The Brothers bid team say they would have 30,000 members if a NRL licence was granted
Paul Malone
The Courier-Mail
March 17, 2014 10:00PM
THE Brothers bid team say they would expect to pull as many as 30,000 members in the first year after they were given an NRL licence.
Bid team chief Justin Barlow said they want to draw on the 30 Brothers clubs in 17 cities to provide what he says would a unique pathway where a five-year-old can start at a Brothers club and progress to playing for a Brothers NRL club, helped along the way to become a gentleman.
Barlow said he has major financial backers for their bid, which he said is at investment point.
He said the investors, whose identity he would not confirm, understood the not-for-profit model for the proposed NRL club, which would be majority-owned by members.
A Brothers entry to the NRL would play at least eight home games at Suncorp Stadium and as many as four matches at regional grounds. Queensland bid rivals include the Brisbane Bombers, Western Corridor, Central Queensland and Redcliffe.
We could put a team on the field in 2018 at a lower level or possibly 2018 at the NRL, which coincides with the new broadcast deal, Barlow said.
We will see what the NRL says. There may even be a two-tier competition, with, like with the English Premier League, promotion and relegation, and we can work with that.
One of our key next steps is to meet with them and understand where they want the game to go.
We can present an option where we can service Brisbane and we can service the western corridor, (regional Queensland) and Northern Territory.
NRL teams play games (in the premiership in recent years in Cairns and Mackay), but we would not be working in the regional centres on a fly in, fly out basis.
The Brisbane bid team had a launch at a New Farm hotel on Thursday attended by former Brisbane Brothers international David Wright and the 1987 premiership captain Trevor Bailey.
Barlow updated a meeting of Confraternity of Brothers delegates at Ipswich last weekend on progress of meeting with regional councils and said they were cautious about protecting the integrity of the Brothers brand.
Brothers clubs have 12,000 juniors and among Queensland currently starring in the NRL Brothers juniors include Cam Smith, Daly Cherry-Evans, Johnathan Thurston, Billy Slater, Sam Thaiday and Corey Parker.
We are ready. We can really make up some ground, Barlow said.
The teams administrative base would be at the Brothers Grange licenced club in Brisbane with plans for three regional junior academies at Cairns, Rockhampton and one servicing young players at the Ipswich, Logan and Toowoomba districts.
