Future of St.George

[yakstorm]

Here's a stat -

In 1994 St.George ran 11th and Illawarra 6th (top 5 semi final system) combined they averaged 24,136 with archiac facilities and fortnightly home games. Today St.George/Illawarra running 6th average 12,029.

Balmain finished last and Wests 13th, their season's were well and truly over before the end of the season they averaged a combined 14,644 today with the Tigers pushing for a semi final birth and maximised attendances they average 15,830.

Norths averaged over 15,000.........and they follow Manly now...what? they don't!, well they weren't RL supporters in the first place, stuff them.....................

Crowds in the Illawarra region have stayed pretty static even after the merger. Out of the 'active' supporters in the Wollongong area, they haven't dropped off, they just attend half as many games they use to.

It dispels the myth that particular region has dropped off league simply because they no longer have a stand alone club. It also raises questions if the market is big enough though for it to sustain St George full time.

Illawarra crowds:
Pre Merger:
1990: 9,968
1991: 12,244
1992: 13,750
1993: 12,321
1994: 11,911
1995: 9,651
1996: 7,434
1997: 8,695
1998: 9,248

Post Merger:
1999: 12,995
2000: 10,438
2001: 10,634
2002: 11,625
2003: 12,701
2004: 13,988
2005: 14,426
2006: 13,929
2007: 13,467
2008: 11,908*

 

[Parra]

Fans at the game do not represent the support in the area.

When Illawarra was around the players used to visit schools down at Kiama and beyond. The schools played league, there was a league culture in the towns.

It is gone now. Many schools do not even field a league team. Rugby & soccer picked up the slack.

 

[Man_of_Steel_1982]

Ive been to nearly every game in 8 years and never heard that. I think there might be something in the disenfranchised argument but you have to remember the Steelers alone never had great support.

I think its a structural problem between all the other leagues clubs in the area and the Steelers headed by Bob (The dirty digger) Millward and the fact the Gong is more like a suburb of sydney these days. only 1 hour away by fast train

You're kidding aren't ya?

Point one: anyone who's been to a game in Wollongong has almost certainly heard that.

Two: The Steelers averaged as good as the Dragons do now (with all of the Sydney fans coming down). Maybe I'm biased, but I know not as many people talk about the Dragons as much as they used to talk to the Steelers, win, lose or draw. Even the local media gave better coverage when we had our own team.

Three: 1 hour fast train to Sydney???!!!

But I fully agree with your comments on the leagues clubs / Bobby Steeler - which highlights that we never really had a proper go in the first place, much like the Gold Coast.

 

[Man_of_Steel_1982]

Fans at the game do not represent the support in the area.

When Illawarra was around the players used to visit schools down at Kiama and beyond. The schools played league, there was a league culture in the towns.

It is gone now. Many schools do not even field a league team. Rugby & soccer picked up the slack.

That's been a huge step backwards since the merger.

When I was a school kid, we'd get plenty of visits from the likes of Brett Rodwell, Paul McGregor and Rod Wishart. They'd sign autographs for every kid. The best one of Wishy's visits he gave us a coaching session before we played in a knockout comp - was around origin time too. Big thrill for kids to have a Blues star there.

Illawarra were robbed of the first true generation of fans to come through.

 

[Rexxy]

Mate, you are making out the Dragons dont go to any schools.

having a professionally run outfit down there with a budget means the local schools get even more attention than before.

Save your spleen for the donkeys who ran the steelers. Not the guys who inject the millions.

http://www.dragonscommunity.com/default.asp?contentID=586

 

[Rexxy]

You're kidding aren't ya?

Point one: anyone who's been to a game in Wollongong has almost certainly heard that.

-> Nope. And I sit western concourse and southern stand.

Two: The Steelers averaged as good as the Dragons do now (with all of the Sydney fans coming down). Maybe I'm biased, but I know not as many people talk about the Dragons as much as they used to talk to the Steelers, win, lose or draw. Even the local media gave better coverage when we had our own team.

-> anecdotal, through scarlet coloured glasses.

Three: 1 hour fast train to Sydney???!!!

[FONT=Trebuchet MS, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]-> You are a suburb of sydney. "During the day, nearly half of Wollongong's population commutes to Sydney for their employment, so effectively, the Gong's sleeping population is 200,000, and the living daytime population is more like 110,000". http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A869835[/FONT]

we never really had a proper go in the first place, much like the Gold Coast.

It was a proper go, and it failed the financials, the football clubs like Illawarra Leagues decided to keep their head in the arse, rather than put up with prickly Millward.

So stop sh*tkicking Saints and get with the program like we all had to.

 

[Man_of_Steel_1982]

Mate, you are making out the Dragons dont go to any schools.

having a professionally run outfit down there with a budget means the local schools get even more attention than before.

Save your spleen for the donkeys who ran the steelers. Not the guys who inject the millions.

http://www.dragonscommunity.com/default.asp?contentID=586

I'm not making out they don't go at all, I'm highlighting the reduction in "local team" status which drives the interest of kids.

The Dragons do a good job in the Illawarra under their current set up, but it's a 50-50 each way bet, rather than a full on commitment to one region. Both districts would do better with their own clubs.

I can also tell you from first hand experience, that the AFL and Union have made massive in-roads into Illawarra schools and have it all over league in the last 10 years (a familiar story). Not helped by a 50% loss of a "local team". If the South Coast side gets into the A-League, it'll be a big worry for Rugby League in the Illawarra in 10-15 years.

If you don't live down here, jump on one of those fast "1 hour" trains and see what's happening in schools first hand.

 

[Man_of_Steel_1982]

You're kidding aren't ya?

Point one: anyone who's been to a game in Wollongong has almost certainly heard that.

-> Nope. And I sit western concourse and southern stand.

Two: The Steelers averaged as good as the Dragons do now (with all of the Sydney fans coming down). Maybe I'm biased, but I know not as many people talk about the Dragons as much as they used to talk to the Steelers, win, lose or draw. Even the local media gave better coverage when we had our own team.

-> anecdotal, through scarlet coloured glasses.

Three: 1 hour fast train to Sydney???!!!

[FONT=Trebuchet MS, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]-> You are a suburb of sydney. "During the day, nearly half of Wollongong's population commutes to Sydney for their employment, so effectively, the Gong's sleeping population is 200,000, and the living daytime population is more like 110,000". http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A869835[/FONT]

we never really had a proper go in the first place, much like the Gold Coast.

It was a proper go, and it failed the financials, the football clubs like Illawarra Leagues decided to keep their head in the arse, rather than put up with prickly Millward.

So stop sh*tkicking Saints and get with the program like we all had to.

At what point am I sh*t kicking Saints?

Again with the trains, I'm sure all of those commuters would love to know where that one hour fast train is.

 

[SaveTheChildren]

This isn't about kicking Saints out etc.

What I'm interested to know are the Dragons planning to move fulltime to Wollongong after the current deal? What are their plans for Kogarah as it seems they are building a decent 25,000 stadium there and not maximising it's use?

Any thoughts?

St George contribute no fans to the joint venture. Very small team that have had very little success. Illawarra should stand alone with Perth in their own competition and play each other 24 times a season.

 

[Rexxy]

The 447am tomorrow morning from the Gong will have you @ Sutho in 58 minutes.

Quicker than a train from Cronulla to the CBD.


Thats why 1/2 of the Gong's workforce commutes and why your Uni is fouled by Scummers.

Nothing like a Hobbit to drop the collective intelligence of any group.

 

[j0nesy]

Rexxy I doubt many of that 50%, that commute to Sydney, work in Sutherland. Most would work around the CBD which is another 30+ minutes on the usual all stations train. And the 4:47 FFS?

I've been to plenty of games and heard the "St George" call come from some quaters of the crowd, only to be echoed by the "Steelers" call from others. Admittedly it has become less prevalent over the years, now it's just mainly "St George".

What would kill rugby league in the Illawarra / Sth Coast is if it were to lose an NRL presence. Playing 100% of matches out of Kogarah would see to that. IMHO a 50/50 split should work well, the problem in the past has been that Kogarah has not been given 50% matches, for various "reasons".

 

[flamin]

I've been to plenty of games and heard the "St George" call come from some quaters of the crowd, only to be echoed by the "Steelers" call from others. Admittedly it has become less prevalent over the years, now it's just mainly "St George".

The team is rarely referred to as "St George" at WIN or in the Illawarra, unless its by the Army. Usually its just 'Dragons'.

 

[Man_of_Steel_1982]

The 447am tomorrow morning from the Gong will have you @ Sutho in 58 minutes.

Quicker than a train from Cronulla to the CBD.


Thats why 1/2 of the Gong's workforce commutes and why your Uni is fouled by Scummers.

Nothing like a Hobbit to drop the collective intelligence of any group.

Sydney to me = CBD. Not often a fan from the Saints side of the merger openly groups the metro area as "Sydney". Good to see - remember that when trying to argue that Kogarah shouldn't always lose a match when we host Anzac Day.

Sadly I know our uni is fouled by scummers, though when I went there the girls were pretty hot, so not all bad.

But to the orginal post, 2012 will be interesting. It would be good if the Steelers/Dragons could get Bruce Gordon involved and secure the game on the South Coast.

With Wayne Bennett on the way, I think the club will go from strength to strength. He's exactly what we needed all along, an outsider. For Saints, I think it would be madness to break up the joint venture.

 

[gregstar]

rexxy

king amongst men!

 

[j0nesy]

The team is rarely referred to as "St George" at WIN or in the Illawarra, unless its by the Army. Usually its just 'Dragons'.

With respect those guys are a lot more parochial than the rest of us, I hear the "St George" chant a lot louder and clearer than any Dragons chant. Perhaps that's because I prefer to watch from the hill. It doesn't bother me too much as I'm an Illawarra based ex St George fan, although I can understand how it would upset the Steelers diehards.

 

[Follow Me Up To Carlton]

When they talk about Wollongong in the Saints boardroom, they’re probably (hopefully) talking exit strategy.

Gotta get out of that quagmire before we end up like the Hawks, The Wolves or the Steelers.

 

[Man_of_Steel_1982]

When they talk about Wollongong in the Saints boardroom, they’re probably (hopefully) talking exit strategy.

Gotta get out of that quagmire before we end up like the Hawks, The Wolves or the Steelers.

The Hawks are still going strong. Foundation NBL club. Saved by community support. Same can't be said for any Sydney Club.

Wolves were just typical of the NSL.

I really think the Dragons would be mad to cut off current and potential Red V members, juniors and current and potential corporate support at a time when they need as much of the above as they can get.

 

[j0nesy]

There's been more games played by the JV in Wollongong than in Kogarah. Wonder what they're really talking about in the board room? :lol: