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Biggest expansion in RL history

Gobsmacked

Bench
Messages
3,815
Even after the setback of Super league war RL is on the doorstep of the biggest geographical spread in history.
With the inclusion of Western Australian making the NRL a truly National sport and the new franchise coming out Papua new Guinea now making the NRL truly international as well!
From Auckland to Perth and Melbourne to Papua new Guinea, the NRL are not only the most watched sport in the pacific but also set to be the most widely represented.

The stage is set to cast the net even further with the inclusion of Christchurch hopefully!
 

James Rick

Juniors
Messages
44
Be it ipswich or Christchurch the NRL will ultimately be the winner as both options offer massive returns for the competition and game as a whole.
A team in Ipswich would put pressure on the government to upgrade Suncorp and who doesn't want more QLD derbies. Titans are bottom of the ladder yet still drew a reasonable crowd to their QLD derby on Sunday.
 

flippikat

First Grade
Messages
5,623
The game has never been in a better position.
We have enough genuine expansion options to take the NRL well into 22 or even 24 teams.

The only issues are a) what markets deserve priority over others and b) ensuring the game grows into each expansion phase - everything from TV revenue to player depth, to quality coaches & referees.
 

Gobsmacked

Bench
Messages
3,815
We have enough genuine expansion options to take the NRL well into 22 or even 24 teams.

The only issues are a) what markets deserve priority over others and b) ensuring the game grows into each expansion phase - everything from TV revenue to player depth, to quality coaches & referees.
Genuine expansion options:
Wellington
Christchurch
Ipswich
Sunshine Coast
Fiji
Adelaide
Melbourne 2
Hamilton

That's 8 !!!

24 teams is more than doable!
My preference after 19 being PNG in order:
Christchurch 20
Ipswich 21
Wellington 22
Adelaide 23
Fiji 24
 

flippikat

First Grade
Messages
5,623
Genuine expansion options:
Wellington
Christchurch
Ipswich
Sunshine Coast
Fiji
Adelaide
Melbourne 2
Hamilton

That's 8 !!!

24 teams is more than doable!
My preference after 19 being PNG in order:
Christchurch 20
Ipswich 21
Wellington 22
Adelaide 23
Fiji 24
In that order, it'd be Adelaide & Fiji coming in around the same time as the expansion phase that takes us from 22 to 24 teams.

I'm not sure if the NRL would want to take on the risk of a team in AFL-land and a Fiji-based team at the same time.

That phase seems a bit unbalanced, and maybe swapping one with Wellington would be a more balanced approach..

20 Christchurch

21 Ipswich
22 Fiji

23 Wellington
24 Adelaide

It also means Wellington isn't in the very next expansion phase after Christchurch, giving Christchurch a bit more time to bed-in before a 3rd NZ team debuts.

Also, bringing in Fiji in that 21-22 phase means we get Brisbane 3 (a VERY safe prospect) alongside them, and we take the NRL even more into the Pacific - in clear competition with Super Rugby's Pacific expansion - ASAP.
 
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İzmir Zaferi

Juniors
Messages
76
I don't Fiji is even close to being big enough from a financial reality and in reality population for the NRL.

A 'Southern NZ' team will cover NZ for atleast 10 plus years. The NRL should have a NZ strategy to move games ot other centres that can't sustain a full team but get good one off or couple games (like Hamiliton, Rotorua etc)

The only other realistic full expansion any time soon after would be Western Corridor in Brisbane.

A strong second teir NRL 2 (merged form of Q CUP, NSW CUP, NZ, PNG as conferences) is where most other coverage can happen.
 

Gobsmacked

Bench
Messages
3,815
I don't Fiji is even close to being big enough from a financial reality and in reality population for the NRL.

A 'Southern NZ' team will cover NZ for atleast 10 plus years. The NRL should have a NZ strategy to move games ot other centres that can't sustain a full team but get good one off or couple games (like Hamiliton, Rotorua etc)

The only other realistic full expansion any time soon after would be Western Corridor in Brisbane.

A strong second teir NRL 2 (merged form of Q CUP, NSW CUP, NZ, PNG as conferences) is where most other coverage can happen.
I like to see a second tier NRL set up that encompasses all the areas not big enough for an NRL team. The Q cup covers those well but the NSW cup doesn't at all which is a major missed opportunity.
Dubbo, Bathurst, Coffs harbour, Wagga ect.
 

flippikat

First Grade
Messages
5,623
I don't Fiji is even close to being big enough from a financial reality and in reality population for the NRL.

A 'Southern NZ' team will cover NZ for atleast 10 plus years. The NRL should have a NZ strategy to move games ot other centres that can't sustain a full team but get good one off or couple games (like Hamiliton, Rotorua etc)

The only other realistic full expansion any time soon after would be Western Corridor in Brisbane.

A strong second teir NRL 2 (merged form of Q CUP, NSW CUP, NZ, PNG as conferences) is where most other coverage can happen.
If Fiji isn't up to it and 2 NZ teams are considered enough, the after Perth (18) & PNG (19) the next 2 of the next 3 teams are surely NZ2 and Brisbane 3.

Which takes us to 21, and one spot left to get to 22 which avoids a weekly bye. The competition for that 22nd team will be intense.
 

Nutz

First Grade
Messages
7,041
I like to see a second tier NRL set up that encompasses all the areas not big enough for an NRL team. The Q cup covers those well but the NSW cup doesn't at all which is a major missed opportunity.
Dubbo, Bathurst, Coffs harbour, Wagga ect.
$$$$
 

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