3 month countdown.........

[flippikat]

They want you to write a convincing letter.

To quote 'The Young Ones',

"Darling Fascist Bullyboy,

Give me an NRL team, you b*****d.

May the seed of your loin be fruitful in the belly of your woman,

Perth Red"

There. Now if that doesn't work, nothing will

 

[Perth Red]

To quote 'The Young Ones',

"Darling Fascist Bullyboy,

Give me an NRL team, you b*****d.

May the seed of your loin be fruitful in the belly of your woman,

Perth Red"

There. Now if that doesn't work, nothing will

I'm on it lol

 

[taipan]

To quote 'The Young Ones',

"Darling Fascist Bullyboy,

Give me an NRL team, you b*****d.

May the seed of your loin be fruitful in the belly of your woman,

Perth Red"

There. Now if that doesn't work, nothing will

It needs more Basil Fawlty ,and a little bit of Manuel.Humour melad ,humour

 

[titoelcolombiano]

Sooooo minus one month countdown...

 

[Perth Red]

There’s a commission meeting this month. Who knows if it’s even on their agenda?

 

[flippikat]

There’s a commission meeting this month. Who knows if it’s even on their agenda?

Would be great if they front-foot this & at least announce "we will be looking to expand to 18 teams for the next TV deal" sometime before round 1- even if the identity of those 2 extra teams isn't announced or even decided, it's SOMETHING in the right direction.

Be proactive for a change.

 

[Perth Red]

They wanted "more info" from the people that conducted the expansion feasibility study. Depends what that info was I suppose to how soon we might hear anything. They originally said by December but this is the NRL so could mean December 2023

 

[Legion]

I'd like to know where any new team would find enough quality players.
As it is there's a shortage of fullbacks & halves.

Expanding the competition would just water down a competition that's already extended.
Quantity over quality is never a good thing.

 

[Perth Red]

I'd like to know where any new team would find enough quality players.
As it is there's a shortage of fullbacks & halves.

Expanding the competition would just water down a competition that's already extended.
Quantity over quality is never a good thing.

Thing with this argument is it is impossible to quantify. I'm guessing there are a stack of players in reserve grade who never get the opportunity to shine because there is a decent player already in that position in the first grade? Look at Storm and the players having to play out of position or off the bench or not getting any chance in last few years. Then you can get proactive and try and mitigate the impact by looking at union or SL and having SC exemptions like they do in UK for signing players that have never players league. Then you could get serious about creating stronger production lines in nz, PI's and PNG. Im not sure the talent isnt out there, just we dont go digging as much as we could because clubs are already comfortable.

 

[Legion]

Thing with this argument is it is impossible to quantify. I'm guessing there are a stack of players in reserve grade who never get the opportunity to shine because there is a decent player already in that position in the first grade? Look at Storm and the players having to play out of position or off the bench or not getting any chance in last few years. Then you can get proactive and try and mitigate the impact by looking at union or SL and having SC exemptions like they do in UK for signing players that have never players league. Then you could get serious about creating stronger production lines in nz, PI's and PNG. Im not sure the talent isnt out there, just we dont go digging as much as we could because clubs are already comfortable.

It is an Aussie competition. As much as I love watching a rampaging Pacific Islander winger as much as the next footy fan, I don't want a competition where it's Spot the Aussie.

NZ needs to build their competition as does PNG & every other country. They need to tend to their own backyards.
I'd support a limit for how many foreign internationals play for each team.

As much as I understand why you'd love to have a W.A. team, it's unsustainable.
It's not as if W.A. could build a team mainly from locals. A team would have to be built with players from interstate & O/S.

For an equitable competition, teams need to play each other twice in a season. Once in the first half of the year & the second in the last half of the season.
The way it is now, some teams only face the top teams once. Then there's times when two teams play each other twice just a few weeks between each game.
What a joke [Interesting that I've not heard this anomaly mentioned once]

Growth for growths sake just waters down the competition.
My vote will always be for quality over quantity.

Edit to add; If there was to be a W.A. team, it would be far better for an existing team to relocate.

 

[Perth Red]

That's a different argument you are making. So its not that there isnt talent, just you dont want it to come from overseas?
Why is WA unsustainable? Is Melbourne unsustainable because looks to me on and off the field they're doing a pretty good job despite not producing a Victorian player (we've managed to produce two decent backs from our SG ball set up in last few years at least)

It would be growth for the benefit of the games sake, given the NRLs lack of vision and appetite for expansion I cant ever see them growing "just for the sake of it"! And it only waters down the competition if you havent planned for it. Having seen the comp grow, contract, grow and contract I cant say they're is a massive difference in quality of games, in fact many consider the game today to be far less entertaining than the game of old. Less about player strength and more about rules and "interpretations"

Better for who? Only ones who benefit from a relocation to Perth is NRL as they dont have to spend more on club grants, but equally they dont end up extra content to sell so no extra revenue gain.

 

[Wily Ole Dog]

Why is WA unsustainable? Is Melbourne unsustainable because looks to me on and off the field they're doing a pretty good job despite not producing a Victorian player (we've managed to produce two decent backs from our SG ball set up in last few years at least)

It would be growth for the benefit of the games sake,

Of course it’s sustainable. Especially if you have the necessary vision that growing the game requires.
The population will hit 3million in a few years and surely the sporting talent in AFL, Union & soccer will feed into kids taking up league.....it’s a no brainer

Brisbane only has 2.4 million people right now and everyone wants to throw a 2nd team in there

 

[Legion]

That's a different argument you are making. So its not that there isnt talent, just you dont want it to come from overseas?
Why is WA unsustainable? Is Melbourne unsustainable because looks to me on and off the field they're doing a pretty good job despite not producing a Victorian player (we've managed to produce two decent backs from our SG ball set up in last few years at least)

It would be growth for the benefit of the games sake, given the NRLs lack of vision and appetite for expansion I cant ever see them growing "just for the sake of it"! And it only waters down the competition if you havent planned for it. Having seen the comp grow, contract, grow and contract I cant say they're is a massive difference in quality of games, in fact many consider the game today to be far less entertaining than the game of old. Less about player strength and more about rules and "interpretations"

Better for who? Only ones who benefit from a relocation to Perth is NRL as they dont have to spend more on club grants, but equally they dont end up extra content to sell so no extra revenue gain.

No, what I'm saying is that we shouldn't be depending on overseas players to fill gaps.
There is a shortage of players, quality halves & fullbacks in particular.

Taking players from O/S weakens their competition. Imagine being a Pommy supporter & you just lost the Buergers boys to Oz. We're picking their cream. [Hey, not that I wouldn't like to welcome a couple to the Tigers]

Melbourne draws their players from NSW & Qld. Isn't it about time that they started to grow junior footy in Victoria? They've been in the competition for long enough.
Does W.A. have any Rugby League teams at any level? A W.A. club would just be another drain on the player pool.
If it's not an active sport there then W.A. doesn't deserve a team.

NRL needs to concentrate on ground roots footy, ensuring future home grown talent.

 

[Perth Red]

No, what I'm saying is that we shouldn't be depending on overseas players to fill gaps.


NRL needs to concentrate on ground roots footy, ensuring future home grown talent.

Why? doesn't seem to do the EPL any harm? Does WA have any RL teams? Seriously you dont even know this?

 

[Wily Ole Dog]

NRL needs to concentrate on ground roots footy, ensuring future home grown talent.

Surely they can walk & chew gum at the same time

 

[Legion]

Why? doesn't seem to do the EPL any harm? Does WA have any RL teams? Seriously you dont even know this?

Seriously I don't know this : )
Could W.A. at least field a decent reserve grade team?

 

[Perth Red]

Seriously I don't know this : )
Could W.A. at least field a decent reserve grade team?

https://nrlwa.com.au/nrl-wa-clubs/

no, not yet. But with the right investment we could.

 

[The Great Dane]

Taking players from O/S weakens their competition. Imagine being a Pommy supporter & you just lost the Buergers boys to Oz. We're picking their cream. [Hey, not that I wouldn't like to welcome a couple to the Tigers]

With the exceptions of players from England and PNG, pretty much all of the international talent that the NRL signs wouldn't have become RL players at all if the NRL hadn't signed them. Those that did become professional sports men would have become RU players,not RL players.

So yeah, I'm not sure why you are concerned about weakening RU competitions, because for the most part that is all that the NRL signing international talent is doing.

On top of that most of the "international" talent that the NRL develops qualify to play for their chosen nation through heritage rules, and were not only developed locally here in Australia (and/or NZ), but more often than not have never actually resided in the nation they are representing. So even if they were banned from playing in the NRL they wouldn't go back and play in competitions in the countries that they represent anyway.

If it's not an active sport there then W.A. doesn't deserve a team.

And how exactly do you plan to make RL an active sport in areas that don't have RL if you refuse to take RL to those places?

It's a self-fulfilling prophecy, they'll never build enough support to "deserve" a team in your estimation because they don't have a team for them to support because you won't give them one.

 

[Legion]

With the exceptions of players from England and PNG, pretty much all of the international talent that the NRL signs wouldn't have become RL players at all if the NRL hadn't signed them. Those that did become professional sports men would have become RU players,not RL players.

And how exactly do you plan to make RL an active sport in areas that don't have RL if you refuse to take RL to those places?

It's a self-fulfilling prophecy, they'll never build enough support to "deserve" a team in your estimation because they don't have a team for them to support because you won't give them one.

The wealthier RL playing nations could provide support to those other countries but yes, you do make a fair point.

As for your last comment; our differences of opinion reminds me of that eternal question; what came first, the chicken or the egg?

Aussie Rules will always be the dominant sport in W.A. I just don't see it being able to support an NRL team without eternal financial support.
One must take into account not only the long flights involved [Like travelling from NZ to W.A. being the longest or Townsville to Perth for that matter] the cost to the clubs would be yet another drain on resources.

Thanks to expansion we've lost the traditional under 23's & reserve grade games that were played prior to the 1st grade match. That set-up was good for the building of club loyalty [which is now almost non-existent] & a great way to develop future 1st graders.
It's something that I really miss on game day.

As I said to @Perth Red , I fully understand why RL supporters out west would love to have a local team & I do have some empathy. But, I don't see it as being good for the overall competition.

Although you both make some good points, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree.

 

[The Great Dane]

The wealthier RL playing nations could provide support to those other countries but yes, you do make a fair point.

Or we could just focus on expanding the game in Australia first.

As for your last comment; our differences of opinion reminds me of that eternal question; what came first, the chicken or the egg?

It isn't a Chicken or the egg question at all, in fact it's pretty straight forward: you can't buy something if it's not for sale, and the NRL isn't for sale in WA.

Taking into account that it isn't for sale in WA (and other large parts of country) it's ridiculous to suggest that you won't sell it to them until they are already buying lots of it, because it's impossible for them to buy lots of it because you refuse to sell it to them. By refusing to sell it to them you are artificially creating a problem and then using that manufactured problem to refuse to sell to them.

Aussie Rules will always be the dominant sport in W.A.

Back in the 20s-70s ish people said the same thing about Baseball in the US, these days both American Football and Basketball are bigger sports than Baseball in the US. . .

But expansion isn't (necessarily) about dominating a new market, it's only about catching a reasonable share of a market. For example you'd only need to catch 1% of the Chinese sports market and it'd be more valuable than all of the NRL put together, and I think that we can both agree 1% isn't close to dominating.

I just don't see it being able to support an NRL team without eternal financial support.
One must take into account not only the long flights involved [Like travelling from NZ to W.A. being the longest or Townsville to Perth for that matter] the cost to the clubs would be yet another drain on resources.

The NRL is already propping up most of the league through their ridiculous grants, and a good portion of the league are way less "deserving" of it then your Perth's and Adelaide's of the world. So I don't get why you are concerned about the expense when it comes to expansion clubs, but you are totally fine with it when the NRL is propping up the smaller clubs (particularly the smaller clubs in Sydney) through grants.

Secondly, when somehow the smallest of minority sports, like Ice Hockey and Baseball for example, can mange to organise national competitions, expensive flights and all, when they are averaging attendance in the hundreds, ratings in the lower thousands, and have minuscule TV contracts (if they have a tv contract at all), then I think that the multi-billion dollar high flying NRL can manage it as well.

Thanks to expansion we've lost the traditional under 23's & reserve grade games that were played prior to the 1st grade match. That set-up was good for the building of club loyalty [which is now almost non-existent] & a great way to develop future 1st graders.
It's something that I really miss on game day.

What the hell has expansion got to do with the NRL getting rid of reserve grade?

This is just a crappy argument form tradition anyway. Just because we always did it that way doesn't mean that it should always be done that way.

As I said to @Perth Red , I fully understand why RL supporters out west would love to have a local team & I do have some empathy. But, I don't see it as being good for the overall competition.

And yet Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Wellington, Christchurch, etc, would all be much better for the competition overall then your average smaller Sydney club, and yet I don't hear you complaining about the smaller Sydney clubs presence in the competition. . .

I think that you are being highly selective with you're concerns about what is in the best interests of the competition overall!