The NRL must look to the NFL for solutions

Think your so smart don't you Daley! Well, I agree and so does Pat Kirwan. One of the big reasons for not getting 18 games in the NFL is from the NFLPA even if that meant trading in two preseason games in exchange. Anway, if people want more teams taking a dive in games for better draft picks, a shorter season is how you help create that problem!

Nothing I disagree with there, but has nothing to do with what I posted, notably that immigration has affected participation levels, the A league average in Sydney is 17,000 and there is no guarantee that a large amount of money will necessarily dramatically improve grass root numbers.

Some fair, reality based points, James - league fans, as you say, have always been blue collar and as such are sensitive to price increases - the only trouble is that you don't price tickets too low so the 'perceived' value isn't there.

Absolutely agree - Mickyo - Sydney is now an all code city, only the most myopic league supporter wouldn't agree. Even Epiquin, who is a very fair poster, notes the same in his post above, even if we disagree with the terminology of total attendance, which I say includes finals. Would be interesting to see the total of just Sydney teams and see how they're doing.

I truly believe that if the season was shortened it would have detrimental effects across the league. The fact of the matter is that the low attendance figures have more to do with the simple economics of attending a game than its appeal. If you currently or have ever lived in Sydney, you'd know that ANZ Stadium in Homebush is the last place you'd want to travel on a Thursday night. Furthermore, due to the unfortunate economic realities of 2017, the NRL has to price the tickets at such a rate that it is often too expensive for fans too attend. For many codes the hike in prices isn't too bad, but rugby league is a game with strong blue collar roots, and as a result their fans are the same. For important games, yes, it is worth paying the price for a lot of people, but turning up in the wet weather simply isn't enticing enough. I'm not sure what number of rounds you'd propose to shorten the competition to, but let's say it's 16. With 16 rounds of the NRL, the game would lose a lot more money in the long run. Each round brings in additional revenue for the both the NRL and the clubs, particularly those playing at ANZ Stadium, where they receive a guaranteed sum of money per game from the Stadium Trust. This is in addition to merchandise revenue and ticket prices. The NRL and NFL can't realistically operate by the same standards. The NRL must fight off competition from other codes in a country with a much smaller population, and their brand isn't even on the same planet as the NFL in terms of value. It is common for tourists to travel from around the globe to the USA with an NFL game among the first activities on their itinerary. Most people haven't even heard of the NRL. Because of this they must make money where they can.

Craigo - I posted that the A league crowds in SYDNEY were a tad under 17k, that is the average of WSW and Sydney FC, not A league crowds in total, as many teams are not in Sydney. Therefore what I posted was correct. We'll have to wait to see if all the money poured in has any effect. Tennis Australia have probably poured more money in and it hasn't had much effect so far, although sometimes these things do take time.

@duecer The NRL is the second most attend football code in Australia and the most watched on TV on any given year with the AFL. Thats why it get 2 billion and the A-League gets whatever.

RL has gone down a whopping 27% and RU even more, therefore qualifying my comments. And Rugby Union drop 63% But with 100 million a year going to Junior Development over the next 5 year I think RL will be OK. Rugby Union is in big trouble.

@duecer "Craigo – the A league average is Sydney is a touch under 17,000, which I think is above the NRL average in Sydney, albeit with less teams." Sorry duecer you are way off the mark about A-league crowds at 17,000. Have a look at this http://www.austadiums.com/sport/comp.php?sid=10 Happy for you to prove me wrong? But you wont. A-League crowds are 12,561 this year

Craigo - the A league average is Sydney is a touch under 17,000, which I think is above the NRL average in Sydney, albeit with less teams. I do agree that Football has benefited as well in Melbourne with immigration, but AFL has not suffered as much as RL or RU. On the football tab is a discussion of participation rates of 2016 compared to 2001. Football has increased 46% while AFL has stagnated at -1%, but RL has gone down a whopping 27% and RU even more, therefore qualifying my comments. RL would still be the most popular sport in Sydney, but don't think it is the dominant sport.

@duecer The same thing could be said about Melbourne immigration is not AFL's friend – with Melbourne becoming so multinational, Football has benefited and AFL has suffered. Melbourne's A-League teams have more members get bigger crowds and rate higher on TV then their Sydney A-League teams. Thats life! and as a city grows it happens. But in Sydney the A-League rates very poorly and average attendances (which are going backwards in the A-league) are well below that of the NRL especially in Sydney. In 2006/07 the A-League was getting 15,344 per game 10 years later 2016/17 it's 12,147 per game. TV ratings for our National Socceroos Team are not that great either Thu TV #Socceroos #IRQvAUS 9GO! 130k (Syd 40k Syd 29k Bri 30k Ade 14k Per 18k) You talked about TV figures softening at Nine but didn't tell the full story with the surge in Fox League on Foxtel stealing views with a superior programming. With Sydney's terrible weather I think the NRL crowds have been pretty good compared to Union and A-League. Participation is down in ALL sports with boys not just RL. And as I have said before with 100 million a year going to Junior Development over the next 5 year the NRL are addressing to problem. If rugby league is not Sydney favourite sport then what is? It's not soccer or A-League.

I still believe 22 rounds, as it was in the early to mid 90's, is the perfect fit for the game.

No. The answer is not to reduce the number of games nor to avoid wet weather. You are trying to solve a problem where none exists. Most of the people who are watching the game are at home in the midst of a bunch of like minded Aussies who are watching the game on tele. You simply get a better view of the action on tele than you do at the ground. Now I am not one to advocate for giving up on going to the footy every now and again - but when you go to the footy you are looking for a different experience to that you receive when you are watching a game on tele. The answer is not to try and copy what the damn yanks are doing. In fact there is no answer because you have simply invented the problem. You should be celebrating the wonderful attendance via television that the NRL gets every week and every game - not trying to reduce the number of fixtures so that the size of the crowds at the grounds can match your expectations. The NRL is not a game for nancy-boys and if a player can't cope with the number of games then they can always go to work at Woollies instead. So stop trying to solve a problem that exists only in your own head. I think the season is just about the right length and I would bet a brass-razoo to a mound of bullion that the majority of fans would agree with me..

Mickyo, you make an interesting point and one that I've noted several times - immigration is not RL's friend - with Sydney becoming so multinational, Football has benefited and RL has suffered. This can be especially seen in England where the two waves of immigration, firstly from WI, India, Pakistan and then Eastern Europe have virtually no interest in RL and contributed to Football taking over. France fared even worse. The one mitigating factor in Sydney has been the PI immigration which has helped lessen the slide in RL, although one can argue that has reached saturation point. TV figures are still good, although softening at Nine, but participation and crowd numbers, especially with population growth are down in Sydney, although the weather hasn't helped this season. And can posters stop attacking others who have a different view, everyone's allowed an opinion, even if it doesn't agree with yours.

Super Rugby (in Australia anyway) has many more problems than simply numbers of games, unfair comparison.

Perhaps Rooster's fan don't remember the 60's fondly?

@ Mickyo Time for a cup of tea and have a little sleep :) Waratahs play the Rebels in front of 5 people in a few hours.

@Cadfael I could have also said no other code has more members in Canberra or Brisbane then RL. But our friends comments above about RL dying in Sydney are contradicted by reality. I like your idea about Wests Tigers playing permanently out of Campbelltown and the Dragons out of Wollongong.

To a point I agree with you. However crowds are down on what they were. Good crowds for the Queensland sides, Canberra and Melbourne occasionally. Your comment that "No other code in Sydney has more members in Sydney then RL" is correct but there are 9 Sydney clubs so of course they will have more members than the other codes. I would like to see fewer teams playing out of Sydney with Wests Tigers playing permanently out of Campbelltown and the Dragons out of Wollongong. This would, I feel, increase crowd numbers for both teams as well as having fans at a ground that doesn't look empty,

@ Mickyo Take the Tin Foil Hat off very slowly, but keep chanting.... ..... "It’s gone mate! RL in Sydney is gone." It will help stop threats such as electromagnetic fields, mind control, and mind reading by the NRL. Have a good weekend :)