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There are some major challenges in setting up an all-new professional rugby league team in Perth, in particular assembling a first-grade squad from players based on the Eastern Seaboard and moving them across the Nullabor.
It’s a risky proposition for all involved, unfortunately the first steps are the hardest when it comes to expansion.
Meanwhile, in Sydney we are spoilt with our home games as well as ‘away’ games which are often at the same ground.
Despite this, attendances continue to be underwhelming. Perhaps it’s a case of oversupply or maybe the attendances are the new norm in the era of pay TV and live streaming.
This has led me to thinking, could a Sydney team be successfully based out of Perth and how could the NRL support this?
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Let’s take Souths and this year’s draw, for example.
They have six away games against Sydney teams and six away games against non-Sydney teams.
They have seven home games against Sydney teams and five home games against non-Sydney teams.
So that’s at least six games in Sydney. To ensure a strong presence in their heartland, they could work with the NRL and opposing clubs to move three away games to Sydney and three home (Perth) games to Sydney, to give an even share of Perth and Sydney games.
The away teams would lose home-ground advantage, however could benefit from a gate-revenue sharing arrangement.
The NRL would need to support any team who was up for this with cost of setting up a second base and potentially some travel and accommodation subsidies.
They would also need to develop an intelligent draw that distributes the matches in a logical way, with no long time lags between games in Perth or Sydney.
AAP Image/Richard Wainwright
This arrangement would deliver 12 matches in Perth every year and provide Western Australia with a team that they can follow every week. Player depth would not be tested, as there would be no need to manufacture a new team. Players would not have to move to Perth in the short term and fans would have ample opportunity to see their team play and train and the derbies held in NSW’s capital city become marquee events.
The Swans have retained a great number of Bloods supporters who get to see their team every time they travel to Melbourne.
Perth NRL fans would benefit from this, as they would have more opportunities to see their team, and it would open up myriad promotional and sponsorship opportunities for the NRL.
The major con is that they would not be a Perth team. This may be offset, however, by having an established and competitive team from the outset who has made a commitment to the city.
If it was successful, it would pave the way for new teams in the future, complete with a readymade local rivalry.
Could this be a model for future expansion? Over to you Roarers!
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