitable) Sydney lobs in at $340b, Gold Coast $15b. Fair balance makes 20+ Sydney teams for every Gold Coast based on that!
Rob9
Guest
A Gold Coast team hasn't fallen over since 1998. The Gold Coast, Australia and the NRL are all very different beasts in 2015. Since and including 98' there have been two mergers and Norths were squeezed out of their Eagles merger. Meanwhile, Sydney is represented by 9 and a half teams. I'd suspect the Gold Coast's history of being dropped and then accepted back is a combination of the factors. It's easier to drop a new team from outside Sydney when times get tough while the Gold Coast still represents the country's 6th largest market and the 3rd largest within rugby league territory which has drawn the NRL back.