All Fair and Above Board.....NOT!!!

[petetheileet]

http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/03/31/try-as-they-might-no-news-ltd-means-no-melbourne-storm/


http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/l...0329-r8dn.html



Have any of you guys seen enough 5min bit pieces of Smith on NRL on Fox to justify him being paid 100k for it???

Doubt it...


IMO If after 12 years, 4 successive Grand Finals 3 Premierships, 3 of the highest profile players in the game, World Club Champions. Popularity is such that the NRL still cant put a live game on even when there is no competing sport the same day. When will they be able to stand alone?

If they cant sustain themselves now, how the hell are they going to sustain themselves in the next 5, 10 or 20 years if magically they arent able to grow as succesful a team that other clubs have funded for them like the one in the last 5 years????

If they arent getting any NRL on a decent time slot in Melbourne to add numbers for televised audiences, why exactly is our expansion in that area so important for the game??? How are they bringing in enough money to the NRL to justify every other clubs forking out money to keep them afloat and keep them as contenders each year?

Even if they do cover the money they are being given, why is it being taken from the kitty of hard working financially successful clubs to keep them afloat.

I for one dont want my team footing the bill to keep a team afloat that could be doing more for growth and for a town/city elsewhere.

Lets say the cap is increased to 6mil....will every club be able to afford that??? Will the Storm be funded by other clubs to spend the full amount???? you bet ur arse they will be!!!

News will not leave unless they know Melbourne will be supported by the new commission. Plain and simple. However unfortunately we will be left with this stain where battling Sydney clubs where the game has been made what it is today, will be forfeiting much needed funds to keep a club successful, who if stood on their own wouldn't be able to run out on the field each week

IMO if they cant sustain themselves by 2016 (after making 4, 5, who knows even up to 7 or 8 grand finals in a decade) they will never be able to sustain themselves, hence they dont belong in the otherwise growing NRL.

 

[m0nty]

Just try and kill the Storm and then ask for more money from the TV networks. They would laugh you out of the boardroom. Just as the Warriors are worth investing in to increase overall broadcast revenue from NZ, the loss on the Storm's operations is more than made up by TV contracts.

Also, there are a number of glaring holes in the arguments of that BPL article. The Storm aren't supported by free kicks from leagues clubs, which have allowed Sydney RL clubs to operate at similarly ridiculous operating losses in recent years... though reality is setting in now.

The Storm won premierships because they were well managed, and professionally run, especially by Waldron. The puffed up furniture salesmen who populate Sydney club officialdom wouldn't know how to do recruiting at all if they didn't have juniors already attached to their organisations.

You have to look at the big picture with the Storm. Shutting them down would be a concession of defeat to the AFL.

 

[Goddo]

Yes, big picture wise the storm are an asset, but as pete says, its a bit pointless without the tv. Hopefully Channel 9 get shafted into doing the right thing soon.

 

[taxidriver]

we need melbourne?

pigs arse.

i argue the other side of the coin.

12 years of massive financial support, loads of on field success and yet they still can't stand alone?

i argue that it is an embarrassment to the code

 

[big country]

http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/03/31/try-as-they-might-no-news-ltd-means-no-melbourne-storm/


http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/l...0329-r8dn.html



Have any of you guys seen enough 5min bit pieces of Smith on NRL on Fox to justify him being paid 100k for it???

Doubt it...


IMO If after 12 years, 4 successive Grand Finals 3 Premierships, 3 of the highest profile players in the game, World Club Champions. Popularity is such that the NRL still cant put a live game on even when there is no competing sport the same day. When will they be able to stand alone?

If they cant sustain themselves now, how the hell are they going to sustain themselves in the next 5, 10 or 20 years if magically they arent able to grow as succesful a team that other clubs have funded for them like the one in the last 5 years????

If they arent getting any NRL on a decent time slot in Melbourne to add numbers for televised audiences, why exactly is our expansion in that area so important for the game??? How are they bringing in enough money to the NRL to justify every other clubs forking out money to keep them afloat and keep them as contenders each year?

Even if they do cover the money they are being given, why is it being taken from the kitty of hard working financially successful clubs to keep them afloat.

I for one dont want my team footing the bill to keep a team afloat that could be doing more for growth and for a town/city elsewhere.

Lets say the cap is increased to 6mil....will every club be able to afford that??? Will the Storm be funded by other clubs to spend the full amount???? you bet ur arse they will be!!!

News will not leave unless they know Melbourne will be supported by the new commission. Plain and simple. However unfortunately we will be left with this stain where battling Sydney clubs where the game has been made what it is today, will be forfeiting much needed funds to keep a club successful, who if stood on their own wouldn't be able to run out on the field each week

IMO if they cant sustain themselves by 2016 (after making 4, 5, who knows even up to 7 or 8 grand finals in a decade) they will never be able to sustain themselves, hence they dont belong in the otherwise growing NRL.[/QUOTE]

lets be fair - give it till 2026 - it all 'takes time' - i'm sure they'll reduce their debt to $4mil per year by then ;-)

 

[The Tank]

According to the SMH it's News Ltd who asked for it not to be shown live not Nein Melbourne. They didn't want it clashing with some charity thingo.

 

[petetheileet]

what u rekon taxidriver is gna happen if the cap goes up and other clubs cant afford it will the Storm be given it???

 

[Aaron_sfas]

i talked to a couple of guys from melbourne who are big sports fans, and they didnt even know the storm had won the grand final last year. the nrl has to realise noone cares down in melbourne

 

[Evenflow]

i talked to a couple of guys from melbourne who are big sports fans, and they didnt even know the storm had won the grand final last year. the nrl has to realise noone cares down in melbourne

What a load of utter sh*t. Big sports fans who didn't know who won the GF let alone a team from their home city? Yeah, real massive sports fans :lol:

 

[Eels Dude]

According to the SMH it's News Ltd who asked for it not to be shown live not Nein Melbourne. They didn't want it clashing with some charity thingo.

Fair enough for this week... but what about every other friday night for the past 4 years where Melbourne have played and they don't show the game until midnight?

 

[Firey_Dragon]

What a load of utter sh*t. Big sports fans who didn't know who won the GF let alone a team from their home city? Yeah, real massive sports fans :lol:

To be fair, I regard myself as a big sports fan but there is no chance in hell I could tell you the last few grand final winners of the AFL, with the exception of Geelong last year.

If they have no interest in the sport, and it receives little media coverage in their state, why should they know who won it? Having been to Melbourne many times throughout the footy season, finding pubs that show league is a bloody hard task, in Sydney, you'll still get pubs showing AFL at most places, down there it's so insular, it's basically AFL or nothing.

In regards to the leagues obsession with expansion, on top of the U20's comp and salary cap, I think it's thinning out the talent way too much. It'll be interesting to see what happens with Melbourne once News Ltd hooks it's ties to the NRL.

 

[adamkungl]

i talked to a couple of guys from melbourne who are big sports fans, and they didnt even know the storm had won the grand final last year. the nrl has to realise noone cares down in melbourne

Well if your 2 mates don't care, we may as well pull the plug.

 

[Evenflow]

To be fair, I regard myself as a big sports fan but there is no chance in hell I could tell you the last few grand final winners of the AFL, with the exception of Geelong last year.

If they have no interest in the sport, and it receives little media coverage in their state, why should they know who won it? Having been to Melbourne many times throughout the footy season, finding pubs that show league is a bloody hard task, in Sydney, you'll still get pubs showing AFL at most places, down there it's so insular, it's basically AFL or nothing.

Firstly i personally wouldn't class anyone a big sports fan if they don't even know who won the GF of one of the 2 major comps in our country. Sports fans read the sports sections, watch sports shows etc so it'd be near impossible to miss. You don't have to like a sport to know who won it, i hate the A-league but even i know that Sydney won it.

Secondly the Storm's GF win got plenty of coverage in Melbourne contrary to what some of the dimwits would have you believe the live north of the border. It's not like there was i tiny paragraph in the sports section, there were pages of it not to mention every news channel covering in so anyone who could be classed as a "big" sports fan would know they won given you'd think they read the sports section religiously every day and watch sports bulletins.

 

[Perth Red]

Pete are you really that stupid? Don't blame Melbourne for the NRL's deliberate underselling of the game there. Take a look at Storms Foxsports viewing numbers, it will answer all your questions on why there is still no FTA coverage into Vic.

Try and get a $1billion deal with only two capital cities!

It annoys me that the game in WA was destroyed partly to faciltiate the birth of the game in Melbourne but that decision was made and finally after over a decade we are starting to see the decision pay dividends for the game as a whole. Only a total frickwit would even consider pulling a team out of the 2nd biggest city in the country!

 

[Evenflow]

Pete are you really that stupid?

Is that a rhetorical question? I think the majority around here know the answer to that.

 

[broncos2011]

Storm needs to stay.

You reckon andrew demetriou is gunna say "oh we will give western sydney 10 or 11 years and if it doesn't work we will give it away". They know they aren't going to change the opinion of todays children from league but they probably think that the children in 10 years time might be persuaded.

They have a pretty dedicated supporter base now, see what happens at the new stadium with walk-ups. Might get more interest + a TV deal that doesn't suck might lead to some RL coverage in victoria.

 

[Iafeta]

Just try and kill the Storm and then ask for more money from the TV networks. They would laugh you out of the boardroom. Just as the Warriors are worth investing in to increase overall broadcast revenue from NZ, the loss on the Storm's operations is more than made up by TV contracts.

Also, there are a number of glaring holes in the arguments of that BPL article. The Storm aren't supported by free kicks from leagues clubs, which have allowed Sydney RL clubs to operate at similarly ridiculous operating losses in recent years... though reality is setting in now.

The Storm won premierships because they were well managed, and professionally run, especially by Waldron. The puffed up furniture salesmen who populate Sydney club officialdom wouldn't know how to do recruiting at all if they didn't have juniors already attached to their organisations.

You have to look at the big picture with the Storm. Shutting them down would be a concession of defeat to the AFL.

Aside from the annual grant which is delivered to all clubs, who exactly are the Warriors getting hand outs from, and in particular, which part of the central controlling board is assisting the Warriors above and beyond?

Agree the Warriors are worth investing in, agree that they're a critical strategic footprint for the growth of media and sponsorship revenues, but I'm not sure the other relevances to the Storm's ownership or player pay-out situations.

 

[m0nty]

Yep Iafeta, I wasn't insinuating anything re handouts. I was thinking of another thread last month noting that the TV rights revenue from NZ is double that of the expenses of the Warriors, thus even if the Warriors run at a loss, they benefit the NRL in toto by existing.

 

[Ulysseus]

we need melbourne?

pigs arse.

i argue the other side of the coin.

12 years of massive financial support, loads of on field success and yet they still can't stand alone?

i argue that it is an embarrassment to the code

I will agree with that argument.

 

[Parra]

The clear way out of this is to ensure that News Ltd honor their side of the NRL deal.

If they want to get out early then they should pay the penalty. If this means that News Ltd have to prop up the Storm for a few more years then so be it.

To expect the NSW fans to keep paying for the Storm fiasco is beyond a joke.

The fact that the negotiators are even considering this proposal shows how weak the RL leadership is and how News Ltd control the game. Even when bailing out.