Who's afraid of the AFL, asks Titans boss Michael Searle

[ParraEelsNRL]

Bit hypocrytical in a week were the AFL signed a star player from a rival code in a transparent attempt to undermine/destabilise said rival code.

This article is the result of the AFLs actions - did you expect the NRL to just bend over and take it?

RL to take it AFL style?

Fisty fisty :lol:

 

[intentcity]

Bit hypocrytical in a week were the AFL signed a star player from a rival code in a transparent attempt to undermine/destabilise said rival code.

This article is the result of the AFLs actions - did you expect the NRL to just bend over and take it?

these articals have been around for ages, long before cutie defected, you see these whos afraid of the AFL articals and you have to ask 1 question, "who said we're afraid" are the AFL running to the papers saying league are scared of them?, these NRL officials are just adding fuel to the fire, let it go, it will all be forgoton about soon enough.

alls the NRL need do is note whats happening, because there will come a time when the AFL arnt so strong and NRL are, these things fluctuate over time, who knows, maybe sometime soon the big media (world wide media) companys might think gee, there seems to be a lot of money in that sport, lets go and ass rape it.

 

[Greenbits]

these articals have been around for ages, long before cutie defected, you see these whos afraid of the AFL articals and you have to ask 1 question, "who said we're afraid" are the AFL running to the papers saying league are scared of them?, these NRL officials are just adding fuel to the fire, let it go, it will all be forgoton about soon enough.

alls the NRL need do is note whats happening, because there will come a time when the AFL arnt so strong and NRL are, these things fluctuate over time, who knows, maybe sometime soon the big media (world wide media) companys might think gee, there seems to be a lot of money in that sport, lets go and ass rape it.

Maybe, can't say I noticed but then I haven't been looking. What I have noticed is that the AFL has been trying to undermine the NRL and other sports for years now. cutie and Falou were just another in a long line. Maybe that is why the NRL is defensive.

 

[intentcity]

Maybe, can't say I noticed but then I haven't been looking. What I have noticed is that the AFL has been trying to undermine the NRL and other sports for years now. cutie and Falou were just another in a long line. Maybe that is why the NRL is defensive.

in what way?, im not being smart, i just dont know.

 

[Greenbits]

in what way?, im not being smart, i just dont know.

For starters this makes for interesting reading:

Warring partners on the brink

By Roy Masters
December 17, 2005

EVIDENCE given in the $1.1 billion Federal Court case, accusing News Ltd of a conspiracy to close the C7 pay-TV network, could undermine the already fractured relationship between the Australian Rugby League and the media giant.


The ARL and News Ltd are joint owners of the NRL, with both pledged to act in the best interests of the game.
If it can be demonstrated one party did not act this way, it has the potential to blow the merger apart.


News Ltd's chief general counsel, Ian Philip, a member of the six-person NRL Partnership Board, told the Federal Court on Monday he had lied to Telstra when he urged it to contribute up to $14 million to help beat a C7 bid for NRL pay-TV rights.


Philip admitted he was "desperate to try to get funds from them to facilitate the acquisition of the NRL rights and things were moving very fast".


Philip agreed his object was "to save News from having to put up at least $10 million, possibly more, out of its own pocket".


If this is interpreted as acting in News Ltd's interests, at the expense of the NRL, it could be grounds to destroy the merger agreement.


Relations between the two parties are already tenuous following accusations, in News Ltd publications, of largesse by ARL directors on the recent tour of England and France.


News Ltd has no role and derives no income from ARL activities overseas.
Relations between the ARL and the NRL have also deteriorated following a breakdown in communication over press releases announcing the return times to Australia of members of the Kangaroos touring party, including former coach Wayne Bennett.


News Ltd draws $10 million a year from NRL coffers to repay its "investment" in the code - moneys spent on the Super League war.
Some of this drawing is used to finance deficits at some of the three clubs News Ltd owns - Melbourne Storm, North Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos.


While there is some friction over this re-couping of funds spent on a war to gain pay-TV rights, some ARL hawks see the Philip evidence as an opportunity to break the partnership.


The lure is a perceived difference of $50 million between the C7 bid and the Fox Sports (50 per cent owned by News Ltd) offer and the potential for the NRL clubs to sue News Ltd for the recovery of this money.
Further, this sum could be used as a settlement for News to exit the partnership.


However, Channel Seven majority shareholder Kerry Stokes has already admitted that, on its lowest tier, the C7 offer could be less than the Fox Sports one.


The Federal Court is, therefore, unlikely to find the C7 offer was significantly greater, thereby undermining any action by rebellious clubs to sue News Ltd.


If News Ltd is perceived to have acted dishonourably in purchasing pay-TV rights for sport, so has C7.


An email from C7 executive Steve Wise, cited in the Federal Court, makes it clear the network bought the rights to football only to bury it, to please the AFL.


The November 2000 email, written when Channel Seven still had the AFL rights, lamented the AFL's lack of gratitude, saying: "There is no credit that we have secured the soccer rights and sufficated [sic] the sport, much to the chagrin of its supporters."


Football Federation Australia chief executive John O'Neill, asked to comment on the email, said: "Clearly FFA has moved on to a different era after having hit the depths of despair and having its fortunes resurrected by the Federal Government, via Australian Sports Commission funding.
"But in the light of this email, where, at the time Soccer Australia chairman David Hill trumpeted the Channel Seven-C7 deal as an absolute lifeline for mass entertainment soccer, to read it was a ruse whereby, if the email is interpreted literally, it appears their intention was to bury soccer rather than to promote it.


"And the objective of this was to gain favour with the AFL.
"Taken on its face, it's an incredibly alarming retrospective on how disadvantaged soccer was in a highly competitive market.
"Twenty-two months ago, we had no content; the NSL was in the last days of its history but not televised and the Socceroos had not played at home for 31 months.

"When you compare this with the visibility of the other three football codes, remembering the popularity of sport is inevitably measured by hours on TV, we weren't even on the radar screen.
"What I inherited at FFA in March 2004 could be traced back to the failure of that earlier transaction."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/warring-partners-on-the-brink/2005/12/16/1134703612029.html

 

[Didgi]

mate, did you even read the artical? maybe you should have another look at it, i couldnt give a flying F who gets what in the next deal, but stupid people and biased journos annoy the crap out of me, what i find worse is when peopole actually beleive the crap they read in articals like this.

Waht annois the crap out of me is peeple dat try to b grammer Nazis you no?

Really, your defeatist attitude and love of how AFL is better is better suited to an AFL forum. With an IQ like yours you'd fit right in to BigFooty.

 

[intentcity]

Waht annois the crap out of me is peeple dat try to b grammer Nazis you no?

Really, your defeatist attitude and love of how AFL is better is better suited to an AFL forum. With an IQ like yours you'd fit right in to BigFooty.

to many red wines, you do realise that grammar and spelling have no bearing on "IQ" dont you?, but if you didnt know that (and you quite obviously didnt), that is counted towards "IQ", funny how things work out sometimes isnt it?

maybe you should go and join big footy, i reckon you'd fit right in.

 

[typicalfan]

About time we had someone involved in the game telling it like it is.

Interesting about the FFA being buried for the AFL to look good. Sure the AFL want our real estate but I have no doubt that as a sport Soccer (Football) is the one that it most fears at least in the long term. For starters it threatens its name and identity, in Sydney football means firstly Rugby League and secondly Soccer, but the potential World Cup threatens their season and may give sports like Rugby League and Rugby Union a leg up if new venues are created in the long term. Whilst ever people enjoy the physical nature of Rugby League it won't die in Australia, not a hope in hell.

 

[trudge]

The word from an insider at a major accounting firm who do the books for the AFL suggests they are in deep financial trouble hence the desperate publicity at any cost.

Spending top dollar to diminishing your product into a circus is a bad move.

 

[Big Mick]

mate, did you even read the artical? maybe you should have another look at it, i couldnt give a flying F who gets what in the next deal, but stupid people and biased journos annoy the crap out of me, what i find worse is when peopole actually beleive the crap they read in articals like this.

So kinda like articles on your favourite Big Footy website?

Not biased at all because they all favour AFL?

As for your comment you hate when CEO's come out bagging another code...

HELLO!..AFL?

Demitripoo comes out every 5 seconds practically saying we are going to be #1 in NSW and QLD and destory anything in his fat greasy path.

Every AFL "Great" Dipperdickondo and others always publically bag Rugby League at every opportunity.

Not to mention now that they are attempting to steal talent by just buying their way into another market.

Pathetic really.

 

[bobmar28]

anti siphoning limits how much they can get... fox cant offer huge $$$ for full rights and drive up the price as by law a FTA network has to show the NRL, thus offering less $$$ and there is nothing that can be done...

a shame really.

Why? Do want NRL to be seen only by the 25% of people who have pay TV?

NRL is doing just fine on FTA ( Friday night NRL=684k, shown in 2 cities...AFL= 581k, shown in 5 cities) and should get a better deal for the next contract.

 

[$$Poor Boy Blues$$]

not scared? wanting to lock horns with the AFL, what a joke of an artical, possibly one of the most biased articals ive ever read, for staters he forgets to mention that in the big TV market "FTA", AFL rule, thats where the money is, also, AFL PAYTV games go head to head with other AFL FTA games, AFL outrate league on a veiwer per hour % on pay TV overall, but he forgets to mention that, yes AFL dont have origin and tests, but they do have a game that goes for an hour longer, they also have the irish games that rate well, also regarding pay TV, pay TV get the dread games, they dont get the collingwood/essendon games live all that often, i think collingwood areon live pay 2 times this year.

im sick and tired of these officials coming out bagging a rival sport, saying they arnt afraid of the rivals product blah blah blah, if they wernt afraid, they wouldnt feel the need to say anything..

the NRL need to forget about what the AFL get, the games are completly different and probably even more different from a broacasters point of veiw.

advertising dollars are worked out based on ratings, and these drive money in fta, so the reporters point sticks.

oh, and your expertise in this?

 

[$$Poor Boy Blues$$]

these articals have been around for ages, long before cutie defected, you see these whos afraid of the AFL articals and you have to ask 1 question, "who said we're afraid" are the AFL running to the papers saying league are scared of them?, these NRL officials are just adding fuel to the fire, let it go, it will all be forgoton about soon enough.

alls the NRL need do is note whats happening, because there will come a time when the AFL arnt so strong and NRL are, these things fluctuate over time, who knows, maybe sometime soon the big media (world wide media) companys might think gee, there seems to be a lot of money in that sport, lets go and ass rape it.

But you spell articles as 'articals'.

Don't they teach you right down in Victoria?

Hmmmm, and you guys mistook a weather balloon in the 60s for a ufo....idiots.....

to many red wines, you do realise that grammar and spelling have no bearing on "IQ" dont you?, but if you didnt know that (and you quite obviously didnt), that is counted towards "IQ", funny how things work out sometimes isnt it?

maybe you should go and join big footy, i reckon you'd fit right in.

Grammar and spelling do have a bearing on I.Q.


Who was the last great academic or just really clever person whos spelling was horrible? Dont say you. Its hard to get the big picture when you only have a small screen.

You, sir, are a douche, and a fool, and one of low I.Q. Strange how your voice is so high, then, eh??

The word from an insider at a major accounting firm who do the books for the AFL suggests they are in deep financial trouble hence the desperate publicity at any cost.

Spending top dollar to diminishing your product into a circus is a bad move.

This would not surprise me. Its obvious they spend money like it grows on trees.

While your statement cannot be confirmed, it would explain why they talk themselves up so much and have been pushing so hard for nsw and qld. They have always had one or two clubs close to bankruptcy and have even bailed out a club or two recently.

They are set to waste a lot soon on the rl markets and have little impact.

 

[bobmar28]

The word from an insider at a major accounting firm who do the books for the AFL suggests they are in deep financial trouble hence the desperate publicity at any cost.

Spending top dollar to diminishing your product into a circus is a bad move.

Are you sure about that? The problem is they are good at getting others to help them pay for their adventures. Like the ACT government backing of the GWS.

 

[babyg]

not scared? wanting to lock horns with the AFL, what a joke of an artical, possibly one of the most biased articals ive ever read, for staters he forgets to mention that in the big TV market "FTA", AFL rule, thats where the money is, also, AFL PAYTV games go head to head with other AFL FTA games, AFL outrate league on a veiwer per hour % on pay TV overall, but he forgets to mention that, yes AFL dont have origin and tests, but they do have a game that goes for an hour longer, they also have the irish games that rate well, also regarding pay TV, pay TV get the dread games, they dont get the collingwood/essendon games live all that often, i think collingwood areon live pay 2 times this year.

im sick and tired of these officials coming out bagging a rival sport, saying they arnt afraid of the rivals product blah blah blah, if they wernt afraid, they wouldnt feel the need to say anything..

the NRL need to forget about what the AFL get, the games are completly different and probably even more different from a broacasters point of veiw.

I'm sick of you coming out and bagging anything positive about rugby league.
All the NRL is doing is talking it's worth up and rightly so.
I think your time is up on these forums. You add no value and are just a useless whinger.

 

[intentcity]

I'm sick of you coming out and bagging anything positive about rugby league.
All the NRL is doing is talking it's worth up and rightly so.
I think your time is up on these forums. You add no value and are just a useless whinger.

anything positive about league?, theres nothing positive about league on this forum, this forum shouldnt be called league unlimited, it should be called "we hate AFL" forum, people whine about the AFL getting this and that, NRL not getting this and that, people call me stupid because my grammar and spelling isnt up to scratch (i left when i was 14, and i wagged the last 2 years lol), but id be more than happy to compare pay packets or assets aquired, yet, gordon tallis comes out and says he wants a team in perth by 2013, everyone cheers, yayyyyy, no one see's that that just wont happen by 2013, some people go further, they want 2 teams by 2013, again, yayyyyy, obviously that wont happen neither, the NRL are broke, well maybe not broke but they certainly dont have that kind of money floating around, they need to wait until the next TV deal and then decide where and when they can go, these things take lots of planning and time.

FWIW, a perth teams sounds good and is a must by 2016 IMO (depending on the TV deal) as for the other team, again, great idea, hopefully by 2016 as well, but id prefer that team to be in tassie, anyone want revenge on the AFL? well, heres your chance, the AFL have treated tassie like crap for ever and a day, the AFL have simply taken them for granted, a bit like they take the NT for granted, tasmanians love their sport, if league was a stand alone code down there they would follow it, by the time the AFL got off their ass's and made their own team down there, the bird may have flown, but then again, my "IQ" level cant really comprehend how these matters work.


also, these teams must be givin genorous conceessions, like the AFL are doing with their new teams, the new AFL teams will almost certainly be competitive within 2/3 yrs, these proposed NRL teams must be too.

 

[Shorty]

The word from an insider at a major accounting firm who do the books for the AFL suggests they are in deep financial trouble hence the desperate publicity at any cost.

Spending top dollar to diminishing your product into a circus is a bad move.

This doesn't surprise me.

 

[intentcity]

But you spell articles as 'articals'.

Don't they teach you right down in Victoria?

Hmmmm, and you guys mistook a weather balloon in the 60s for a ufo....idiots.....





Grammar and spelling do have a bearing on I.Q.


Who was the last great academic or just really clever person whos spelling was horrible? Dont say you. Its hard to get the big picture when you only have a small screen.

You, sir, are a douche, and a fool, and one of low I.Q. Strange how your voice is so high, then, eh??

ive done quite a few IQ tests on general IQ, average of around 120, not great i know but above the average of 100, my mrs FWIW averages 145, spelling or grammar havnt been in any IQ test ive takin, funnily enough my maths isnt great, but not horrible, i took an online maths IQ test 10 yrs ago, i just didnt understand it, any of it basiclly, at the end of the test, the result said, and i quote, "a blind monkey punching in random numbers could have scored higher", i know that adds nothing to my cause here but it was pretty funny all the same.



This would not surprise me. Its obvious they spend money like it grows on trees.

While your statement cannot be confirmed, it would explain why they talk themselves up so much and have been pushing so hard for nsw and qld. They have always had one or two clubs close to bankruptcy and have even bailed out a club or two recently.

They are set to waste a lot soon on the rl markets and have little impact.

 

[Greenbits]

About time we had someone involved in the game telling it like it is.

Interesting about the FFA being buried for the AFL to look good. Sure the AFL want our real estate but I have no doubt that as a sport Soccer (Football) is the one that it most fears at least in the long term. For starters it threatens its name and identity, in Sydney football means firstly Rugby League and secondly Soccer, but the potential World Cup threatens their season and may give sports like Rugby League and Rugby Union a leg up if new venues are created in the long term. Whilst ever people enjoy the physical nature of Rugby League it won't die in Australia, not a hope in hell.

You can bet they employ similar tactics against the NRL. Despite rating reasonably well, the Storm can't get on FTA in Melbourne. The only league stories Melbourne print media carry are poor behaviour beat ups and player defections...

 

[intentcity]

You can bet they employ similar tactics against the NRL. Despite rating reasonably well, the Storm can't get on FTA in Melbourne. The only league stories Melbourne print media carry are poor behaviour beat ups and player defections...

i thought news limited owned the hsun? if so you'd think it would be in their interest to cover league more.

the only time league ever makes the front/back page on the hsun is when its negative, as in the storm scandal.