2014, will the game turn around?

[The Phelan Folly]

Your a cool dude but everyone else is a NERD!

FYI, 2013 IMO was one of the best Grand Finals of all time. To say that it's all down to a subjective opinion about whether teams are "good" or not is an impossible discussion to have.

You feeling guilty?

 

[the beavers]

Permanent Broncos and ray Hadley means I don't watch Fridays anymore...

I also agree that a lot of club games are bland....in general teams aren't willing to take risks . There are also a lot of great athletes playing the game but less genuine footballers...as a results the quality drops.

 

[Lambretta]

Ratings for 2013 were only slightly down on the year before, as were crowds and there were some serious f**k ups made by the people doing the fixed scheduling, but Dave Smith stated they have learned from their errors, so lets hope 2014 is better.

One of the glaring errors is the lack of good quality games in Sydney during the afternoon time slot.

Souths were potentially the biggest draw card for 2013 and yet their home gate average didn't overtake the Roosters until the last round of the season.

This wasn't because the Roosters were selling out every game (although their average of 20,000 was amazing) but rather because Souths were starved of Sunday afternoon games.

Souths play out of area for many of their fans which means travel and longer journeys post game to get home. Families can't go to night games etc. Night games costs Souths 3,000 - 4,000 on their gate as compared with day games. The fixed scheduling should take into account not only what rates on TV, but also what will bring the fans pouring in through the gates.

Teams like the Cowboys get preferences for Saturday home games because the club demands them. This makes it hard to give the Cowboys too many Friday night games leaving the time slot pretty much open to the Broncos. But I've always advocated playing Storm as a Queensland team on a Friday night as well as the Titans to mix things up a bit.

Having said that, the double header on a Friday could give way for a Saturday afternoon time slot opening up to give more day time games. Especially in the middle of winter when warm days in Sydney are a welcome change to the frigid nights. If there was only one time slot on a Friday, Channel 9 would be less interested in putting the Broncos on every bloody week.

There is a lot we could do to make the TV viewing more interesting and which could potentially bring more exposure to clubs long starved of it.

The first thing I'd propose would be a limit on the number of FTA games a single club can have and a minimum number each club should enjoy. The Sharks, Titans, Raiders and Warriors all deserve at least three FTA games a year. One of these MUST be a Friday game if we persist with two Friday games every week. You can always make sure you're playing them against the likes of the Bulldogs, Dragons, Eels or Broncos to try and keep the viewing numbers up.

 

[magpie4ever]

For $90 it's free for the entire year. An unmetered on Telstra

And you get every Foxtel game? For $90.

Obviously, you can link to Iphone to the widescreen TV.

Why am I paying Foxtel? That's right, the races.;-)

 

[hardbaby]

One of the reasons why brisbane2 will be the next expansion team alongside Perth.

Agreed. Perth for the extra time zone. Brisbane 2 because the game needs a de-powered Broncos (the proof is that we watch them every Friday).

 

[eozsmiles]

Anyway, enough of the trolling about if SOO is interesting or not,
are crowds going up this year or not and have the NRL done enough during the off season to address the problem, if it is a problem.

Don't know if it is entirely up to the NRL. What I think is that the game is not exciting unless there is a tight finish. Someone said it earlier in the thread - five tackles and a kick, five tackles and a bomb.

Professionalism gone mad. Coaches and players are too scared to take risks and chance their arm. Players that take risks are lambasted by fans and media if that risk doesn't work. Coaches stick with old players instead of trying new ones. People sometimes talk about the shoulder charge as though it was responsible for all the excitement. It didn't have a bearing on what set plays from scrums a coach can come up with (at the moment it is usually one pass and a hit up - pretty predictable). It doesn't have an effect on the handling or passing skills of the outside backs. It doesn't change the vision or intuition of a dummy half. It doesn't change the fact Clint Newton is playing again is year.
I think there is a definite fear of doing things differently, and that has made the game a bit stale at present.

The result is that games not involving your team aren't a "must watch" event unless it is a marquee game. A few years back you'd switch on a warriors vs tigers game and regardless of their position on the ladder expect to see some free flowing footy. But as possession footy is emphasised year after year, most games are reserved and grinding. It doesn't augur well for attracting new fans or converting casual ones.

A few years ago Brett Finch gifted the game to the knights by trying to win it for his team - he'd probably get dropped nowadays. Glen Stewart put in a 10m grabber inside his own half in a GF - that was a tits on a bull play in the modern game. A few more players and coaches willing to encourage the more exciting and daring play would lift numbers.

And of course, if the big clubs like broncos, saints, wests, parra can get to the finals it would help too.

 

[The Phelan Folly]

Ratings for 2013 were only slightly down on the year before, as were crowds and there were some serious f**k ups made by the people doing the fixed scheduling, but Dave Smith stated they have learned from their errors, so lets hope 2014 is better.

One of the glaring errors is the lack of good quality games in Sydney during the afternoon time slot.

Souths were potentially the biggest draw card for 2013 and yet their home gate average didn't overtake the Roosters until the last round of the season.

This wasn't because the Roosters were selling out every game (although their average of 20,000 was amazing) but rather because Souths were starved of Sunday afternoon games.

Souths play out of area for many of their fans which means travel and longer journeys post game to get home. Families can't go to night games etc. Night games costs Souths 3,000 - 4,000 on their gate as compared with day games. The fixed scheduling should take into account not only what rates on TV, but also what will bring the fans pouring in through the gates.

Teams like the Cowboys get preferences for Saturday home games because the club demands them. This makes it hard to give the Cowboys too many Friday night games leaving the time slot pretty much open to the Broncos. But I've always advocated playing Storm as a Queensland team on a Friday night as well as the Titans to mix things up a bit.

Having said that, the double header on a Friday could give way for a Saturday afternoon time slot opening up to give more day time games. Especially in the middle of winter when warm days in Sydney are a welcome change to the frigid nights. If there was only one time slot on a Friday, Channel 9 would be less interested in putting the Broncos on every bloody week.

There is a lot we could do to make the TV viewing more interesting and which could potentially bring more exposure to clubs long starved of it.

The first thing I'd propose would be a limit on the number of FTA games a single club can have and a minimum number each club should enjoy. The Sharks, Titans, Raiders and Warriors all deserve at least three FTA games a year. One of these MUST be a Friday game if we persist with two Friday games every week. You can always make sure you're playing them against the likes of the Bulldogs, Dragons, Eels or Broncos to try and keep the viewing numbers up.

Yep

 

[Canard]

And you get every Foxtel game? For $90.

Obviously, you can link to Iphone to the widescreen TV.

Why am I paying Foxtel? That's right, the races.;-)

And every CH 9 game. Don't know about the link but sure there is a way.

 

[magpie4ever]

Its the chicken or the egg - is it robotic because theres not much talent. Or is there not much talent due to the robotics? Game breakers are what most clubs wish they had, problem there is, it seems to come with a "im also a f**kwit" disclaimer sticker as well.

Rule changes over the years - no competition for the ball, the 10m rule, interchanges and coaches who only desire a win, not whether it looks good.

As posted by the beavers less nartural footballers and more athletes.

 

[thorson1987]

Not being a techno rat, what is the cost of downloading a game to an Iphone or tablet?

I have Foxtel.

Wouldn't Foxtel pick up the Foxtel GO usage?

Foxtel Go is free provided you already have Foxtel.

Best to watch while connected to Wifi though.

You also get other channels on Foxtel Go (movies, music, discovery and the like. Even a few kids channels)

 

[magpie4ever]

And every CH 9 game. Don't know about the link but sure there is a way.

Could you not USB it onto the TV, a bit personal (plus a very small screen); if not.

 

[Canard]

Once again I'm amazed by the amount of people on a league forum who don't really like watching Rugby League.

 

[Canard]

Could you not USB it onto the TV, a bit personal (plus a very small screen); if not.

Pretty sure it blocks that.

But I'm sure there is a way around it. Guys on here will know.

On a 10 inch tablet is pretty good.

 

[beave]

You can't stream the NRL app from your phone/tablet to the tv from what I understand.

 

[magpie4ever]

Once again I'm amazed by the amount of people on a league forum who don't really like watching Rugby League.

They might just want to see a better product (not robitic) - 5 up, and kick to the corner and wait for the error.

It has become more of a power game (as in, girdiron) and less of a game of attrition (as it was invented to be, the little natural footballer running amok at the back end of each half)

 

[beave]

True.

Waiting for a penalty to be kicked is much more riveting viewing.........

 

[thorson1987]

Not the best to watch on an iPhone 5 screen either

 

[H.H]

Scheduling and Origin for mine.

Fixed schedule is ridiculous IMO. Titans playing Sunday Arvo games early in the season for eg was diabolical. Broncos every Friday is atrocious.

Origin is awesome, but it sucks the life out of the club comp ( a quick eg is Roosters Dogs being scheduled during that period...probably cost the gate 15k on the night). no idea what the solution is but a solution is needed.

 

[Canard]

They might just want to see a better product (not robitic) - 5 up, and kick to the corner and wait for the error.

It has become more of a power game (as in, girdiron) and less of a game of attrition (as it was invented to be, the little natural footballer running amok at the back end of each half)

Is that true of just lazy stereo typing from fans of other sports.

What about DCE, Thurston, Barba, Inglis, Slater, etc.

It needs to be repeated that the game didn't drop off in ratings to an extent that is being claimed.

Crowds did shrink however, but there are a lot more factors than just ball playing involved in that however.

I still watch as many games as I can. It has to be said however that when the team your supporting is struggling it's difficult to watch other games, IMO.

 

[Joely01]

Has the fact the game has become as some say 'soft' had an affect on some viewers?
It may not be a lot, but things like banning the shoulder charge and the biff, especially for the traditional rugby league fan could have an affect.
Most think of rugby league as the tough man sport, has it lost some of its spark due to the two above rule changes?