John Grant has publicly said that there will no expansion for 5 years and it seems the Bid teams haven't been told...impressive way to treat people who have worked hard in the game from a man who has had no involvement till no since he retired 30 years ago!!
http://www.qt.com.au/story/2012/10/04/ipswich-bid-for-nrl-canned-for-five-years/
LEAGUE boss John Grant has crash-tackled Ipswich's bid to have a team in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition.
The Australian Rugby League Commission chairman said no new team would be admitted to the competition for at least the next five years, the life of the recently signed broadcast deal.
Mr Grant said the expansion of the competition, whcih some had hoped could come as soon as 2015, might be as far away as 10 years.
Other bids for a new team came from Central Queensland, Brisbane, the NSW Central Coast and Perth.
David Gallop was an advocate for the Western Corridor bid including Ipswich when he was the chief executive of the NRL.
But Mr Gallop resigned as chief executive of the new Australian Rugby League Commission in June, four months into his contract.
Speaking exclusively to the QT, Mr Grant said when the commission took over from the NRL it found very work little had been done about expansion.
He said there had been no analysis of the effect on the game and no timeline for bringing a new team into the competition.
Negotiations for the new broadcast deal between the ARL, Channel Nine and Foxtel revealed no financial benefit from a new team, he said.
"One of the considerations we had when it came to the new broadcast licence was whether there was any additional value of an additional game," Mr Grant said. "We've got eight games a weekend now, with an extra team there would be nine games.
"The bottom line is they didn't see any value in an additional game. So where we are now is that as a result of the broadcast rights negotiations, there's no justification for expansion.
"If you don't have any value in an additional game you have to find funds from somewhere else."
He said it could take up to 10 years for a consortium to generate sustainable backing to run and support a team in the NRL.
Mayor Paul Pisasale was buoyant about Mr Grant's announcement, saying it gave Ipswich's bid a starting point.
"It's good because we know where we stand and we know what we have to do to reach our goal," the Mayor said.
"We were told by David Gallop that there was a bid and we took it very seriously not only for the city but for young people coming through wanting to play rugby league and for the whole corridor from Toowoomba right through."
He said the first step in getting a bid ready to be admitted into the competition was developing a partnership with an NRL club.
"What we're doing is getting processes in place where young people in Ipswich can go through and play in the NRL," he said.
"So we're negotiating with the Broncos to see whether they are prepared to sign a MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the city, with the junior rugby league, the IRL and the Jets."
Western Corridor bid chief Steven Johnson was disappointed the commission hadn't told him but took the decision in his stride.
"Obviously when David Gallop was head of the NRL he had a different view of expansion to the commission," Mr Johnson said.
"But we can't change their mind and we wouldn't want to. We'll have to be patient and wait our time. We're confident when the expansion comes through we'll be in a position to be first chosen."
He supported Ipswich forming a partnership with an NRL club such as the Broncos, saying the Mayor's idea was "not inconsistent with our vision and our model".
"We'd be happy to partner with any club that shares our vision," he said. "Speaking as chairman of Ipswich Jets, we need a pathway to the NRL through the Ipswich Junior Rugby League, the IRL and the Ipswich Jets."
http://www.qt.com.au/story/2012/10/04/ipswich-bid-for-nrl-canned-for-five-years/
LEAGUE boss John Grant has crash-tackled Ipswich's bid to have a team in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition.
The Australian Rugby League Commission chairman said no new team would be admitted to the competition for at least the next five years, the life of the recently signed broadcast deal.
Mr Grant said the expansion of the competition, whcih some had hoped could come as soon as 2015, might be as far away as 10 years.
Other bids for a new team came from Central Queensland, Brisbane, the NSW Central Coast and Perth.
David Gallop was an advocate for the Western Corridor bid including Ipswich when he was the chief executive of the NRL.
But Mr Gallop resigned as chief executive of the new Australian Rugby League Commission in June, four months into his contract.
Speaking exclusively to the QT, Mr Grant said when the commission took over from the NRL it found very work little had been done about expansion.
He said there had been no analysis of the effect on the game and no timeline for bringing a new team into the competition.
Negotiations for the new broadcast deal between the ARL, Channel Nine and Foxtel revealed no financial benefit from a new team, he said.
"One of the considerations we had when it came to the new broadcast licence was whether there was any additional value of an additional game," Mr Grant said. "We've got eight games a weekend now, with an extra team there would be nine games.
"The bottom line is they didn't see any value in an additional game. So where we are now is that as a result of the broadcast rights negotiations, there's no justification for expansion.
"If you don't have any value in an additional game you have to find funds from somewhere else."
He said it could take up to 10 years for a consortium to generate sustainable backing to run and support a team in the NRL.
Mayor Paul Pisasale was buoyant about Mr Grant's announcement, saying it gave Ipswich's bid a starting point.
"It's good because we know where we stand and we know what we have to do to reach our goal," the Mayor said.
"We were told by David Gallop that there was a bid and we took it very seriously not only for the city but for young people coming through wanting to play rugby league and for the whole corridor from Toowoomba right through."
He said the first step in getting a bid ready to be admitted into the competition was developing a partnership with an NRL club.
"What we're doing is getting processes in place where young people in Ipswich can go through and play in the NRL," he said.
"So we're negotiating with the Broncos to see whether they are prepared to sign a MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the city, with the junior rugby league, the IRL and the Jets."
Western Corridor bid chief Steven Johnson was disappointed the commission hadn't told him but took the decision in his stride.
"Obviously when David Gallop was head of the NRL he had a different view of expansion to the commission," Mr Johnson said.
"But we can't change their mind and we wouldn't want to. We'll have to be patient and wait our time. We're confident when the expansion comes through we'll be in a position to be first chosen."
He supported Ipswich forming a partnership with an NRL club such as the Broncos, saying the Mayor's idea was "not inconsistent with our vision and our model".
"We'd be happy to partner with any club that shares our vision," he said. "Speaking as chairman of Ipswich Jets, we need a pathway to the NRL through the Ipswich Junior Rugby League, the IRL and the Ipswich Jets."
