No Point Moaning When It Happens !

[Pigskin]

Moan Now !

Can anybody tell me if the NRL has changed its farcical scheduling regarding 2nd and 3rd week finals all being played in Sydney.

Using the McIntyre system we all know that the top 4 sides get a home final in week 1 of the finals. And so they should. Thats why there is an N in NRL - National.

However it would seem a pretty apt time to bring up the subject of second and third week finals and the venues they are to be played.

The Broncos are currently 2nd on the ladder. Now I'm not getting ahead of myself cause we could certainly have a little post-Origin let down and finish somewhere from 5th to 8th at the end of the year. (In which case this whole subject should still be discussed/revisited for the benefit of Melb, Newc etc.) With such a good start to the year even the biggest Bronco-hater would have trouble seeing us miss the finals in 2004 altogether from this point.

But should we finish the season in lets use 3rd for example ..... all the top 4 teams win week 1 of the finals ..... we would line up vs probly team 5 in week 2 of the finals and have to play them in Sydney. Now I don't care who team 5 is, if we really are part of the N for National RL - under these circumstances having finished higher on the ladder and having won in week 1 of the finals .... anybody with any sense of reason would surely agree that we have the right to host a final in week 2 in Brisbane also (or in Melb, Newc wherever).

The permutations for week 3 finals are a little more complex and I won't delve into them at this time however maintaining that the higher ranked team is probly still deserving of the home final. The AFL certainly promote the idea of a National competition in this way despite their ridiculous leasing agreement with the MCG. Why can't the RL follow suit.

Can anybody tell me if this archaic scheduling flaw has been rectified ? Have the venues already been determined ? Thoughts on the above ?

Oink !

 

[Red Bear]

Couldnt give a crap, but the Grand Final should always be played in Sydney.

 

[Chicken_Hunter]

Couldnt give a crap, but the Grand Final should always be played in Sydney.

What if it was broncos vs cowboys?

 

[nqboy]

Totally agree Pigskin. It'd be a shame for the Cowboys to finish in the Top 4, win in the first week of finals and still have to play in Sydney in Week 2.

 

[Pigskin]

Couldnt give a crap, but the Grand Final should always be played in Sydney.

What if it was broncos vs cowboys?

It could happen one day - would set a ground low record GF at Telstra Stadium

Oink !

 

[I Bleed Green]

I wholeheartedly agree with your post. I mean, imagine if it there were Brisbane vs. Melbourne or Newcastle vs. Canberra games... they wouldn't draw as much as in Sydney as if they were at the home ground of the highest ranked team. It's ridiculous. Chances are that at least 1 of the semi's in the 2nd and 3rd week will be in Sydney anyway, so it's not as if Sydney will miss out.

 

[Pigskin]

Couldnt give a crap, but the Grand Final should always be played in Sydney.

Not trying to take the GF away from Sydney.

Oink !

 

[Eels Dude]

Why should the higher ranked team get a home ground advantage during week 2 just if it is Brisbane? I'm sure if Penrith finished 3rd and were playing 5th they'd prefer it were played at Penrith rather than a nuetral ground.

 

[Pigskin]

Why should the higher ranked team get a home ground advantage during week 2 just if it is Brisbane? I'm sure if Penrith finished 3rd and were playing 5th they'd prefer it were played at Penrith rather than a nuetral ground.

All teams, not just Brisbane. NQ will one day make the top 4. Newc, Melb, CC, Canberra, NZ, GC ...... all of them.

If Penrith want to play the finals they have won the right to host at Penrith Park .... thats great.

However Penrith would probly see $ signs and want it played at a venue with a greater capacity.

Oink !

 

[nqboy]

Agree with that too.

 

[steaming stormer]

Up until the grand final the team with a better record from the year should get the advantage they have EARNED throughout the season. The GF should stay in Sydney though, I don't have a problem with that

 

[t-ba]

Doesn't the NRL get the Profits from all finals matches after the First Round? It would be more in the NRL's interest to move these matches.

 

[Grantwhy]

At a guess, the reason would be so that ground sponsorship/corporate boxes can be sold during the season, not just within the last week or so.

Money or respect/rewarding Teams for winning in finals.

Looks like they don't think they have both.

 

[Saint 60]

lol - the Grand Final will remain in Sydney until Qld or Vic or NZ have a heap of teams like New South Wales does...

There would be a sell out crowd in Qld no risk....but until u have several more sides in Qld the Grand Final will remain in Sydney --- lol whether the Trophy does or not....

 

[Razor]

It could happen one day - would set a ground low record GF at Telstra Stadium

Why would it? Most people would go for the event.

If I lived in Sydney, I'd go every year no matter who was playing, and the vast majority of people at the ground would.

Look at the Super Bowl in the US. Held in a city that very rarely is home to any of the teams in the Super Bowl. Look at the crowds they get.

 

[Anonymous]

The week 2 finals should be half Sydney and half Brisbane.

However what kind of turnout would there be in Brisbane for, say, Melbourne vs Canberra? I'd say there would be a better crowd in Sydney for that.

 

[Eskimo Sharkie]

Look at the Super Bowl in the US. Held in a city that very rarely is home to any of the teams in the Super Bowl. Look at the crowds they get.

Have to compare apples with apples. Cities bid for the right to host the Super Bowl and the US population is just a touch larger than ours (like about 17-18 times more). Airfares in the US are much cheaper than here in Oz and the game is a truly national one.

The home ground advantage through the finals works for the AFL and makes sense for rugby league. The higher placed team come season end deserves every advantage through the semis. Otherwise you end up with the Roosters having virtual home games through the finals and an advantage so long as they make the finals.

 

[miccle]

Of course the GF should always stay in sydney, no one has said otherwise. I reckon a broncos/cowboys gf would still pack it out - you'd have all of qld there!!!! Plus all the neutral supporters that go along anyways!

 

[DJ1]

Week 2 games and onwards should be played at the same ground as the Grand Final. This is a neutral ground and should be. The round 2 and 3 semis at he same ground allow all teams to acclimatise to the Grand Final ground prior to playing there. It makes for a much better Grand Final when one team doesn't get stage fright a la Eels V Knights.

 

[Sportsjock]

The schedule needs planning, and even if a 2nd week game was listed at Lang Park ( Suncorp ) , there is every chance with the way the standings and draw pans out, that the Broncos might be playing in Sydney, while 2 Sydney teams have to head up to Brisbane.

It is impossible to work it out based off what ifs... A difference of one position here or there in the final standings would then make a Brisbane semi final a farce if two Sydney teams had to play there.

Telstra Stadium is the home of NRL.

Unless you are trying to say that Brisbane should get a semi final in week two, and the Brtoncos should AUTOMATICALLY be allowed to play at home if still playing in the semi finals?!?!??!?!?!?! EVEN IF THE DRAW AND THEIR POSITION SAYS THEY ARE TO PLAY THAT WEEKEND AT THE SYDNEY VENUE?!?!??!


Then it seems unfair doesn't it?