With questions being raised over potential A-League expansions and a second division for professional football, this discussion is based on where Cairns realistically stands from a fans perspective.
If there are questions over infrastructure, Cairns’ facilities are more than adequate. The recent NRL match between the Cowboys and Rabbitohs saw 11,000 pack Cairns’ Barlow Park for the showing, backing up a 2016 attendance of 15,000. Both of which crush the measly 5000 turnout for the Brisbane Roar versus Wellington Phoenix A-League match that featured at Cazaly’s stadium in December 2015.
(AAP Image/Michael Chambers)
The Australian Rugby League Commission and Queensland State Government are seemingly doing what they can to satisfy the appetite for rugby league in the region with the Cowboys-Rabbitohs fixture set to become an annual match. This, combined with three Rugby League World Cup matches the city is set to host at Barlow Park later in the year spells danger for football in the region.
Financially, Cairns-based Far North Queensland Heat have suffered a major setback in recent months. For the past three years they may have been the most stable in the NPL with the backing of billionaire Tony Fung.
However, with the demise of his Aquis project and Fung set to withdraw entirely from the city, so too goes his sponsorship of the FNQ Heat. New endeavours are being explored by the club but will the new suitor be willing to fund an A-League bid, new stadium and a national youth league program like its predecessor? Unlikely, but one can hope!
What would definitely help is putting bums on seats and how do we get that? Well promoting would help and I’m not talking about multi-million dollar ad campaigns but something is better than nothing.
I spent two days at the Cairns Show this year. For those who don’t know, the Cairns show is the biggest regional show in Queensland and runs for three days annually. It sees something in the ball park of 80,000 locals attend every year.
That accounts for almost half of the Cairns population. I didn’t see a single promotion for the FNQ Heat. What I should have seen is a tent selling memberships, merchandise and interacting with the community.
So why bother marketing a team that only competes in the NPL? Simple. Cairns is unique in that there is only one professional sports team within a four hour drive and that’s the Cairns Taipans (NBL). Why not try and take advantage of that, because it certainly isn’t going to last much longer?
When it comes to A-League expansion, the FFA is already looking for much larger prospects than what Cairns can currently offer (a population in the millions) so they need to be shown exactly what we bring to the table. What better way to do that than being the most supported NPL level club in the country?
It feels some years before Cairns is represented in the A-League. However, I don’t think a successful Cairns based semi-professional team (were a second tier A-League to come into the picture) is unrealistic. It would give us a better opportunity to compete with other codes and help us to grow into what is hopefully a brighter future for football in Australia.
Tom Beverley
Roar Rookie
Definitely isn't written as though Cairns is competing for an A-league spot. In fact "It feels some years before Cairns is represented in the A-league" - what i mean by this is that Cairns' state of football has a long way to go before it is realistically considered for A-League. The A-league is overdue for expansion. I don't expect NQ to next in line, or close to it. I do expect however that the promotion of football in this region is lifted drastically in order to start building for when expansion time comes.
Giovanni
Guest
When a country like Switzerland can have 7 divisions, I'm sure Australia can have at least 2. They problem is that you people here think they must be professional. Of course not. Clubs in lower leagues are not fully professional and they don't have to be. That's normal in all Football leagues around the world. You're all trying to be too professional. Just establish more divisions and let the market work things out. And don't be scared for a club to go broke. Did you know that 80% of all new Australian businesses go broke within the first few years??? So why are you so scared for a Football club to go broke??? WHY? You're not scared for a fish and chip shop to go broke. And you still eat there. You still let them start up and have a go. You people have the wrong attitude here. You try to control everything from the top. Clubs in lower divisions in Europe are sometimes semi-professional. Then they move up and become full professional. If they get relegated and money is short they may become semi professional again. Or they may move from fourth division amateur to third division semi professional. Nothing is set in stone. That's how the market goes. You just need to establish a free market and let it work out. Abolish salary cap. establish several divisions, establish promotion - relegation, get rid of finals, make season longer. Basta! You can't have a six month season. That's a joke. .
CrampsRowZ
Roar Rookie
This article seems to be written as Cairns competing with all the other expansion candidates for that next spot in the A-League. This is a flawed way of looking at things I'm a QLDer and would love NQ to have at least the Fury back and a Cairns team. But it won't happen any time soon. 1. The FFA are NSW and VIC centric 2. The league isn't ready for expanding or 2nd division yet Once these two things change, then expansion candidates should be looked at And as much as I love NQ, you'll be down the pecking order, once Canberra and Wollongong transition in then NQ should be added
dede
Guest
No. I won't until promotion and relegation is established and the stupid final system abolished. I want a Euro style Football League or none at all.
Brian
Guest
Too far away for an HAL team. Also isn't summer rainy season as well. However I do like the idea of an annual match between the Roar and someone else. It needs to be held at the same venue at the same time annually. Preferably in October before the rain comes. Same goes for Townsville. Darwin and Hobart
Neil
Guest
This is off topic, the mention of playing football in North Queensland brought to mind the temperature and humidity in summer. The A League with other sports that play in summer, will at some date in the future have to take into account the effect of climate change. A lot of matches are played mid-afternoon to fit in television schedules, time zones and stadium availability, if football is to persist with summer and there are good reasons to do so, the planning will have to be better for the safety of players and spectators.
AR
Guest
Do you follow the ALeague?
Tom Beverley
Roar Rookie
In regards to travelling - During Northern Furys bid to join the WNPL they pledged $50k as a Subsidy for the rest of the WNPL for travel. I'm sure a Men's team with National exposure would be able to pledge a lot more obviously dependant on the right sponsor.
Tom Beverley
Roar Rookie
I'm confident in saying 95% or more of them would have come from Cairns (inc Gordonvale), Innisfail, Tablelands (Mareeba/Atherton etc) and Port Douglas/Mossman. These surrounding locations really aren't that far away, a little more then an hours drive, some closer. They are definitely marketable locations for the FNQ Heat. Regardless the Show was a missed opportunity to promote the club.
The Auteur
Guest
Deserved on what basis?
Tyson
Guest
Bums on seats helps, but we don't have enough to cover the overhead. Know how much it costs to keep Cazalys field per year? What the overhead is on Barlow? They're crazy man. We find a way to drop that overhead by about half and we have a shot.
Evan Askew
Guest
Frank farina, Steve corica, WAyne shroj, Michael the site are some that come to mind. In the old qld state league that ran from 1977 to 82 materia had a team that was well attended from what I have being told. (Frank Farina had a season there in 81 before going to the AID and beginning his NsL career at Canberra. Chairs look like they get reasonable crowds for not football. Maybe it would be too soon for Hal consideration but if things were done better than what they are some seeds could be planted in that regard.
Grobbelaar
Roar Guru
Not doubting that there is a football culture in and around Cairns, but the reality is that they are not going to be one of the first cabs off the rank when the national second division starts. Down the track, when an unhindered P&R system is in place, I'm sure the Mareeba Bulls can work their way up to the 2nd division, but once again, the reality is that open P&R is a fair bit away.
Lionheart
Guest
Excellent comment Mike. Some of the comments above are, as you say, nothing short of arrogant and ignorant.
Nick Symonds
Guest
"In a city that’s hosted one professional football game in the entire HAL/NSL era (40 years) and where talented youth is forced to relocate 1700 km’s south to Brisbane, how can we have a significant impact on Australian football?" That's even worse than Tasmania or Geelong. Unacceptable. I blame FFA. Regional cities of Australia, unite! http://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/the-problem-with-the-ffas-aleague-expansion-plan-20161022-gs8hky.html
Mike Tuckerman
Expert
As the partner of a woman from Cairns, the self-interested parochialism of some of these comments is something to behold. To have the football aspirations of an entire city so arrogantly dismissed is immensely frustrating. And it seems to be based on little more than pure ignorance. The region hasn't had an impact on Australian football? Tell that to Frank Farina, Shane Stefanutto or Zenon Caravella (who currently runs a football in Cairns). And the Mareeba Bulls are one of the most storied clubs in Queensland! We can't keep rabbiting on about the need for promotion and relegation in one breath and then dismissing the football culture of a passionate football region in another, based on nothing more than geographical convenience. Great article, Tom. Shame some of the respondents can't see beyond their own self-interest.
pacman
Guest
Two points: How many of the 80,000 attendees at the Cairns Show were residents of the city? Many would have come from rural areas, near and far. Travelling expenses for any Cairns team playing nationally would be obscene. Subsidies? We can all dream. If the tyranny of distance combined with a small population doesn't make us, as a country, unique, it certainly makes us very different.
Tom Beverley
Roar Rookie
In a city that's hosted one professional football game in the entire HAL/NSL era (40 years) and where talented youth is forced to relocate 1700 km's south to Brisbane, how can we have a significant impact on Australian football?
Tom Beverley
Roar Rookie
Agree with this 100%
Buddy
Guest
Show me an organic desire for a club based around 5-10k worth of regular or dedicated supporters, give me a suitable stadium that isn't being trshed by other codes or events and throw in some corporate sponsorship and I will tke the bait and get totally hooked.Right now, for all the talk, Geelong is about the only place that I think might get near to my wishes.... there again they are only mine.