Roar Rookie
Joined March 2019
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The Gold Coast Titans have everything necessary to be a force in rugby league, but instead they languish at the bottom of the ladder…
Can Brisbane support a second NRL team? Absolutely. Will Brisbane support a second NRL team? Nope. There is no doubt that these days Queensland…
Exactly. Remember, one reason the Broncos took off (and many young ‘uns may not be aware of this) was the sheer joy of having a Queensland team in the game at all.
Queensland had dominated Origin since it had begun. There was no doubt that Queenslanders could compete with the best of them, and now we finally had a local team to prove it in the major competition.
The whole city got behind the Broncos. I remember, when they won in 92 and 93, hearing Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best” on the radio for weeks in Brisbane. For WEEKS. Didn’t matter what channel either.
(RIP the Brisbane Rugby League though).
Those conditions just don’t exist now for a new team.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
This is the gist of my article.
Broncos will choke the oxygen out of any new team in the greater Brisbane area.
Go where there is a ready made fanbase – such as the Central Coast, where the Norths / Bears franchise has a sizeable following already, or at least the foundations of one, and a you-beaut stadium ready to go.
Who’s been to the stadium in Gosford? For those who haven’t – it may not be the biggest in the NRL, but boy is it a treat. Scenic, cool breezes, what an experience.
Has to be one of the most beautiful in the game. Get a team in there every fortnight. What a waste.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
I agree that it is unreasonable, or at least that you’d think there was room for more.
I DON’T agree that anything can be done about it, not now.
That’s the point of my article – that the Broncos have this place so locked up that no other team will take off.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Like I said, Geoff, it’s not that Brisbane can only have one team.
It’s that I firmly believe that only one team here will be viable. Any other team will only survive with financial support from the NRL – and what’s the point in that?
The time for a second team was… well, straight away, actually. Had the Broncos had a local rival from day one, who knows how things might have turned out?
But the NSWRL (as it was then) guaranteed the Broncos there would be no rival team in Brisbane for a period (the first decade, I think).
The Gold Coast team was meant to be the ‘other’ Queensland expansion team at the time – but it never had a chance.
Again, guys, we have to deal with what’s possible, not what we’d like to happen. Just because we all want another team in Brisbane (yes, even me – I want the game to grow), and just because everyone south of the Tweed want to see the Broncos humbled, doesn’t mean it’s viable.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
That’s ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous.
The sissification of Rugby League continues…
(Apologies to any sissies reading this)
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
I think he means 8 in Sydney, one in Penrith (that’s the .5)
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Well, the same NRL that thought it was a great idea to install the Titans on the Gold Coast (a “dumb” example, according to you) is the same NRL that is certain a second team up here will be a roaring success.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Excellent points mate.
There is an awful lot of home-grown talent having to move away, it’s true. Such a waste.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Well, as my opening sentence reads:
“Can Brisbane support a second NRL team? Absolutely. Will Brisbane support a second NRL team? Nope.”
I’m well aware that on paper Brisbane can support another team. That’s why I opened saying just that. It’s just that in real life, down here on the ground, I’m convinced it will be a flop for the reasons I outlined.
You’re exactly right though – the only team with a chance of success would have to be a well established team like the Ipswich Jets. Again, though, I have my doubts about whether that would even work, as I wrote.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
I wonder if it’s the same thing, Geoff.
With GWS, that involved putting a second AFL team in an area that wasn’t particularly attached to AFL in the first place. Many supported the Swans because they were the only team around, but they didn’t have their hearts set on them. GWS found lots of room to move.
And even then – correct me if I’m wrong – but hasn’t the AFL had to support GWS (and the Gold Coast too) with massive financial subsidies to get them going? I don’t see the NRL doing that. The Titans were enough.
A second team in Brisbane would be going into NRL heartland with a pre-existing monster already there, not into an area where people are lukewarm about the sport to begin with and therefore don’t have many pre-conceived notions about which team to support.
As to your second point about Brisbane’s monopoly up here. All I can say there is – with the greatest respect to the other clubs – tough titties. The question isn’t about what SHOULD happen, or what others WANT to happen, but what is VIABLE.
I’ve outlined why I don’t think a second team is viable, I guess we’ll see if the NRL agrees.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
All good points, mate, except for your last sentence. The atmosphere at Lang Park is mind-blowing.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Yeah, though as I said in the article I doubt even a Logan/Ipswich team will take off.
Look, that’s practically Brisbane (yes, yes, I know that’ll rile up the Ipswich mob). There’s already immense support for the Broncos out there, just as much as in Brisbane itself.
As I wrote, if it was the Ipswich Jets themselves that were catapulted upwards into the NRL, then maybe. They already have a passionate fanbase of their own, all built up and ready to go.
But even then, I have serious doubts.
A central Queensland team might work, but where would they play? You’re right, infrastructure would be the issue there – not to mention the widespread and sparsely populated catchment area for fans (though the Cowboys got over that hurdle eventually).
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
What the Sharks might have done in 2015 and 2017 has no bearing on what the Storm DEFINITELY did over four years (2006-2010, and that’s just the ones we know about).
The Storm were the biggest cheats in Australian sporting history. Nothing that followed at other clubs changes any of that.
The punishment must stand.
Storm CEO throws shade at old NRL regime over salary cap penalties
I just don’t see it happening, mate, and I gave my reasons why.
If you know something I don’t, or have a special insight into the situation that I don’t, I’d love to hear it, really.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Thanks mate.
I used the Titans as an example of how a second team would get the life choked out of them by the big Broncos behemoth – but I could just as easily have used the Crushers.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
Yeah, like I said TB, there ARE a few up here that don’t like the Broncos.
But I just don’t know that there’s enough of them to form a second team – especially considering, as you say, many are already following others (Cowboys are well-liked up here).
Factor in, as I say, the wall-to-wall advertising and media dominance the Broncos have too, and I think anyone else will struggle.
Titans down the road are a great case-in-point, as I said.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming
I admire your passion, and I’m incensed your enquiry to the club was brushed off so rudely.
But I just don’t see it happening – the Tigers branding, whatever you might say (yes, I read your previous article also), is just too strong.
I’d love to see an independent Western Suburbs team back in the comp – hell, I’d love to see ALL the old clubs resurrected, every single one, if it were possible. I’m a traditionalist that way.
And I don’t think there’s any doubt now that Wests have recovered and could survive on their own (no chance for Balmain though). So you have to ask – why does the merger continue?
Answer: because it remains the best option for all parties.
I’m sure there is immense support for the Magpies out west, but none of the businesses involved seem keen to revive it as a team (or a name and a mascot) in its own right. Neither does the NRL. They’ve done the maths, they’ve done the research, and they know the most viable option is a team dominated by Wests but with the Tigers branding.
If it wasn’t, Western Suburbs would be out of there right smartly. But they aren’t, so there you go.
An open letter to the Wests Tigers and the NRL
I didn’t say “most”, I said “heaps.”
In their first ten matches they lost four, and barely beat Canterbury in a fifth – not to mention the absolute drubbing they received in a few of those games (the ANZAC Day match was a lowlight).
Had they continued on playing that way they wouldn’t have made the eight – but they righted themselves and went on to win.
And that was the author’s point. Mine, in response, was that one shouldn’t use a team that struggled early as a good example of how to pace yourself and win the title. They weren’t pacing themselves – they were getting beaten, and had to completely re-think how they played as a team.
NRL 2019 season preview: St George Illawarra Dragons
I’m telling you why it won’t work, mate, not telling you what I want to happen.
I’d love to see Queensland teams all over the place; but regardless of what I want, they just won’t take off in the South-East corner where the Broncos suck the life out of all rivals (see the Titans).
Hell, even the Cowboys – waaaay up there in the north – took a decade to get out of Brisbane’s shadow and become successful.
You asked why the Sunshine Coast never gets considered for expansion – that’s why.
Why the Eagles should move to Gosford… again
For the same reasons the Titans never really took off on the other coast:
1. The big Broncos behemoth only an hour and a half away.
2. See above.
Why the Eagles should move to Gosford… again
The Central Coast MUST BE the next target for expansion by the NRL. I don’t know if this means moving Manly there altogether – perhaps making them play half their games there a la St George in Wollongong would be enough – but something has to be done for the Coast, end of story.
You can’t talk about new teams in Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, the Moon, etc when you have a strong Rugby League area with a fantastic stadium already crying out for a team of their own.
Surely you pick the sure thing before you gamble on a team succeeding on the other side of the country with a different time zone?
Why the Eagles should move to Gosford… again
There are, I think, two different issues here.
If a new stadium is going to be built in Sydney, it needs public funding. Even in America – where NFL clubs are billion dollar businesses – it’s rare that a stadium gets built entirely from private money. It just can’t be done.
So, no argument there.
The question people are asking, though, is – why spend billions on a brand new stadium when the health and education system (not to mention public transport) in Sydney are in desperate need of more funding?
Is this a fair use of public funds when there are (many believe) more pressing issues? And is a brand-spanking new stadium a massive priority when so many of the NRL grounds don’t get filled with punters every week as it is?
You touched on this, but didn’t really address the issue – and for many, it’s the MAIN issue.
Why Sydney needs a new football stadium
“The Roosters in particular were an example of that last year, where they started slow, but put together a brilliant couple of months before the finals.”
Yeah, but the Roosters lost heaps of their early games, and many wrote them off as a chance. Sure, they ended up being wrong in the end – but every game counts. There’s no point in losing the first few just to keep your powder dry.
NRL 2019 season preview: St George Illawarra Dragons
I disagree with your analysis of the situation, but I admire your passion for the game.
A second Brisbane team? Tell him he's dreaming