NRL expansion being dropped from agenda until at least 2015

[Perth Red]

Just been reading some stuff around that and I can see that may well be an outcome. Having said that Bears, CQ and Ipswich won't so that only leaves PNG and Bombers to possibly join Q'land cup and Pirates to join NSW cup.

 

[lockyno1]

This is probably the worse possible outcome from the bids point of view. No expansion for 5 years and they would have packed up and gone home, expansion now and they could have presented their bids and the winner got on with it. No decision for two years means all the bids are going to continue working hard and spending money trying to get a place when it is reviewed in 2 years time. A very decision imo.

Good, let the most profitable bids survive. Show us the financial viability of the bid- and not one off game crowd figures, but long-term. I want to see expansion but not before 2016, and put the BEST TWO teams in, I hate byes. 18 teams will be the cut-off though, no further teams, not unless we have two divisions.

 

[Red&BlackBear]

Just been reading some stuff around that and I can see that may well be an outcome. Having said that Bears, CQ and Ipswich won't so that only leaves PNG and Bombers to possibly join Q'land cup and Pirates to join NSW cup.

Theoretically the CCBears, CQ and Ipswich all have teams in either NSW Cup or Q Cup. No point in them spending more on those avenues when it's already in place. However I do still its time for Norths to move all their senior operations to CC. Only hurdle is that Wyong have entered the NSW Cup for 2 years.

 

[bobmar28]

Agree 100% your thoughts on 9th game value....of couse it adds value to the game - if they use that its an excuse.

This is precisely the position of Bears speculation - minimal cost/low risk expansion pre-next deal for a year or two to ensure a bumped up TV deal which would allow additional expansion in the subsequent deal. The only way that could happen is Bears plus a SEQ team out of Suncorp - not my preferred outcome, but thats the Bears best case scenario at this stage it appears....will see what happens next week.

If they announce no strategic direction re expansion, and just state we'll begin looking at it again in 2015, there will be some very pissed off bid teams.

But more teams in NSW and QLD only is not really expansion.

 

[gyallop]

One problem for Grant and his team has been the "secrecy" and length of time. He and some commissioners started to leak a few weeks ago which is a disgrace. We now have yesterdays comment about bid teams joining the NSW and Qld Cups and strangely one of the most bitter rifts in the game CQNRL Bid and CQ Capras where the bid was taking all the corporate funding from the local league who were starving healed by some divine miracle last week so the Bid is now part of the Qld Cup!!

CC Western Corridor and CQ have teams in the Cups and Pirates can easily join one if they have the cash to fund the road trips to and from Perth. This just leaves the Bombers who have no facilities and offer nothing to a Qld Cup team unless they have cash to hand over, they have the added problem that all the Qld Cup teams are contracted to NRL Clubs except for the Ipswich Jets.....the Bombers only option if they have cash which doesnt seem to be the case is to financially support a rival bid...lol

 

[Perth Red]

THE NRL's strategic plan to ditch expansion will see booming league strongholds in Ipswich and Brisbane's west quickly recede in the face of challenges from other sports.
The warning comes from western corridor NRL bid director Steve Johnson, who said yesterday's ARL Commission announcement that expansion would not be discussed until the end of 2014 gave rival codes a leg-up in southeast Queensland.
Johnson said the NRL's strategic plan for the next five years made it obvious his and rival consortiums would not gain NRL admission until at least 2017.
"It is disappointing. We could lose the educational and development programs we are establishing as without an NRL brand and national exposure we can't get the funding," he said.
"I hope they inject more funding into the area to compensate. Juniors might lose out."
The western corridor bid recently linked with the University of Queensland to use rugby league as a means for getting more indigenous people interested in further education.

They also have sponsors, including a multi-national property developer, and jersey manufacturers lined up.
"Our case is already compelling and by 2017, it will be impossible to ignore," Johnson said.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...d-to-rival-codes/story-e6frexnr-1226505629086

 

[Expansion]

THE NRL's strategic plan to ditch expansion will see booming league strongholds in Ipswich and Brisbane's west quickly recede in the face of challenges from other sports.
The warning comes from western corridor NRL bid director Steve Johnson, who said yesterday's ARL Commission announcement that expansion would not be discussed until the end of 2014 gave rival codes a leg-up in southeast Queensland.
Johnson said the NRL's strategic plan for the next five years made it obvious his and rival consortiums would not gain NRL admission until at least 2017.
"It is disappointing. We could lose the educational and development programs we are establishing as without an NRL brand and national exposure we can't get the funding," he said.
"I hope they inject more funding into the area to compensate. Juniors might lose out."
The western corridor bid recently linked with the University of Queensland to use rugby league as a means for getting more indigenous people interested in further education.

They also have sponsors, including a multi-national property developer, and jersey manufacturers lined up.
"Our case is already compelling and by 2017, it will be impossible to ignore," Johnson said.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...d-to-rival-codes/story-e6frexnr-1226505629086

More fear campaign from the Daily Tele. This wasn't predictable at all.

 

[LJC]

A very poor strategic plan!

It seemed to cater for the now and not the long term future.

I'm all for more people playing rugby league but give some hope for those areas where additional clubs should be established!

Perth and another team in Brisbane are absolute morals for expansion!

The Central Coast Bears deserves a spot along with the many hibernating Norths bears fans that have barred RL because of the Bears demise. The case for a central Coast bears team is compelling.

Since the Superleague fiasco, the game has dilluted its support in Sydney due to the merging and ousting of traditional club sides. This, believe it or not, erodes the strength of RL. It reduces the tribalism in the biggest market city(Sydney) in Australasia!

But unfortunatley the people in control could not see this when they made agreement to reduce the club teams back in 1998!(Courtesy of some very thoughtless ideas from people(club reps) who should have known better)

Now we are seeing the ARLC sit on its thumbs and delay much needed positive announcements.

Their should be another 4 teams established in the NRL over the next 15 years!

A 20 team comp with perhaps a conference like set up should be seriously looked at if these "administrators" ever wake up to themselves and allow the game to grow properly!

 

[Lockyer4President!]

If we rushed expansion we could end up with the same situation as the A-League. The game hasn't been in the hands of the commission for a year yet and we've got a billion dollars and strategic plan.

It's only two seasons before they say who's joining the comp. In the meantime the ARL have said that they'll spend $200M on growing the game.

I can't really fault their plan (It's so good to be able to say that btw.) even though I wanted expansion teams to come in for 2013.

 

[LJC]

If we rushed expansion we could end up with the same situation as the A-League. The game hasn't been in the hands of the commission for a year yet and we've got a billion dollars and strategic plan.

It's only two seasons before they say who's joining the comp. In the meantime the ARL have said that they'll spend $200M on growing the game.

I can't really fault their plan (It's so good to be able to say that btw.) even though I wanted expansion teams to come in for 2013.

As a short term plan: Yes, but we are talking about a strategic plan which implies long term goals.

These are not long term strategic goals. They interim measures!

 

[The Mad Hatter]

My two cents worth:

I am a FB friend of all the bids, and geez Western Corridor squeals like a stuck pig about expansion.

I think the CQ and Capras getting in to bed makes more sense, now they can combine resources and grow a team in to the NRL. Please enlighten me if it doesn't make sense. I am interested.

I personally believe that West Coast, Brisbane 2, CQ and the Central Coast are the go...BUT...I kind of agree with the ARLC on this. Get what you've got right and then expand. A-League lost a NZ team, Nth Qld and Gold Coast, plus most of their other clubs are financially strained. AFL moved in to GWS and GC without the guts to actually cull North or Melbourne (they'll let them wither on the vine so no blood on their hands).

Interesting too that the Wyong Roos joined NSW Cup. I also remember Redcliffe preventing Gold Coast using the Dolphin logo. When discussing expansion...why isn't a team already established in the region - like a Wyong on the Central Coast or Ipswich / Redcliffe in Brisbane/Region...get developed from a State Cup team to enter the NRL? Why do they always have to be NEW bids? I can understand baggage and all that, but if (and I don't know much about Redcliffe OR QRL CUP) these clubs exist, have a supporter/junior base, wouldn't it be better to grow them.

 

[gyallop]

Redcliffe and Ipswich are 90 minutes apart and separated by Brisbane City.

The Western Corridor is Logan Ipswich and Toowoomba and as I understand it a new club but it will be controlled by the existing leagues so it is an extension of their fan base and systems etc under the one roof so to speak.

CQ and Capras is a good thing.

 

[lockyno1]

A 20 team comp with perhaps a conference like set up should be seriously looked at if these "administrators" ever wake up to themselves and allow the game to grow properly!

Too many, we tried a 20 team comp before and it is ordinary, you get a situation at the moment where not everyone plays each other twice...now you want to FURTHER kill that. I would be happy with 18 but that is as far as I would go!

 

[LJC]

The 20 team comp was not ordinary!

The Superleague people would have you believe that!

Their was 22 "top flight" teams playing in 1997!

You seem to refer to the AFL and their expansion tactics. They are at least having a eachway bet which ultimately leaves greater reach/exposure to their code.
I am sure the GAY FL will go to twenty teams in the not too distant future.

RL is a far more potent sports product but is being hamstrung by poor vision/support and lack of faith in how good the game(product) is!

I might add that the code of RU has tried its level best to limit the the growth of RL and this is evident in the bias that is against RL at the top end of town which is dominated by private school educated(RU indocrinated) decision makers.

I would find it fascinating if RL decided to launch a campaign to get RL played in most private schools. Now that would be a real revelation! From this, you would see a far more proactive and forward thinking administration as the big end of town would genuinely want to see RL grow and prosper!

Unfortunately the likes of Gyngell and FOX people do not aspire or support the growth of RL which is a real shame. But this is logical as they are not genuinely interested in the future growth of the game, they are just keen to pilfer it for what it is!

"Use it. Abuse it! and Make Money from it!" that seems to be the catch cry from the corporate world of television land!

 

[Perth Red]

One of the things that irks me about Grants announcement was the suggestion that the ARLC don't know enough about the impact on expansion so will commission a report at the end of 2014. Fair enough if they feel they need more time to review the pros and cons (like doh!) but why wait two years to look at it. Why not start looking now, compete the review end of 2013, invite bids or choose areas/bids in 2014 and have them admitted in 2016. I see no logical sense in waiting two years before even starting the process (again). I don't see funds that expansion will require making any difference to the existing 16 teams and lets be honest they have had decades to sort themselves out, does anyone think they will be in a much different state in two years time?

 

[BunniesMan]

One of the things that irks me about Grants announcement was the suggestion that the ARLC don't know enough about the impact on expansion so will commission a report at the end of 2014. Fair enough if they feel they need more time to review the pros and cons (like doh!) but why wait two years to look at it. Why not start looking now, compete the review end of 2013, invite bids or choose areas/bids in 2014 and have them admitted in 2016. I see no logical sense in waiting two years before even starting the process (again). I don't see funds that expansion will require making any difference to the existing 16 teams and lets be honest they have had decades to sort themselves out, does anyone think they will be in a much different state in two years time?

1. The logical sense is the relevant stake holders don't want expansion. They want it delayed because they want the entirety of this tv deal to themselves.
2. The comp has been told they would get no added income from a 9th game from tv. So the pie is not growing but what is split 16 ways now would have to be split 18 ways. And noone involved right now, not the ARLC, not the clubs, not TV, want that.
3. The report is delayed until 2014 so they can take 18 months to do that, and that gives themselves time to not announce anything firm until 2016 at least and only have actual new teams in the comp at the end of the decade.

It is being delayed because the longer it gets delayed the longer each club only has to share with 15 others rather than 17.

 

[Perth Red]

Which would be a logical argument except the pie is now massive, it is not being split 16 ways and the extra money for expansion will not be going to the existing clubs. Lets say the grant ends up being $6mill and it costs another $1mill for 2 new teams additional competition running costs. That $13mill a year is not going to be split 16 ways for the next 5 years, it is just as likely to be eaten up in marketing, admin, grass roots or some other budget line item. The NRL grant for 16 clubs won't be $6.7mill due to no expansion as opposed to $6mill if there was expansion.

We should be deciding what is best for the growth of the game, not relying on TV execs to be makign that decision. The game has enough money to expand now if it really wanted to, the fact it doesn't is a sad state of our mentality that has kept the prof game limited to its heartlands for over 100 years.

 

[lockyno1]

The 20 team comp was not ordinary!

Yes it was, you realise that the comp is 26 rounds...well my maths sucks but even I can see you only have 4 teams that a side would play twice...take a Sydney side for instance...do you really think St George would want to not play all the Sydney clubs twice...less gate, less money, less crowds for them. 18 is as far as we can go, unless you plan on a 30 game season. We want the derbies/Sydney matches/Brisbane derbies. Expansion for the sake of expansion is stupid. Get the 6 bids, and CHOOSE two bids, end of story.

 

[Perth Red]

Two 10 team conferences will be the eventual outcome imo, if some of the existing teams can stay alive long enough that is. There is compelling cases for at least 3 of the bids and arguably 4. That's before you look at Wellington, PNG, Adelaide etc in decades to come.

 

[BunniesMan]

NSW conference and non NSW would be awesome.