Expansion is every NRL fan’s new favourite topic and everyone has an opinion, from the eternal chants to bring back the Bears to the calls growing louder and louder for a team based in Perth.
Most of these calls are nothing more than a bit of fun with some seeds of truth but one opinion that seems to be growing with each passing loss is that the Titans should be scrapped during this new development of the NRL.
These calls are not only stupid but betray a misunderstanding of what expansion needs to accomplish for the NRL: more fans and a deeper engagement with the NRL.
Lets take a look at the Titans.
They are situated in South-East Queensland – a growing area with the second largest population in Queensland. They are one of only three Queensland teams – despite Queensland being one of two states to fully embrace the 13-a-side code – and have strong juniors, a great stadium and rich owners.
The only thing currently stacked against the club is poor on-field success, with a semi-final in 2010 held as the club’s best result. However, as we have seen in Newcastle, a determined board and a decent coach focused on rebuilding can make mammoth changes in a short period of time.
The Titans have great people fully invested in the success of the club and are in nowhere near as dire a situation as the Knights were roster-wise during their run of wooden spoons.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
Jai Arrow, Jarrod Wallace and Moeaki Fotuaika are great forwards supported by Ash Taylor who, on his day, can match it with anyone.
No, not all of their signings have panned out and the slew of high-profile failures including Jarryd Hayne, Leilani Latu and the two duds this year, Shannon Boyd and Tyrone Peachey, have not helped their case as a destination that players want to go to.
However, if signing promising players on big money was the sign of a club that needed to be relocated, then every team would have been moved at one stage in their operational lives.
Remember that the Titans are still relatively young as a club and many teams don’t taste success for years anyway. The Sharks took 50 years before they achieved ultimate glory. The NRL is a great competition because of how even it is and how quickly things can change when things come together.
The Titans have more going for them than most Sydney clubs and, with a good coach, they genuinely will be a threat in the future. The calls for their removal and movement are so utterly bizarre and should be treated as such.
Hopefully, for their fans, they live up to their name sooner rather than later.
Mantis
Roar Guru
The Gold Coast isnt a problem for the NRL, its a problem for sports teams full stop. No team in a national competition has had any success despite there being a number of professional teams for the better part of 40 years. NRL, AFL, Soccer, Basketball have all failed. I dont know why (players go up there to party, no connection with the area and community??) but figuring that problem out is key.
Hard Yards
Roar Rookie
Lol ! Well I appreciate even ( in retrospect) the small generosity - it is blessed to give !
Dogs Boddy
Roar Rookie
So are you saying the locals will only support a winning team then?? You are certainly not alone, winners bring more people to almost every ground, the exception is Newcastle. A team that can draw crowds like that to watch them win three spoons has the best supporters in the comp.
Dwanye
Roar Rookie
Hi Succhi. The GC area does develop lots of talent, just can’t hold them from other clubs, particularly bronco’s
Dwanye
Roar Rookie
Hi Scott. Why parramatta? According to Roy Morgan Research they one of the most supported.
MORDAC
Roar Rookie
What utter nonsense. GC is a large city in it’s own right. Larger than Canberra and Newcastle for example. I think a second Brisbane team would be really good for GC in the long-term. So many residents support the Broncos. A second Brisbane team to help break the Broncos stranglehold in SE QLD would be good for GC in the long term even if creating short-term problems with sponsorship and juniors being poached.
MORDAC
Roar Rookie
A good coach will turn things around. Off the field, they are actually pretty strong. Signing Taylor and Cartwright period and a number of others on the amount of money they are on rightly meant Brennan had to go. Shonkies went 50 years without a premiership and when they got one, it was with the help of salary cap cheating, are perennially in financial trouble and etc. They will be history long before GC.
Scott
Guest
First one got moderated so I'll try again. Gold Coast locals generally don't talk to people from Sydney and Melbourne for at least a year after they move here because we don't need to hear about property prices and traffic (Sydney) and coffee and AFL (Melbourne). If you stayed lomger we may have started talking to you. It's the sixth largest city in Australia with a reasonably young population based on percentages, though we do have a lot of real estate agents- most from Sydney
Scott
Guest
Good article and thank you. If they win their crowds will increase very quickly, which can't be said of Roosters, Parramatta, Cronulla and Canberra
Scott
Guest
Most locals try to avoid people from Sydney and Melbourne for 12 to 18 months so that may be why you struggled to settle in.
Scott
Guest
Sorry realised you said Southern Brisbane - the club would be gone in a year if that happened because it is just too dumb for words. I apologise for thinking you had a sembalance of an idea about the Gold Coast because you visited once, I was too generous to you
Scott
Guest
They are considered part of the Gold Coast by the locals and most us would hate the name Southern QLD. If you knew anything about the Gold Coast you'd know Robina wouldn't work as a name either but your opinion seems as valid as me commenting on Canterbury (which I think is somewhere near Penrith so they should merge?)I don't however disagree with the board comments though it has improved in recent years
Hard Yards
Roar Rookie
I think we are in furious agreement about ex footballers. My point is the people, as an example, running Paramount film studio don’t have to be ex actors, but they do need to know all the elements of the film business. In fact, I can’t think of an actor I’d want to manage my share capital, just as I can’t offhand think of any ex footballers that I’d want in a senior management position. I can’t imagine studio execs being proficient actors, cameramen, scriptwriters or film directors. But frankly, the people who run film studios would have the general skills to run the entertainment business of footy. The elephant in the room is that there isn’t a well developed professional executive base, because the market is so thin, there are only a small number of participants in it (at professional level) and its still kind of look after ya mates. But I personally don’t see it changing within 20 years, but that’s just my own view. As for Scott Penn, well I will say he had the money, and as we all know every rich guy is a genius, isn’t he?
John Collison
Roar Pro
Hi Nat, I've written other positive articles including this one about celebrating forwads: https://www.theroar.com.au/2019/07/14/its-time-to-celebrate-the-forwards/ Thanks.
Succhi
Roar Rookie
I lived on the Gold Coast for a while. People who are born there move away for better work opportunities. People that move there are either retirees, bikies, divorcees or real estate agents. It’s a hard place to settle into and not the sort of place you go to for career growth - in any field. It was a nice lifestyle, but shallow.
Dwanye
Roar Rookie
Hi Albo, agreed. It also needs better management i.e. recruiting, developing, financing, blah, blah, blah. Maybe that not best wording and it totally comes from me acknowledging it would be extremely tough. Lol. It seems half the comp has ordinary management. But because of being foundation or decades of history it easily yelled down. I think any club regards of age Or titles being closed is sad, a bad look for code and not inviting to investment. I not saying they indefinitely get bail outs, a gulf between have and have nots with quality of players doesn’t help.
Brian_K
Roar Rookie
The titans need a complete rebranding exercise. I live on the gold coast, my friends and I refer to the titans as the NSW titans. It feels like they have not tried to connect or embrace the local area. They've been quick to import players from south of the border, the inaugural coach was from Sydney and their damn jerseys are sky blue. They're located at Robina QLD not Tweed NSW. Change their branding (really just they colour), get a QLD coach, embrace the local players and leagues, and then I'm sure they will be successful. Winning a few games would surely help too.
Larry1950
Guest
So Hard Yards, Scott Penn has a background in marketing with the family having an interest in Weight Watchers before they set up an online health service. Guess that makes him qualified to run a club & keep their forwards trim. Nonsensical rubbish, ex footballers are generally just that, never had a real job, no business training & have been spoon fed all their lives.
Big Daddy
Guest
The NRL made the decision to bring titans back in so they won't be trying to get rid of them. It was between them and the central coast. Who's to say they would have been any better. This is a good example of why they won't be rushing into expansion. They've been burnt too many times.
Albo
Roar Rookie
Until the Titans find a group of talented locals that can be developed into a strong NRL unit as we saw Parramatta & Canterbury in the 80's , the Raiders , Panthers & Knights in the 90's, then they are going nowhere fast, but using the same old formula of trying to mould a team of other Club's rejects with over priced contracts in a holiday resort town .... a recipe for likely disaster. So the key to any Titans future success or longevity is to get the best recruitment eyes out at juniors matches in SE QLD and tying these youngsters to the Titans apron strings and developing them to be the new identity team of 2023, playing for the pride of their district , playing alongside the guys that graduated with them in the juniors . It needs to be another Johns or Gidley brothers emergence, or a Brandy, Fitler, Geyer combination or Daley , Stuart , & Clyde combo to finally arrive at Robina . It's gotta come from the grass roots , not the transit lounges.