From Fox Sports, this a great move by the club. Will allow the club to kind of isolate themselves, become even closer as a group and really narrow our focus for the Premiership tilt. Very smart I think,
BUNNIES MOVE BURROW
The South Sydney Rabbitohs are narrowing their focus on trying to win the club’s 22nd title with the Bunnies set to move into the plush Q1 serviced apartments on the Gold Coast this weekend.
The move is clearly a sign the Bunnies are anticipating being hunkered down in Queensland for the next couple of months as they plot to try and send super coach Wayne Bennett and captain Adam Reynolds out with another premiership.
The shift in digs comes just in time as the Rabbitohs fine tune for a massive final month of the regular season with games against the Gold Coast, Penrith, the Roosters and St George Illawarra.
Next weekend’s Round 23 showdown with Penrith will be an absolute ripper and a preview of what we can expect in week one of the finals.
There’s some brilliant history currently being written by the Bunnies with champion captain Adam Reynolds passing Eric Simms as the greatest points scorer in the history of the foundation club last weekend.
If the Bunnies can make it 10 straight wins against the Titans in round 22 it will mark the first time since 1989 - the year they finished minor premiers - they’ve made it to double figures in terms of consecutive victories.
Also, from Zero Tackle,
NRL clubs reportedly not on board with expansion
The 16 NRL clubs have reportedly expressed surprise and concern at the NRL's expansion plan.
According to a
Sydney Morning Herald report, they have expressed concerns over the game's current financial position.
It comes amid the game's mass relocation to a south east
Queensland hub, with all 16 clubs losing money on gate takings and other factors, while the NRL itself is paying somewhere between $12 and $15 million per month to house 13 of the clubs in accommodation.
Over the course of three months, from the time the original relocation to the grand final, it could cost the game up to $40 million, while there is also still no guarantees the grand final will be able to be played in front of a crowd, given the current COVID situations in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane respectively.
A grand final without fans would be disastrous for the NRL, with yet more lost income to the bottom line.
It also comes amid speculation around the future value of the TV deal, however, the NRL believe a 17th club, particularly in the Brisbane market, could lead to increased revenue despite not actually leading to any extra content.
It was reported yesterday that the game would look to announce an expansion candidate for either 2023 or 2024 by the end of October, while the Brisbane Firehawks franchise also announced they'd link up with the Central
Queensland Capras as a feeder team if they were successful.
However, clubs were under the impression expansion had been put on the back burner until after the COVID-19 situation cleared and the game's financial position improved.
Penrith CEO Brian Fletcher told the
Sydney Morning Herald that he was surprised by the talk, and it seemed to echo the position of other CEOs around the competition.
“I only found out expansion was back on the table today,” Fletcher said.
“I was of the understanding expansion was off the table until we got back to some normality with the pandemic.
“I’m a bit surprised they’re talking about it again now. It’s a bit premature to tell a franchise to come forward, even if isn’t about coming in until 2023 or 2024.”
The NRL are reportedly looking at advising all 16 clubs of their plans in the coming days ahead of the three franchises presenting their bids in the next fortnight.
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