Come Sunday, professional rugby league and the Central Coast will reunite again. Once hot and heavy, they are now a loveless couple who wistfully go through the motions, clinging to the last shards of a fragmenting union just for the benefit of the kids.
As I watch on, my heart bleeds as Jesus weeps and Singo cries. What happened to this potential lifelong romance?
The NRL and the Coast once had a great future on the cards, and I for one had true belief in its possibilities, a rarity in this day of expedited nuptials and dial-a-divorce.
It feels like only yesterday that the region was seemingly the first cab off the rank for the next tentacle of expansion, and now it’s just a province ransacked of juniors by thieving Sydney clubs, degradingly pacified by the occasional coaching clinic and a dwindling handful of relocated fixtures.
Frankly, I can’t believe the hollow shell of a union I see before me, especially after what I envisaged years ago in the heady days of the game’s rapid sprawling.
I firmly believed the NRL and the Central Coast were tailor-made to shack-up because they’ve always had what they both desired. For the game, the region had its exponential growth, unconditional love for league and a culture of attendance, while for the region the game brought footy. It was made to order.
In addition to this, every single other important factor stacked up too. They lived close by, they shared the same ideals and they both could pay their own way. Both families agreed; they were bound to meet eyes across the room and eventually get naked together all for our voyeuristic pleasure.
With a power-couple existence beckoning, they got down to business. Big promises were made, and next thing you know they were necking fervidly in public and steaming up the windows as they hurtled inevitably towards becoming the sport’s next ‘it’ couple. Grouseness was anticipated.
Fast forward 20 or so years though, and things have headed south, but not in the good, honeymoon way.
The marriage has been neglected and the libido stalled. The locals don’t flock with their usual reliability and the Bears are now a billion-to-one to get off the ground. Despite a couple of visits a year, rugby league doesn’t seem to call as much as it used to.
All’s left is an empty, soulless house they promised to share together – now left behind as a symbol of an abandoned affiliation – and Greg Florimo.
It’s unsure why the relationship has thawed, but the people on the Coast think it could be because the NRL is still embarrassed about the kinky night it tried to get experimental with the Northern Eagles and those promises it made in the throes of passion about the Bears.
Whatever the reason, it’s ugly and should be shielded from the kids. After years as a footy stronghold, one with the gumption to endure the laser removal therapy required to fade the regret of the joint venture, the region has become so brassed-off with the game that they are questioning a love once so deep it couldn’t be extracted by Excalibur. And how do I know?
I don’t have any incisive numbers about participation or memberships or sales of balls, because that stuff is for legitimate debaters. What I do bring is six years as a ratepayer in this fine constituency and a knack at recognising a vibe, and I think I speak for everyone here when I say the joint feels treated these days like nothing more than a rugby league booty call.
Spiralling from potential franchisee to yearly piecemeal games that have gradually wavered from a peak of five per year between 2007-10, the line of thinking is that the game takes the area for granted. I could be wrong, but I have seen people playing soccer up here. That has to tell you something?
The locals are a hardy, forgiving and unselfish bunch, but they’re also not stupid. They’re resigned to the fact that the Bears won’t be happening, so what about throwing them a regular, reliable number of games per year? And by this, I don’t mean the occasional training camp or Tooth Cup match, I mean real television footy. Can it happen?
We know the Roosters have signed a five-year agreement to play once annually in the area with a commitment to spread the word by pressing the flesh and kissing babies with regular visits, but as admirable as this is, it’s simply not enough to satiate the gnawing hunger or quell the threat of the whole place telling the game to stick it altogether.
Why not put it in the constitution that a minimum of seven games be played at the Central Coast Stadium every year? Meet halfway with the clubs involved and allow them to take their games against interstate teams up the M1, the ones that pull a rank gate at home anyway, and pop them a few dollars so they don’t spit the dummy?
Why stop there? What about creating a specific stadium membership package for the locals? And even just giving me free tickets and hot dogs too?
Take out the part about me and the freebies, and the NRL has a viable, hurriedly-constructed plan for repairing a fractured relationship with one of its most dedicated fan-bases.
Can you imagine losing touch with a region home to great names of league like Eadie, Orford, Hasler, Fairleigh and Singleton? The place deserves better, so throw the Central Coast a bone. Revive a famous romance.
Stark
Guest
Bring back the Townies!
3 Hats
Guest
I agree with you Epiquin.... Without being an expert on the situation or the politics of sport at the Central Coast. Please tell me this...who owns the Central Coast Leagues Club? The last time I went to their club was when Souths played there. The Staff had Black and Red uniforms on. Do the Leagues club there support the Bears?
3 Hats
Guest
@Doug Graves An NRL club in Adelaide....pffff Do Some bloody research mate. Adelaide cares nothing for Rugby League..Do you know what the biggest sport in South Australia is? AFL is First A League is second...the Majority of Adelaide's population migrated from England Adelaide was named in honour of Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, queen consort to King William IV, the city was founded in 1836 as the planned capital for a freely-settled British province in Australia. English play soccer. Cricket is third Netball is fourth Basketball is fifth There is no interest in Rugby League in Adelaide, that is why News Limited closed them down after only 2 seasons of Super League! I would prefer a team in Central Queensland where League is WANTED!
Jack Russell
Roar Guru
I doubt there would be a side in Geelong if they set up the league from scratch. Geelong exists in the AFL because of it's history.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
No,no no !!! that is not what i'm arguing Doug.I am an expansionist (national identity)and an Internationalist,so I think outside the square.Many of my previous postings support that view. In fact I want a team in Perth and another one in Qld,.but not at the expense of any financially viable Sydney club ,or one self sufficient.. Cronulla from 2016 will be in that situation,and is already along that road.If Cronulla was in an area where the population is diminishing or remaining static,or was a financial basket case,then I would accept relocation.The area is a wealthy area in terms of business and demographics. You talk about small markets well the area is already well over 220,000 and growing rapidly with high density housing everywhere.the 3rd largest junior numbers in Sydney.There are also many kids playing soccer.Axe the Sharks and you leave a gap filled in by that code and the other two competitors. So move the financially strong and independent Sharks who have already record membership and sponsorship and own their ground which will be improved to AFL mad Adelaide, where they have to be financially propped up by many millions in addition to the grant by the NRL,where there are few juniors and a small fan base .This same city has a dying ship building industry and few major commercial entities so to speak.Sounds like an Alan Bond decision to me.Play NRL: games there by all means,but Adelaide is way way down the pecking order for expansion. I will tell you all about dinosaurs try clubs poorly run by former players,.and rl administration who knifes clubs without understanding the ramifications.The loss of North Sydney,the merger of Tigers/West and the merger of Dragons/Steelers filled a void filled in by AFL and the RU. I know of people from this three areas who switched to the Tahs and/or the Swans. IOW the decision to rationalise assisted the code's competitors no end.That's why the SL war ended the way it did.An unmitigated failure and I fell for it. Whiteant heartland in order to place pins on maps,without deep and reliable research.op you understand the meaning and crowd implications for local derbies e.g. Dragons and Sharks.They filled Kogarah last time,and will do so at Remondis.
3 Hats
Guest
The Roosters are up there at the Coast for only one reason, their association with Wyong. They have little junior talent in their own area so therefore they are forced to source juniors from somewhere. The Central Coast has an approximate population of 321,500, growing at 1% p.a I did a quick search, I cant find anything on Commerce in the area, there doesn't seem to be any big business at all. It seems tourism, Restaurants and small business is all they have.
3 Hats
Guest
Those Souths and Manly games were probably about 80% Souths members/supporters, especially the ones that were Souths Home games... The last one there was a Manly home game. Many games have also been in bad weather. It is a cold place to watch footy with the Breeze coming off the water! The highest crowd 20,060 Souths v Manly Grahame Park 16-Aug-2013 Croud totals since year 2000. 57 matches 759,626 13,327 average Data from ALL games at Grahame Park, Gosford check out the link copy and paste! http://afltables.com/rl/crowds/grahame_vn.html
Doug Graves
Guest
@ Crosscoder I respect your impassioned pleas but cannot agree with you. We need to be a national game or rename the competition East Coast Rugby League. You are essentially arguing we go about business as usual, that we should turn our backs on millions of people across the country in order to prop up a franchise which can only offer vague promises of finally getting it's act together and can only hope for a minor increase at best in it's population. Sorry I'm not buying it. But the Dinosaurs at the NRL might and you'd better hope they do. For any case people make for keeping a small market team like Cronulla, a better case can be made for expansion into new markets. How is it not better to expand into a city of about 1.3 Million? Sure there might be teething problems but If the NRL does it properly (and I confess, a lot hinges on this), the Sharks playing out of Adelaide will be immensely better for them and better for the game in the long term and this is what I'm about. But this is, of course, not what the NRL is about. Who knows what they're about, they can't fix the refereeing that's ruining the game, every year it seems half the clubs are embroiled in some ridiculous scandal or are close to going under and they can't even fix the ridiculous Origin scheduling. So by all means lets just go back to sleep and wonder why nothing ever gets fixed, the game manages to botch expansion in it's own areas (Central Coast, Gold Coast) and we'll all be here in another 10 years talking about the same problems while the NRL goes about business as usual.
Really??
Guest
Totally agree, as much as I would like to to see the Bears run around again, it won't happen on the Central Coast. The Central Coast will add nothing to any television deal as they already count as being in the Sydney tv market. Potential increases in tv rights sales can be made in Perth and Brisbane/ SE QLD or even NZ2. The TV rights holders want major market teams with state/local rivalries as this brings in ratings which in turn brings in advertising revenue.
Matt
Guest
This is the silliest thing I've ever read on the roar...and that's saying a lot. Sharks wouldn't move to Adelaide as it has been proven its a bust in that market. RL has to grow grassroots there before it can even consider ramming in a team. Tigers moving to Perth isn't bad but the idea of resplitting a merger team doesn't look good for the team or bode well for the fans either. And the very idea that a strong team such as Canterbury would dilute their brand by taking over a club whose only value is a history which has little bankable ability compared to their own is a joke too. Then letting a team which has huge growth opportunities (titans) and a team with a wide supporter base (manly) die so one can be established in a low density area which can barely show up to a match as it is and place one in another area which has arguably the strongest team in the league only to weaken their brand is just another level of short sightedness. Half the club's are basket cases anyway. The most bankable equity that have is historic branding. Poor governance of club's and righting the ship in NSW and QLD should be addressed before we even consider sending these flawed structures else where to become another cities problem.
chris
Guest
It looks beautiful location and stadium but why did they build it if there is going to be no NRL team. Good 20 years ago was a make or break time for both Rugby codes.
Birdy
Guest
I think the only chance the CC has of seeing more RL is for current Sydney based NRL sides taking their interstate games there or a Sydney club relocating. The reality of the Bears coming back is minute at best, not because of any reason raised in this article or it's associated comments but more so because of the high quality of the bids in waiting.. An example is the Western Corridore Bid. ( Ipswich Logan) ) Current population 750000.. Population by 2018 1 million. Current juniors 10500... The area where the club will be based is a totally new city . As well as shopping , medical ( including hospital ) industrial and education precincts it now has a purpose built transport hub including railway station and bus terminals centrally located. Part of the planning is also training grounds and a purpose built 30000 seat stadium for RL . Construction will commence immediately the bid is successful . If after reading this you think it doesn't look too good for the CC Bears well it's much worse for them . The Western Corridore bid is 3rd behind Brisbane Bombers and Perth.
duncan
Roar Rookie
The Cats are over 150 years old, just as many supports out side of the Greater Geelong area as in it. Also had the benefit of Ford as a major sponsor for about 80 years.
Cathar Treize
Roar Guru
Rubbish!. The Mariners won A league titles and still can't crack 10,000. Their club is in debt and Souths, Bulldogs attract larger crowds then the 'home' mariners. Only a rich man's wallet keeps the club alive and that won't last forever.
Epiquin
Roar Guru
The only cashed up 'Hogans' I care about are the ones tarnishing Australia's image from the 80s onwards. #ThatsNotAknife
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Chop.What the ,my use of the word " your" (possessive) to describe ownership of point is incorrect?
Eden
Guest
I live in Hornsby, grew up in pennant hills. I do not identify as from central coast. I do acknowledge I live in the one RL void in Sydney though. Think it would be a tough sell to go as far as chats wood with the central coast brand (I guess that's why they want the bears, but still would need some savvy marketing).
woodo
Guest
I lived on the Central Coast through most of my teenage years and my mother still lives there now - I don't think it's a viable option. Too few people and too far apart. Plus there's plenty of options for footy lovers with teams close by both North and South, and I know some are saying that it isn't that low socio-economically but it is definitely lower than is ideal. Gosford is a horrible place truth be told, there's nothing going on at all. The place has potential but it definitely isn't there yet. Maybe once the population grows (which given the housing situation in Sydney it definitely will) but for now I don't see it thriving. What really gets it for me is that for now there's more viable and important options out there, Perth surely has to be priority number one the potential of engaging a whole new part of Australia can't be ignored. Personally I'd have a second NZ team in at number two. Firmly. The NZ national team has really started to match us and it was just what we needed for what was imo a fading international scene, another team there would help the Warriors, help the league, and help further NZ internationally - we really need the kiwis to be strong to keep interest in our international game. PNG a firm third, there's just so much potential there - we've seen the impact that bringing in Fijian players have had on the NRL talent pool but properly engaging PNG with a franchise would dwarf that incredibly. Plus, like NZ, it would strengthen PNG internationally and that can only be good for our game. Let's say my assumptions on the feasibility of a CC franchise are wrong - is there anything a team there is going to bring to the table for the game that isn't outmatched by those three options? It doesn't expand our market or our playing stocks, so really what would it bring?
Eden
Guest
I'd challenge that by saying a significant % of central coast population used to live in Sydney and are tied to sydney clubs which are much older than the broncos who formed above the traditional clubs rather than from them. Not the case for north q. (I'm assuming...)
pjm
Roar Rookie
I think the mod is a 'hogan' and didn't like my post even though it meant no offence.