When you look at the history of the game the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are lucky to be in the competition.
I don’t mean that as an insult. One could argue that the Sharks were brought into the league to reduce the dominance of St George, which had won 11 straight titles.
If the league had had a crystal ball, they would have left that entire southern region of Sydney to one club. Don’t protest too much, Sharks fans. You are lucky to be a club that very few people dislike. We all know the reasons. Up until 2016 you hadn’t won anything. In fact for most of your existence you had struggled to stay afloat.
Okay, you did well early, twice losing grand finals in the 1970s. You were minor premiers in 1988 and lost the 1997 Super League title, a title no-one other than Broncos fans really care for. You blew it in 1999, however, and that had been the case for most of the club’s history.
In 2014 you finished last. The doping scandal wreaked havoc on your season. Fairly or unfairly the club was tainted that year. I’d be surprised if Sharks fans still didn’t hold a grudge over how that scandal was used as a political football.
That scandal may have been a blessing in disguise. It wasn’t right and most likely not fair that it happened, but it did show the club’s true colours. It showed the rugby league and the Australian community the character of your team.
(AAP Image/Joe Castro)
Tough times come and go but tough people are forever. Give the club credit. It has had many tough times and it still stands. The club is tough.
The Sharks rebounded and were close to making it to the title match in 2015. One year later the side would not be denied. No Storm would cloud their vision. They had their eyes on the prize and a will that would not be broken. Even when all seemed lost and Melbourne surged ahead the Sharks stood resolutely.
Yes, it took some brilliance and a thrilling heart-stopping finish, but the club did it. Finally.
The 2017 season continued the trend set from the end of the 1992 and 1993 seasons. No team has gone back to back. Don’t worry, Broncos fans, I hear you, but I’m not counting the 1997 season as it wasn’t a unified competition.
The 2018 season may be the Sharks’ last chance for a title in the immediate future. Most teams have a window. I say most teams – the Roosters will always be there or thereabouts. They just seem to have accountants and the means that other clubs do not.
Sharks fans should not worry. On all accounts the land sale has secured their financial future. Though the club may never be a giant club, it should aim to be a successful club.
(AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)
Success does not just mean titles or leagues club revenue. Success comes in many forms. What the 2016 season showed was that the Sharks did have a lot of supporters. Yes, they may have come out of the woodwork – that happens – but the club needs to keep them as active supporters.
Only 12,933 fans on average attended the home games at Shark Park. This is not good enough for a defending premiership team. I know Sydney fans don’t travel, but can anyone explain why the Sharks get so little support at their games? Is it the stadium? Is it the kick-off times? Is it the weather?
Not only are the crowds poor for the Cronulla outfit, but the club has failed to capitalise on memberships, with just 15,556 people being active supporters. Not good enough, Cronulla fans. That’s the second lowest of all Sydney clubs and the fourth lowest in the league.
In a perfect world Shark Park would be a brand-new stadium that holds 20,000 to 25,000 people and has a covering that would protect fans from the elements. The club would sell out each week and would have 30,000-plus members.
Obviously this is a pipedream. However, the Shire’s population is estimated at 226,000 people, so turning this population into active fans should be the club’s goal. Getting 10 per cent to 20 per cent of this community to be members secures the club’s future.
Is it possible to turn that pipedream into a reality? If any club can do such a tough task, it is this club. The reason is simple: the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are tough.
Paul
Guest
Not really fair given you can only pick one full back and it was arguably the greatest full back of all time that kept him out of the team.
Oto shark
Guest
Thanks three hats , the sharks should look into that ,might help crowd numbers by the sounds if it , that's a bit of a problem .
souvalis
Guest
If it was solely about tries as you keep pushing..Valentine Holmes just recent 11 tries in 2 games would be the greatest player of all time...this is the ridiculousness that I’m hearing...there’s far more layers involved than that yet not one more important than state and national recognition to be elevated out of ‘good club’ footballer to elite level...number of tries won’t do that for any player with only 1 game for Australia in a 10 year career...to the objective observer of course..
KenW
Guest
Both the Stewarts and Fulton were Illawarra juniors though weren't they? Saints clearly were active in the region but a bit of a stretch to call either St George/Cronulla area juniors. Almost like you were just desperate to name a couple of Manly players... :-)
Greg
Guest
They get a % of the sales from the retail operations, so in 2040 that $1m will be a lot more.......and it's not their only revenue stream, owning their home ground means that every dollar of gate receipts also goes to them and not paying rent to the stadium owners....add in money from the residential apartments, sponsorships, merchandise, NRL grant etc and they'll be around for years to come
3_Hats SSTID 2014
Roar Rookie
All of those Grandstand seats are always taken up by their Season Ticketed Members. When the Rabbitohs play at Shark Park they only ever allocate us tickets in the North West corner which are always sold out in 5 minutes.
3_Hats SSTID 2014
Roar Rookie
My comment above is based on future costs in say 20 years time. $1M in 2018 would only be worth about $750k in 2040... inflationary costs will bite you hard. To run a football operation in 2018 is one thing but the total costs in say 2040 that will triple. $1M per year is really peanuts when you need at least $17M to $20M or so to successfully run your football operations. The full cost including everything you need. Sure the NRL kick in the total Salary Cap amount for players salaries PLUS an extra 30% on top but you still have to make up that extra $7M somewhere. Players development, travel costs, coaches salaries, support staff, Medical Equipment continues to rise in costs. It all adds up.
Greg Ambrose
Guest
ET 13 finals appearances 5 tries Snake 20 finals appearances 16 tries
madmax
Guest
Oh hang on..........how many Premierships has ET won?
madmax
Guest
Wrongful accusations of sexual assault, tarnished reputation & injury is what stopped Stewart having a career far better than ET. Even in his few years of representative football he showed he was a better player! Please enlighten us on what ET achieved in his 27 SOO appearances. Give me Mark McGaw any day! Granted ET is a better fisherman!
madmax
Guest
You're correct...........Stewart is in a different stratosphere to Ettingshausen......he's miles ahead. The only thing ET is better at than Stewart is catching fish!
Greg Ambrose
Guest
If it was a choice between ET and Snake to sign for Manly I would 100% go for Snake. Also set up as many tries as he scored. ET didn't have to contend with a ridiculous court case at the peak of his career and had a good run with injuries also. Cliff Lyons didn't have a great SOO career but like Snake had a much better club career than ET and that's the main thing to me. I follow my club and all the other stuff is a distant second. Nobody would compare Bowen to Thurston but ET, Bowen and Snake can be compared because they are in traditional try scoring positions. Wingers in particular score lots of Tries in SOO and ET's rate is very average, not in another stratosphere. Snake is the best player from Manly's recent golden years and one of Manly's best ever. It's Eadie or Snake as our best ever fullback.
Justin Kearney
Guest
Bugden broke Rogers jaw at belmore after Rogers returned to the Sharks. I was there.
Oto shark
Guest
I've been s shark supporter for around 28years. I live in Nz and for years I thought of going to a home game. Before the 2016 grand final I said to my daughter ( shark fan also), that if they win we will definitely go in 2017, so when we tried booking some tickets online three days after the the booking started ( well before start of season ), all the tickets on the three stands were unavailable, we could only book seats on the family zone. When we went to the game there were more than enough empty seats , I'm sure something's not right ,could be a reason for the crowd numbers, but we still had a great time, great locals also.
Greg Ambrose
Guest
I recall Rogers playing for Saints , it might be where Bugden broke his jaw, can't be positive. Makes zero difference to my point . If the Sharks don't exist Rogers plays elsewhere and Saints among other teams were unable to snare his signature as a teenager because of the sharks entry in 67.
souvalis
Guest
A player who was only considered good enough to represent his country once (the same as Phil Sigsworth) and his state 8 times..versus ET ‘s 27 (super league stopped him being the most capped Blue of all time)and 30...only a crazed Manly fan would think Stewart had a better career. Using your try scoring criteria Matt Bowen would be more ‘important’ to NQ than Jonathon Thurston...on both counts,hardly..
Sam
Guest
Part of the redevelopment of the Woolaware site also involves an 18,000 square metre shopping complex with the Sharks getting around $1m a year every year. They are now one of the most financially safe and stable clubs in the comp.
Adz Sportz
Roar Guru
IMO winning the 2016 Premiership saved them from being forced to relocate. Recent success did bring lost fans out of the woodwork and success has also been financially beneficial after enduring a few seasons at the bottom of the ladder and the peptides scandle.
BigJ
Roar Guru
Um greg do some research Rogers did play for the saints between playing for the sharks. 29 games between 83-84 before returning to the sharks in 85. Granted it was at the end of his career but he still played for them
Sam
Guest
Think outside the square like the Sharks have done. Unlike most other clubs the Sharks don't rely on members of the general public losing their money on poker machines to fund their club. The Sharks own their home ground which means they dont have to pay massive amounts to rent out a stadium every time they play. They also have massive residential apartments on land they own which brings in income to fund their club meaning they aren't reliant on getting money from the leagues club. If I was a supporter of a club that still relied on funding from gambling I'd be worried, the Sharks have shown the way and gone from almost being broke to one of the most financially successful clubs in the game.