Expansion

The Mad Hatter · Oct 25, 2012

Interesting.

From Brisbane Bombers Facebook today:

Brisbane Bombers
Breaking News: The ARL Commission have just announced that a clarification statement and direction on expansion will be formally announced next week.

Buckle Up.

AyiosYiorgos · Oct 25, 2012

hope so, get Perth, 2 QLD sides, NZ, central coast, SA, DarwinDingo's, tassie devils in the next 20 years, make it a truly national comp (yes NZ is international) while we area at it get PNG as well...

The Mad Hatter · Oct 25, 2012

I want 17th and 18th to be West Coast (Perth) Pirates and Brisbane Bombers.

5 years time, Central QLD too.

Muzza · Oct 25, 2012

Just wriggled out from under my rock! This is the first time I've heard the name BRISBANE BOMBERS (crappy mascot by the way - Bombers, blahhh!!!) What of the CC Bears?

Tanswell87 · Oct 25, 2012

Only way the bears will ever get in is in the place of one of the existing NSW sides.

We can't call ourselves a national comp if we introduce another NSW club to go with the other 10 of 16.

ooneil · Oct 25, 2012

Give it a miss for 5 years. Expansion has turned the afl into a joke. Let's get the existing clubs making money before we throw stupid amounts at new clubs.

Muzza · Oct 25, 2012

Agree, it's turned into a bit of a sideshow and will only get more ridiculous in the off-season with nothing better for the rags to harp on about. Still keep thinking "been there, done that" with some of these franchises.

AyiosYiorgos · Oct 25, 2012

WA is ready

stormjohn · Oct 25, 2012

ooneil said:
Give it a miss for 5 years. Expansion has turned the afl into a joke. Let's get the existing clubs making money before we throw stupid amounts at new clubs.

Dont totally agree the Afl is a joke, its the Strongest national league by a mile and are very smart at on there outlook.
Im from melbourne and dont really follow afl that much but you do realize down here how good they are at marketing.
I Agree with you that the nrl need to put more money in there current clubs before they expand.

The Mad Hatter · Oct 25, 2012

AFL is very good at the spin, plus they have the ABC on side, as well as pollies.

ooneil · Oct 25, 2012

Okay. Let me rephrase. The expansion teams of the afl is a joke. 70%+ of games thus year blew out by 50 points. The expansion has weakened the quality of the comp IMO.

8000 people showing up at GWS and Suns games was hardly worth the $100 million spent.

Just my opinion. Good topic!

The Mad Hatter · Oct 25, 2012

The NRL - I believe - is in an enviable position now to ensure the current 16 teams are as strong as can be.

They also have more potential markets - Central Coast, Riverina, Brisbane, Brisbane West/Ipswich, Central Qld, Perth and NZ2 to aim for. There is also the development markets of PNG and Adelaide.

They need to see what is and isn't working now, make adjustments and ensure the new markets they bring in thrive.

Brendan_B · Oct 25, 2012

The expansion debate is a tough one; Making the current crop of teams as strong as possible is very important but I think we are definately ready for a new team in the next couple of years. I am hoping for a perth based team so the game can start to get a more national profile.

I think PNG should be re-admitted into the Queensland Cup which is a fairly decent comp and would really give PNG a boost internationally. I think the reason the PNG (Vipers I believe) folded was due to the costs associated with teams travelling there, maybe the NRL could throw some sponsorship dollars at this!

Diggaz TC · Oct 25, 2012

The WA Pirates do need to be next, i think they are a lock.

ch0pzta · Oct 25, 2012

Digeze said:
The WA Pirates do need to be next, i think they are a lock.

I agree fully, i've been following their Facebook page for a while and they are very active, even unveiled a new jersey today.

Lazlow · Oct 25, 2012

ooneil said:
Okay. Let me rephrase. The expansion teams of the afl is a joke. 70%+ of games thus year blew out by 50 points. The expansion has weakened the quality of the comp IMO.

8000 people showing up at GWS and Suns games was hardly worth the $100 million spent.

Just my opinion. Good topic!

Too soon to judge it this harshly.

And to be fair to the Suns their average home attendance this year was 13,645 to the Titans 14,405. Not a massive deficit there. No doubt helped by family passes being cheaper to Suns games than Titans games. GWS did average 8117 to Skoda, but that's still 75% of what Penrith averaged this year (10,858).

(That said, I'm on the fence as to whether Folau has been worth it. I think there's a combination of poor handling by the club, coupled with his disillusionment at struggling, that lead to some pretty poor performances)

Expansions cost money, expansions into competition territory more so. You can't half-arse this type of thing, and if a Perth NRL side was go ahead the NRL would need to make a similarly large investment to compete with already existing AFL, Super Rugby and A-League sides. Not to mention concessions would have to be made to move players west. The Western Force have lost a number of key players due to family - and essentially the "heartland" of the game - being on the east coast.

Personally I think a second New Zealand team would be a smarter move, not only for the NRL but for the game as whole. The Warriors pull decent crowds, averaging 15,257 this year. There's massive pool of schoolboy rugby talent that can be tapped into, plus there's no AFL to compete with. It might even help kick along a North vs South origin game. To me it feels like a lower risk genuine (ie not another QLD or NSW team) expansion.

thenamesgould · Oct 26, 2012

A Wellington side would have absolutely gone off a few years ago. I think there's barely been a crowd under 20,000 here. But - we haven't had an NRL game since 2004, which is pathetic. There's definitely a huge supporter base here though. I'm biased, but I think with the amount of junior talent we produce, and the fact that currently all our eggs are in one basket with the Warriors (if they have a poor season, league drops off the map here) a second New Zealad team is a must.

shane_sharks · Oct 26, 2012

there will be no expansion

but if they did perth would be the logical choice especially with the time difference they could have 3 lives games on a saturday night back to back

1967Sharks · Oct 26, 2012

We should relocate.

shane_sharks · Oct 26, 2012

1967Sharks said:
We should relocate.

NO

Expansion

OzCardTrader

Card Addict

OzCardTrader

Back to Belmore

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

Back to Belmore

Card Addict

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

OzCardTrader

Similar threads

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency