I reckon a PNG-based team in Port Moresby could draw an average of 50,000 to their home matches and, will kill off the AFL’s attempt to wiggle their way into PNG.

Logan needs a team.because it’s a rugby league stronghold that’s under attack by the AFL. The Lions are trying to wiggle their way into the area.

Gosford needs a team ASAP. I reckon the Central Coast Bears should be admitted the same year the GWS side enter the AFL. That’ll be a great way to divert some media attention away from the GWS team!

I think an annual Aus vs NZ match is a great way for the FFA to entice new fans to the sport. Tapping into the Australia vs New Zealand rivalry will bring out rugby league/cricket/rugby union fans who normally wouldn’t bother to watch soccer.

Norm is right about Altona Rebel’s comment being a load of crap. My sister and her husband told me that a drunken Maori berated them at a Bledisloe Cup matches. The drunken Maori was thrown out of the ground for making racist comments about Australians and, causing a scene.

Remember the fat South African bloke who dislocated a referee’s shoulder during a Test?

I think it comes down to the RFU wanting to remain the elite governing body in the rugby union world. They’re trying to hold onto the power they enjoyed over the other unions during the the good ol’ days.

The reason the England rugby union team is such a joke is because the RFU doesn’t give a stuff about international rugby union. All they care about is the game’s history in England. If they cared about the English national team then they’d encourage their elite players to spend a season or two in Super Rugby so they can learn more about the southern style of the game. This would give their players a better understanding of what to expect when they play a Test match in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. The English team would be far stronger and more likely to challenge the southern nations for top spot on the ranking system. Unfortunately for you rugby fans, the RFU won’t do this any time soon.

“International schedule:
2011- European Four Nations
2012- Lions Tour (The Ashes), World Cup qualifiers
2013- World Cup UK
2014- Australasian Four Nations
2015- European Four Nations
2016- Kangaroo Tour (The Ashes)
2017- World Cup (?)”

I reckon your proposal is marketable. The RLIF, ARL and RFL would be foolish to ignore it.

A Perth-based NRL team needs to be supported by the local council and/or state government. Selling part of the club to the council and/or state government — or giving it to them if they don’t want to buy it — would give the club a.secure position in the Perth sporting market — it’ll be in the best interest of the politicians to ensure the club is profitable. THe money and clout associated with having government backing would give the club an enormous leg-up when it comes to gaining access to facilities and grounds. The other great thing about getting the government involved is it’ll make it harder for the ARU and AFL to bully the club around.

The WARL is supported by the WA State Government.

“This is different in all three other prominent codes in Australia. In League they are fully supportive of the super league and British, New Zealand and the rest in building League worldwide. ”

The ARL, NSWRL and QRL only grant representative honours to those who are linked with the NRL or Queensland Cup or NSW Cup. I think Allan Langer and Darren Smith are the only two players who were not ruled out of contention to play for Queensland and Australia, respectively, while they were playing in England.

The NRL does not play their matches under the RLIFs laws.

Logan City needs a team of its own.

“Just as the amount of money News Limited paid the ARU for rugby union which you seem to say its dying in Australia. I wish I could see the future as most rugby league fans do” dave

You mean the lousy $130 million over 5 years deal? That’s nothing. The next NRL TV deal is estimated to be worth around $200 million per year!

Face it buddy, you’re jealous of rugby league’s strength in Australia.

QC,

There’s nothing unclear about Brissie Kid’s comment: it was written in response to a thread about Australian sport and, compared the Stupid Rugby franchises in Australia with the NRL and AFL. Only a batshit insane rugby union hysteric who is insecure about their sport’s limited appeal in Australia would respond so vitriolically to the suggestion that their sport will never match rugby league and Australian rules football in Australia.

Don’t forget that this is a website about Australian sport…

“put that 4 X down and come back when you actually have something to add to the debate”

I don’t drink alcohol.

“You claim my comment is rubbish but you offer nothing that really is quite juvenile” QC

Very poor punctuation. Learn how to punctuate your writing.

Saying the NRL cannot grow — which is what you said — is rubbish because there are heaps of areas that are interested in joining the NRL and, there are at least 2 major cities in Australia that haven’t been tapped into yet. THere are many areas interested in fielding an NRL team of their own.

They are:

Logan City — A local businessman wants to put in a bid.
Rockhampton — A consortium has placed a very strong bid on the table.
Port Moresby — The PM of the nation is the man behind the bid.
Perth — The WARL want to be in the NRL and, are in the process of developing enough juniors to support a 2013 entry into the NRL.
Adelaide — The South Australian Government wants the Sharks to relocate to Adelaide.
Gosford — Their bid is very serious.

Even Wellington has expressed interest in joining the NRL.

Not bad for a sport that has no where to grow, is it?

“Like I said the season will be extended next year and there will be a fifth team in Australia that to me says an increase in professional oppurtunities a big carrot for those coming through the ranks,” QC

The FTA television networks aren’t interested in televising the Stupid 15 Rugby competition. This means the Stupid Rugby franchises in Australia are not going to entice major companies to invest in them. No one in their right might would turn to the Queensland Meds, Western Farce, NSW Waratards, ACT Dumbies or Melbourne Pebbles when their games barely rate on Fox Sports. A company would be better off sponsoring one of the NYC’s teams because their games on Fox Sports outrate Stupid 14!

The inclusion of the Rebels will dilute the already shallow pool of players that are spread across the Queensland Meds, NSW Waratards, ACT DUmbies and Western Farce.

Face it buddy, there are more opportunities in rugby league, soccer and Australian rules football. It’s why the ARU and the state unions will struggle to entice juniors to choose rugby union over the other football codes.

“Also the season will be longer oh no the fans will have longer to warm to their teams, oh not to mention twice as many local derbies and surrogate Sate vs State battles oh thats right its facts that you like to sidestep while painting your picture while bagging union rather adolescent don’t you think?” QC

So tell me, how is an extended Stupid Rugby competition going to appeal to persons who think rugby union is boring? Most Australians think rugby union is a boring sport to watch. Some of the officials in the game have admitted the game is boring! SANZAR and the ARU will need to address these issues if they want Australians to embrace their sport. I guess this is a “fact” that you don’t want to accept.

The lack of coverage on FTA television won’t help. I guess this is a “fact” that you don’t want to accept.

The state vs state battles are irrelevant to most Australians because it’s not a state of origin concept. The public’s disinterest in the Queensland Meds vs NSW Waratards match is proof of it. I guess this is a “fact” that you don’t want to accept.

“Oh did I mention that there is the added bonus of international matches that add some flavour to the competition,” QC

The mean the Stupid Rugby matches between the provincial teams from South Africa and New Zealand? They’ve been played since it was known as the Stupid 8, yet they’ve failed to capture the public’s interest. What makes you think the public are going to take an interest in them now?

“but thats right in your little league bubble you can not deal with the fact that rugby has alot of room to grow and is doing it’s best to make itself known and it is succeeding” QC

LOL

Stupid Rugby has hardly grown. Adding one team into the competition and splitting the teams up into 3 conferenes isn’t much to write home about. If it’s the most the Stupid Rugby can do then the game is in deep trouble!

If you want to speak about “room to grow”, look at the amount of areas that want an NRL team of their own!

PS I laugh when a rugby union fan — you know, the sport that is supposedly played by intellectuals who are morally superior to us rugby league folk — doesn’t know the difference between “it” and “it’s”. Perhaps those GPS schools don’t have the best teachers afterall…

“Rugby may be 4th in Australia however it has the potential to grow where as League and AFL are nearing saturation point.” QC

Rubbish.

Ora,

Brissie kid was talking about the Australian sports scene. Whatever happens in South Africa and New Zealand is irrelevant.

Stop trolling the forum and stay on topic.

“I don’t think the Western Reds and Perth Reds fans ever obtain the emotional buy-in that NRL and AFL competitions offer their clubs back in 1997 and 98 season.” dave

You sure know your history, don’t you dave? Reds folded after the 1997 Super League season.

“PNG – keep dreaming.” King of the Gorganites

You think rugby league isn’t the most popular sport in PNG? If so then you’re an idiot! Rugby league is the national sport of PNG and, is so popular and admired by its people that its National Government wants to field a team in the NRL! You don’t see them trying to field a team in the Stupid 15, do you?

Didn’t you once say that rugby union can “take” PNG away from rugby league whenever it wants? Yes you did.

What makes you think the people of PNG will suddenly support rugby union? If they want to support a “true global sport” then they’ll choose soccer, not rugby union.

You were stupid enough to say that rugby union was ahead of rugby league in Australia and, that it would overtake rugby league around 2011 or so. This is living proof that you live in a fantasy world.

Are you schizophrenic?

Sigh……

Siva, the point M1tch is making is that the 9,450 fans who turned up to the Eels vs Dragons game in Perth were interested in the event. Some of them are probably avid supporters of the Dockers, Force, Eagles and Glory, though this isn’t a bad thing — if enough people in Perth are open-minded enough to support more than one sport then it’ll be easier for the NRL and ARL to develop the game in Perth!

The comment about Blacktown and the Swans holds merit too. If most of the people who went to the game are loyal to the Swans then they’re unlikely to support their cross-town rivals!

Do you now understand M1tch’s point or are you still dumbfounded?

Thanks Michael C.

Chris,

The attendance for the recent NRL trial game in Perth was 9,450.

You reckon the 10,000 figure for the GWS AFL game is good.

Therefore, if we’re to go by your logic, then that means the attendance for the NRL trial game was good. In fact, you’d have to say the attendance for the trial game was great because Perth is smaller than western Sydney.

“RLeague isn’t even on the radar in WA and you know it… get real… if given the choice people from WA will choose RUnion over RLeague every time as history has shown – look at the following of the Force and attendance at international tests…” — Chris

I am good friends with an 18-year-old woman who was schooled in Perth. She told me that the boys at her school talked about rugby league and made fun of anyone who watched or played rugby union.

I’ve always preferred Test cricket over the shorter forms of the game. There’s no intensity in the shorter forms of the game.

I like to watch the best compete for the right to be the best. Only Test cricket offers this.

Rugby league is quite popular in the Northern Territory and, has a long history in Perth.

The Roar is an Australian website about Australian sport.

“the 2009 ABS survey of that same series was out in Oct (installments 200, 2003, 2006 and 2009) – so, you needn’t rely on the 2006 numbers, the 2009 ones are available:”

I’m viewing the website and PDF version of the publication “4156.0. SPORT AND RECREATION: A STATISTICAL OVERVIEW, AUSTRALIA (2009)”. Its data comes from the 2000, 2003 and 2006 versions of the study. It was updated in October 2009.

The source of the information is listed underneath its data table:

“Source: Children’s Participation in Cultural and Leisure Activities, Australia, April 2006 (cat. no. 4901.0).

Is this the one you’re viewing?

I cannot find any information about 2009.

I agree with your “theory that nothing good happens after 2am”. I don’t think anyone should be out and about at that time because it’s unhealthy and dangerous. Sleep is a necessity because it allows the brain to repair itself. People underestimate the problems they cause to their health when they don’t give their brain enough time to repair itself. I cannot see the appeal behind partying at 3:00am, but I think young people like Hayne feel compelled to do it because they see other people doing it. I that regard I can sympathise with him because he just wants to be like everyone else, though I do not agree with his decision.

Possibly, though I think the only teams who’d use it are the ones that don’t have a trustworthy goal-kicker, but they’d probably limit it to the times they score near the sideline The only other time a team would use it is when they trail by four points with no time remaining on the clock.

The rules would need to be changed so that the attacking team can utilise a kicking game during the play.

Excellent elbusto!

Does the Tasmanian Rugby League offer membership to persons living on the mainland?

If enough fans from Queensland and NSW were to become members of the TRL then it would help to fund the competition and develop the game.