2009 Trials, Charity Shield & World Club Challenge

[Brownie.Kougari]

How can they play three trials at Stockland if they're playing the WCC and going to be in England half the month?

The Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles are bringing the teams to their region.

While Manly will undoubtedly play one game there, it's unlikely they'd play any more and the other game(s) will involve other teams.

 

[ethos]

Broncos v Storm at Stockland Park on February 28 has been confirmed.

http://www.thedaily.com.au/news/2008/nov/07/broncos-vs-storm-coast/

Looking forward to it already. :lol:

 

[Timmah]

Melbourne have confirmed their three trials through their membership brochure:

Sat 14 Feb
Sea Eagles v Storm @ Morrie Breen Oval, Wyong

Sat 21 Feb
Storm v Knights @ VISY Park, Melbourne

Sat 28 Feb
Broncos v Storm @ Stockland Park, Kawana Waters QLD

 

[Brownie.Kougari]

Melbourne have confirmed their three trials through their membership brochure:

Sat 14 Feb
Sea Eagles v Storm @ Morrie Breen Oval, Wyong

Sat 21 Feb
Storm v Knights @ VISY Park, Melbourne

Sat 28 Feb
Broncos v Storm @ Stockland Park, Kawana Waters QLD

Had to look it up in GoogleMaps, and in doing so finally got the "Gosford skirt" joke. How was I meant to know there's a town called "The Entrance" :lol:

 

[Timmah]

You have no idea how many calls we get mistaking the place for "Lakes Entrance" in VIC :x

Great joke that Gosford skirt one though :lol:

 

[(KW)]

Q-Town :lol:

Junior club of current Kangaroos Brent Kite and Terry Campese

Doubt any other junior club could beat that

 

[East Coast Tiger]

f**k me. This has to be worst list of trials yet. Almost every game is in Sydney or Brisbane or somewhere else that gets games all the time. Even the clubs that are taking the games out of town are going about 15mins down the road. The NRL MUST do something about this. That's if they even know the game exists in the bush, or care.

 

[Timmah]

:?

Seiffert Oval, Queanbeyan NSW - hasn't seen an NRL game in eons
Redfern Oval - hasn't seen an NRL game in eons
BCU International Stadium, Coffs Harbour NSW - is 500-odd km from both Brisbane and Sydney
Members Equity Stadium, Perth WA - hasn't seen top level in NRL in how long?
Morrie Breen Oval, Kanwal NSW - only ever sees NSW Cup level footy
Griffith, NSW - looks pretty damn country to me...
VISY Park, VIC - never heard of a game being played there...
Dolphin Oval, QLD - when was the last time you saw an NRL match at Redcliffe?
CUA Stadium, Penrith - granted, it's selfish
SFS Foundation Cup - regular clash, pretty sure it's for charity too and included in membership packages.
WIN Stadium Mercury Challenge - another regular clash and Wollongong only gets 6 NRL games anyway, a seventh can't hurt.
ANZ Charity Shield - another regular clash, what's the problem?
Meakin Park, Logan QLD - can't see a problem here
Stockland Park, Kawana Waters QLD - can't see a problem here
Baddeley Park, Cessnock NSW - again can't see a problem, Cessnock's a good 2 hours out of Sydney
Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford NSW - Bluetongue struggles for usage once the Mariners season is over, and sees a max of 4-5 NRL games per year. Nothing wrong there.

In all, just two games actually in Sydney, one in Penrith, one in Gosford and one in Wollongong... the rest are fine.

There's also still a few to be announced, we haven't seen anything from the Cowboys, Warriors and a couple of other sides still.

I won't even get into an economics argument about it with you...

 

[East Coast Tiger]

:?

Seiffert Oval, Queanbeyan NSW is just up the road from Canberra
Redfern Oval - it's in the middle of Sydney
BCU International Stadium, Coffs Harbour NSW - gets a trial game almost every year
Members Equity Stadium, Perth WA - is getting two proper games in 2009
Morrie Breen Oval, Kanwal NSW is just up the road from both Newcastle and Sydney and Gosford gets games all the time
Griffith, NSW - About the only proper country game
VISY Park, VIC - never heard of it but its not a heartland
Dolphin Oval, QLD it's in Brisbane and they get a trial game almost every year
CUA Stadium, Penrith
SFS Foundation Cup - oh the tradition! What about two years worth?
WIN Stadium Mercury Challenge - about as traditonal as the A League
ANZ Charity Shield - at least it can say it's got some real tradition
Meakin Park, Logan QLD - It's in the middle of Brisbane
Stockland Park, Kawana Waters QLD just up the road from Brisbane
Baddeley Park, Cessnock NSW - just up the road from Newcastle
Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford NSW - gets game all the time.

The point is 90% of these games will not attract any new people because they are in exactly the same markets as NRL games already are. If people in these places want to see NRL they can every week or every second week with little or no travel. The pre-season used to be about taking the game to the bush. Now there is probably one legitimate bush venue on that list. Cessnock, Coffs, Kawana etc would be reasonable if they were on a rotational basis with other places but they get games every year while other places get none. Sydney clubs are just lazy/cheap and they don't give a f**k about country football, oh except when they want to pinch all our good young players. I know you're pedantic and argumentative but surely you can see how bad the situation is now compared to what it was 10 years ago.

 

[Brownie.Kougari]

Is there no game at Rocky next year? Brisbane normally play NQ there!

Towns I'd have are:

Rocky
Cairns
Mackay
Darwin
Sunshine Coast
Toowoomba
Wagga
Coffs Harbour
Gosford
Geelong
Perth
Adelaide
Alice Springs
Armidale
Tamworth
Lismore
Hobart
Launceston

Pick your trial matches out of any of those towns I reckon.

 

[East Coast Tiger]

If the NRL took over the pre-season and brought back the Country Carnival they could have two weeks of games = 16 games.

I'd go:

1 Charity Shield = Sydney (fair enough it's got some history but those other bullsh*t "traditional" games have been going a couple of years and will probably last a couple more)
2 A game in PNG every year. Whether Port Moresby or somewhere else if there is another appropriate venue.
3 Darwin/Alice Springs rotational
4 Adelaide/Victoria other than Melbourne
5 Perth but only if they don't get proper NRL games. Having both is not neccessary. Otherwise maybe Kalgoorlie or Fremantle, who both have RL clubs.
6 New Zealand - somewhere different each year (Wellington/Christchurch/Palmerston North/Rotorua etc)
7 South West - Toowoomba/Warwick/Roma etc
8 North Qld - Mackay/Cairns etc
9 Central - Rocky/Emerald/Gladstone etc
10 Wide Bay - Bundy/Kingaroy/Sunny Coast
11 Northern Rivers - Lismore/Grafton/Tweed etc
12 North Coast - Coffs/Port/Taree etc
13 Northern Division- Tamworth/Armidale/Muswellbrook etc
14 Riverina - Wagga/Albury/Lavington/Griffith etc
15 Western Division- Dubbo/Parkes/Bathurst etc
16 Anywhere else that might deserve a game that is not really covered otherwise - possibly even places like Fiji who after the WC is a place where we should strike while the iron is hot.

This covers NZ and PNG, every affiliated state (NT,WA,SA,Vic) and every CRL and QRL division that does not already have regular NRL games (like Canberra, Newcastle, Illawarra, Southern, South East). Each region/state etc could bid or otherwise decide which towns/cities should get that year's game. That way they can take them to somewhere that could really do with a boost. Then the NRL can ask the NRL clubs which ones they would like and the ones that can't be accommodated will just have to go where they are told. It's fair and it gives all RL playing places the chance to see NRL at least every two or three years.

 

[Timmah]

:lol: At the citation that NRL clubs are too lazy or cheap.

I said I wouldn't get into an economics argument with you but you clearly have no idea how dire the financial situation is for most Leagues Club-backed Sydney clubs. They can't afford to breach new markets... the only way it could work is if the NRL bankrolled it.

Also keep in mind, not every teams trials have been announced, there's still 4-5 teams from memory who haven't confirmed their games...

 

[East Coast Tiger]

More proof then that Sydney clubs must go. If they can't even afford to support the grassroots that supports them, ie by playing games they are playing anyway slightly further affield, then there is no place for them. It wouldn't even cost them money. They might not make as much, but it will not cost them. I know for a fact that clubs have been offered games in rural areas that were gauranteed to not leave them out of pocket and they've still turned them down. These clubs recieve millions every year, money that is indirectly produced via country fans, using players produced by the country. If they will not even attempt to put something back they don't deserve that money and if they can't survive without it then so be it.

 

[MsStorm]

Melbourne have confirmed their three trials through their membership brochure:

Sat 14 Feb
Sea Eagles v Storm @ Morrie Breen Oval, Wyong

Sat 21 Feb
Storm v Knights @ VISY Park, Melbourne

Sat 28 Feb
Broncos v Storm @ Stockland Park, Kawana Waters QLD

About time Victoria get a trial. Its at the ground where Carlton and Storm train.

However, I would loved to have seen another trial say at Geelong or one of the country towns.

 

[MsStorm]

More proof then that Sydney clubs must go. If they can't even afford to support the grassroots that supports them, ie by playing games they are playing anyway slightly further affield, then there is no place for them. It wouldn't even cost them money. They might not make as much, but it will not cost them. I know for a fact that clubs have been offered games in rural areas that were gauranteed to not leave them out of pocket and they've still turned them down. These clubs recieve millions every year, money that is indirectly produced via country fans, using players produced by the country. If they will not even attempt to put something back they don't deserve that money and if they can't survive without it then so be it.

Well said, teams should be trialling in the country areas as a thank you/ Thats why I was hoping Storm would be playing in Geelong or elsewhere in Victoria.

I am really in favour of all nrl clubs being made to play a game in non-rugby league areas, e.g. Tas, Perth, Adelaide, etc.

 

[petetheileet]

Well said, teams should be trialling in the country areas as a thank you/ Thats why I was hoping Storm would be playing in Geelong or elsewhere in Victoria.

I am really in favour of all nrl clubs being made to play a game in non-rugby league areas, e.g. Tas, Perth, Adelaide, etc.

The NRL does it every second week with an Storm home game

 

[Godz Illa]

The NRL does it every second week with an Storm home game

lol word

 

[miccle]

Dolphin Oval, QLD - when was the last time you saw an NRL match at Redcliffe?

Meakin Park, Logan QLD - can't see a problem here

:lol:

Sorry mate, but his argument was both about proximity to Sydney/Brisbane as well as the fact that the areas get regular NRL matches.

Redcliffe for a start has played host to at least one NRL trial every year for the past six that I can remember. It's also 45 mins from the CBD of Brisbane, let alone the fact that it's a 25 minute drive from my house in the northern suburbs of Brissie.

Similarly, Logan is 25 mins or so south of the Brisbane CBD. We're barely going 30kms away from Suncorp Stadium for both clashes.

I would love to see more done to take these games elsewhere in Qld, despite the fact that I always enjoy attending trial matches around the south-east.

 

[Timmah]

Hold on though, aren't Redcliffe a feeder for Brisbane and likewise Souths Logan for Canberra? A club's first duty with trials should be it's regional feeders, regardless of distance away. To be perfectly honest, the Roosters should look at moving the Foundation Cup to Henson Park...

 

[East Coast Tiger]

And where do the feeder clubs get their players? Also Brisbane has just signed up Central as a feeder too so where's the game in Rockhampton? Not that supporting the feeder clubs has anything to do with most of the venue choices on that list. It's just clubs, mostly from Sydney, who can't be arsed to put something back, as usual.