Billionaire wants new NZ team

[Auckland4ever]

Strange but apparently true story in NZ this morning, a Belgian billionaire with interests in the south pacific has become a huge RL fan & is now wanting to throw his riches behind another NZ based NRL team. The NZRL has written to David Gallup but have been told no new expansion teams will be considered for another few years.

One option not counted out by the people pushing for another team is to buy an existing one & re-locate it to NZ, which I'm sure would go down well. I dont know if the NRL would allow it, but it is a regular occurance in a number of professional competitions throughout the world. Personally, I hope this is'nt the path they choose to go down.

If there is a second team, apparently it would definitely not be Auckland based, with Wellington being the most likely candidate.

 

[Southernsaint]

It'd be great if the support generated by the people of Wellington for the one-off League matches at the Cake Tin could be maintained for a whole season & indefinently. When the Warriors joined the comp, the crowds were great initially before dropping off after a few seasons & are building up again now that the team is successful. I'd hope that if & when a team is playing out of Wellington, they build up a great grass-roots support & promote the game well, especially as Auckland is a much stronger Leaguearea in that regard

With the NRL's track-record on backing projects in the long term, the second NZ team dream might be a long way off though.

Cheers,
Ben S.

PS: To all the JAFA's, Wellington is a much nicer town than Auckland

 

[Bobby DIGital]

Im a Wellington boy and I'd go to every game I could, to support the game. But yeah the Raiders will always and forever be my football team.

 

[Moffo]

Its silly, there are teams ready to go at the Gold Coast and Wellington but the NRL is sticking to 15 teams. If a team can fully fund itself without NRL assistance, then what the hell does the NRL have to lose by letting them in??

What, perhaps an increase in the number of league fans? :roll:

Cheers,
Moffo

 

[Parki]

The nrl has to look at the cost of including this team, how the draw is going to be changed, how its going to affect all the other clubs in the existing competition etc etc there are a number of serious issues that have to be looked at.....they dont want another Adelaide or Perth disaster on their hands.... the nrl needs to get its grass roots in order before we go looking at expanding....

 

[Alan Shore]

The nrl has to look at the cost of including this team, how the draw is going to be changed, how its going to affect all the other clubs in the existing competition etc etc there are a number of serious issues that have to be looked at.....they dont want another Adelaide or Perth disaster on their hands.... the nrl needs to get its grass roots in order before we go looking at expanding....

Cost is $0. This Belgian billionaire will pay for it all.

Perth and Adelaide weren't disasters, they were cut prematurely.

 

[Parki]

is the belgian billionaire going to pay for flights over to new zealand for the respective teams

what about accomodation, food etc etc... Perth and Adelaide were disasters IMO because they failed to generate any sort of support...you cant just walk into a state and hope to be successful....hell look at the melbourne storm they won the comp and they are still struggling to get fans.... I went to melbourne not long ago and it surprised me that the only thing the sport report consists of is AFL and more AFL...i thought they were more tolerant than that..... you have to look at the bigger picture..the game has just come through one of the most turbulent times, and we are only now just getting back on our feet after super league.... IMO it would be much smarter to secure the futures of the 15 clubs that we currently have before we go introducing new ones..thats just my opinion

 

[Razor]

The nrl has to look at the cost of including this team, how the draw is going to be changed, how its going to affect all the other clubs in the existing competition etc etc there are a number of serious issues that have to be looked at.....they dont want another Adelaide or Perth disaster on their hands.... the nrl needs to get its grass roots in order before we go looking at expanding....

Cost is $0. This Belgian billionaire will pay for it all.

Perth and Adelaide weren't disasters, they were cut prematurely.

People keep forgetting that Adelaide and the Gold Coast weren't financially struggling at all. Gold Coast was one of the richest clubs in the comp (they just weren't spending their money on players). They were just axed to get it down to 14. Since News owned Adelaide and the ARL owned the GC, those 2 were the easiest to cut.

 

[Alan Shore]

is the belgian billionaire going to pay for flights over to new zealand for the respective teams

what about accomodation, food etc etc... Perth and Adelaide were disasters IMO because they failed to generate any sort of support...you cant just walk into a state and hope to be successful....hell look at the melbourne storm they won the comp and they are still struggling to get fans.... I went to melbourne not long ago and it surprised me that the only thing the sport report consists of is AFL and more AFL...i thought they were more tolerant than that..... you have to look at the bigger picture..the game has just come through one of the most turbulent times, and we are only now just getting back on our feet after super league.... IMO it would be much smarter to secure the futures of the 15 clubs that we currently have before we go introducing new ones..thats just my opinion

Accommodation, food, flights etc would be the same price as they are now. Plus, we have sponsors who can cover that.

Perth and Adelaide generated alot of support, but most people like you are too ignorant to realise that. Crowds only dropped off when the rumours of the teams getting the chop surface.

Victoria is hostile but it's way easier to crack SA and WA than Melbourne.

It costs $10,000,000 to run an NRL club annually.

Let's say this Belgian finances his Orcas. The NRL can put it in the contract that he must also contribute $5,000,000 annually to the running costs of another expansion team such as Adelaide or Perth.

 

[Bengal]

If there really is a Belgian billionaire then Rugby League needs to find a way of roping him into the game other than trying to fund a second kiwi team.

A second kiwi team has merits, but it also has huge drawbacks, namely the dilution of support for the Warriors.

If this billionaire really is interested in League then we need to find a way of diverting his interest into other avenues of the sport where it can really be put to effective use.

 

[BuffaloRules]

After all that our game has gone through in the last 8 years, I still can't help but shake my head in amazement when these calls for new teams to be added to the competetion in the near future keep coming.....

Being a long suffering Tigers supporter, I am actually looking forward to the new season in 04 with some optimism as it appears that the salary cap is starting to bite and we have managed to secure some better players and have kept some of our younger talent. The same can be said of Souths.

Imagine if another 1 or 2 teams come in and theres another 7 million of salary cap on the market?? More teams get involved in bidding wars for players and the same teams keep propping up the bottom.

Also, its my understanding that the NRL puts in $2m for each team. Do they need to find another $2m for Wellington. No you say as the Billionaire will pay?? Doesn't seem fair to me. Hope he is in for the long haul...( can he put 25 years worth into a trust fund please???)

I'm all for expanding our game, but I think we need to consider that the strenght of our game is Sydney, and we are under attack from other codes ( but at least holding our ground for the time being....)
Without Sydney our game is nothing, and I don't want to see the Tigers move/fold whatever and give that region over to AFL.

Expansion yes - say around 2008.... Lets for the time being consolidate what we have and give all the exisiting teams a chance to get on their own two feet.

Bigger isn't necessarily better!!!

 

[Alan Shore]

How about this guy fund RL in Belgium?

 

[ozbash]

""namely the dilution of support for the Warriors. ""

the warriors are based primarily in auckland. still a lot of nz left.

as far as the proposal goes,,, the nrl would rather prop up another abandoned sydney team at the expense of the games expansion and its long term future.

a club which immediately springs to mind is manly..deserted by its fans and sponsors, the nrl will relocate this pathetic failure of a club to the gold coast.
this will give the gold coast fans a pathetic failure of a club to support while potential money winners are left languishing in never never land.

while the nrl pisses around trying to save these dead beat clubs,, nz is losing its juniors at a rate you wouldnt believe.....

we get a bit of positive news,, the nrl stifles it immediately... who is the loser here ??

 

[half]

if he's anything like belgian waffles, we should let him have a team!

sometimes i feel people want less teams, cos it means their team will have more of a chance of winning the premiership each year

 

[Bengal]

""namely the dilution of support for the Warriors. ""

the warriors are based primarily in auckland. still a lot of nz left.

as far as the proposal goes,,, the nrl would rather prop up another abandoned sydney team at the expense of the games expansion and its long term future.

a club which immediately springs to mind is manly..deserted by its fans and sponsors, the nrl will relocate this pathetic failure of a club to the gold coast.
this will give the gold coast fans a pathetic failure of a club to support while potential money winners are left languishing in never never land.

while the nrl pisses around trying to save these dead beat clubs,, nz is losing its juniors at a rate you wouldnt believe.....

we get a bit of positive news,, the nrl stifles it immediately... who is the loser here ??

They may be based in Auckland, but they carry the full weight of NZ behind them.

A one team full-on onslaught of the NRL is better for the game in NZ than two teams with divided loyalties i.e. divided public interest, sponsors, playing talent, staff etc.

We’ve only just started regaining the interest (and confidence) of the NZ public in Rugby League lately, thanks to the efforts of the Warriors over the past season or two.

I don’t believe the Warriors profile is strong enough to take the hit that another NZ team will do to it at this point in time.

And if the Warriors suffer, League in New Zealand suffers with or without a new kiwi team.

On the side please tell me - where are the juniors going?

 

[SP]

I say let the Belgian do it, and in return, he can promote RL back in his homeland

oh hang on, this is the NRL we're talking about

 

[ali]

On the side please tell me - where are the juniors going?

This is infact one of the main reasons why a second NZ team should be in the NRL immediately. Where are the juniors coming out of Auckland and NZ going to go, now that the Warriors have a top class, youngish, fully established squad? Obviously the Warriors will try to keep the absolute cream, but anyone else looking to play top flight Rugby League is forced to leave NZ. Or worse, they may decide to switch to Union and its large professional structure in NZ. There is definately enough talent coming out of NZ to support 2 teams. Look at this side of NZ juniors running around in top class sides. I'll put a W next to the ones who were once on the books of the Warriors.

1.Richie Barnett (Hull)
2.Lesley Vainikolo (Bradford) W
3.Paul Whateira (Penrith) W
4.Nigal Vagana Dogs) W
5.Tevita Vaikona (Bradford)
6.Robbie Paul (Bradford)
7.Henry Paul (Gloucester RU) W
13.Stephen Kearney (Melbourne) W
12.Joe Galavao (Penrith) W
11.Ruben Wiki (Canberra) W
10.Paul Rauhihi (Cowboys) W
9. Henry Peranara (Dragons) W
8. Joe Vagana (Bradford) W
14. Shontayne Hape (Bradford) W
15. Willie Talau (St Helens)
16. Michael Smith (Castleford)
17. David Vaeleki (Parra) W
18. David Solamona (Parra) W

What an incredable amount of talent that once were Warriors. Out of the above only 3 haven't played for the Kiwis. And remember the Warriors have only been around for 8 years.

Having a second NZ side will give even greater depth to the NZ Test team, by giving more opportunities to Kiwi Rl players. If the NRL is worried about losing revenue from this poker machine Tax in NSW, one way to get greater income is to strengthen the international side of the game. If we could develop a 3 Test series between Australia and NZ that is half as popular as the Bledislow Cup, then it will be a money spinner for RL. More money for the ARL makes them more self sufficient and maybe even one day we may have a case when the ARL can give the NRL a grant to distrbute to clubs. Greater international recogition leads to greater sponsorship opportunities.

I believe QLD needs another side, but we've done nothing up there for years, so not much more damage can be done. We need to get another side in NZ whilst the game over there continues to go up and up. If a Belgian Bilionare is keen to back this team, then I say get him involved right away.

With pommie clubs cutting the import quota for 5 to 3 over the next 2 years, there will be less of our players sucked over there for the pound. Talent wise I have no doubt within a few years the game can support 18 clubs. Wellington, the Gold Coast and one other should be admitted within 3 -5 years. Weelingotn for mine, ASAP.

 

[Victor Trumper]

Someone comes along with a fist full of dollars and we tell him to come back in a few years time.

I say if this Belgian lad is willing to put, lets say 100 mill up front to gaurantee the club for 15 years, what has the game got to loose.

The protection of Sydney based clubs should not come before the expansion of the game. The world of Rugby League extends outside of the Sydney catchment area.

 

[Special K]

Hmmm

CC has backing, the Gold Coast has backing and now NZ has backing. Why not make it a 18 team comp?

Also the best thing about adding these 3 sides as they all have jnrs they could use to add players around.

Who says it just has to be a 16 team comp? Give these sides higher salary caps for the first 3 years and then the talent will go to these sides.

 

[The Observer]

Forget 12, 14, 16, 18 teams - why don't we have a 52 team NRL competition? Roosters Souths is no kind of local derby - a clash between the Moore Park Rd Jaywalkers vs Driver Avenue Carparkers has much more national significance! 8)

We want a world class competitive competition where any team can win. There is barely enough elite talent for 14 teams. We've seen how the 15th team goes in this competition - it gets thrashed week in, week out. Perhaps the season ticket holders in Auckland should share the wealth and agree to lend a Warriors home game or two to Wellington. There is little money in RL in NZ outside Auckland. Wellington and Canterbury (Christchurch) RLs folded and are now run out of Auckland.

It was the intransigence of their counterparts over at Eden Park that lost NZ its pools of the RWC 2003.