NRL Expansion. Ideas and opinions.

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

I think the Sea Eagles need to take over the whole of the Northern Suburbs of Sydney and the Central Coast needs to be taken over by the Knights. Both those would become much bigger clubs than they currently are.

Could the Roosters take over the northern suburbs?

 

[T-Boon]

Could the Roosters take over the northern suburbs?

Its conceivable and worth thinking about. They may be better placed than Manly since most of the Northern Suburbs probably are second generation Manly haters. But to make it work they would probably need to take a game or 2 to the northern suburbs and its hard to see them doing that when they will have a magnificent stadium to play in at Moore Park.
Manly have a garbage location and stadium so it makes sense that they would want to look into expansion.

 

[greenBV4]

Its conceivable and worth thinking about. They may be better placed than Manly since most of the Northern Suburbs probably are second generation Manly haters. But to make it work they would probably need to take a game or 2 to the northern suburbs and its hard to see them doing that when they will have a magnificent stadium to play in at Moore Park.
Manly have a garbage location and stadium so it makes sense that they would want to look into expansion.

Roosters quite easily could position themselves as the "glamour club" from the higher end of town encompasing the affluent east and north, same as the Swans and Waratahs currently do from moore park.

 

[reanimate]

Could the Roosters take over the northern suburbs?

Geographically, it makes much more sense for Manly to handle the North Shore. You can drive from the boundary of the Northern Beaches to the North Shore in under 30 seconds and vice versa.

Culturally, it may make more sense for the Roosters to be the North Shore’s team. The Waratahs and Swans already straddle that demographic, as already noted by others. Ultimately, the NRL just needs to make a call on the Bears and the area. There’s been 20 years of inaction and it’s killing RL in the area. Whether it’s Manly or the Roosters, just make the call and let them get on with it.

 

[T-Boon]

Ultimately, the NRL just needs to make a call on the Bears and the area. There’s been 20 years of inaction and it’s killing RL in the area. Whether it’s Manly or the Roosters, just make the call and let them get on with it.

Give me a break. Its not the NRLs problem. Its fat arse lazy kebab eating clubs. The northern suburbs have been sitting there vacant for 20 years. Fat turd clubs just sit around eating cake.

 

[reanimate]

Give me a break. Its not the NRLs problem. Its fat arse lazy kebab eating clubs. The northern suburbs have been sitting there vacant for 20 years. Fat turd clubs just sit around eating cake.

It is, because the North Sydney NSWRL district and team still exists, it’s not like when Newtown got removed from the NSWRL and their territory got carved up between the other clubs (with Souths getting most of it). The Bears form partnerships with NRL clubs, but those clubs never get any official ownership over the region. Souths did nothing in terms of development when they had the Norths partnership and the Roosters are currently doing nothing there either.

No one wants to go and spend money on an area where the resident League body wants in on whatever the next expansion wave is, especially when that body wants to keep the North Sydney NSWRL district as part of their new club and territory. If a club goes and spends up on the North Shore for 5-10 years plus and then has the NRL say the Central Coast/Gold Coast/West Coast Bears are coming into the NRL in the next expansion wave, it’d be an enormous waste of money and time for the club that attempts it.

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

I'm leaning towards Roosters because it sounds like they would benefit the most from it. The NRL needs the Roosters to grow larger so they can compete with the Swans and Waratahs.

 

[reanimate]

I'm leaning towards Roosters because it sounds like they would benefit the most from it. The NRL needs the Roosters to grow larger so they can compete with the Swans and Waratahs.

Either club would benefit a lot from it. Ideally, the Roosters should get their old territory back from Souths. Souths got most of Newtown's old district, the Roosters should have basically all of the Eastern Suburbs bar Maroubra and south of there.

One club covering the whole Northern Sydney region makes a lot of sense. It would have been better in the long run had the NRL forced the merger to stay together in some form.

 

[T-Boon]

It is, because the North Sydney NSWRL district and team still exists, it’s not like when Newtown got removed from the NSWRL and their territory got carved up between the other clubs (with Souths getting most of it). The Bears form partnerships with NRL clubs, but those clubs never get any official ownership over the region. Souths did nothing in terms of development when they had the Norths partnership and the Roosters are currently doing nothing there either.

No one wants to go and spend money on an area where the resident League body wants in on whatever the next expansion wave is, especially when that body wants to keep the North Sydney NSWRL district as part of their new club and territory. If a club goes and spends up on the North Shore for 5-10 years plus and then has the NRL say the Central Coast/Gold Coast/West Coast Bears are coming into the NRL in the next expansion wave, it’d be an enormous waste of money and time for the club that attempts it.

You really think this is the thing not NRL clubs being lazy and having zero ambition?

 

[T-Boon]

The other Sydney reconfiguration that should be considered is Cronulla moving most of their games to Wollongong and the Dragons moving most of their games to the SFS.

 

[widddds]

The other Sydney reconfiguration that should be considered is Cronulla moving most of their games to Wollongong and the Dragons moving most of their games to the SFS.

Would it not make more sense for Cronulla to move to the SFS and have the Dragons move entirely to Wollongong?

 

[Perth Red]

Is Wollongong big enough to sustain an NRL club on its own?

 

[greenBV4]

Is Wollongong big enough to sustain an NRL club on its own?

debatable, but the region is only going to grow, and wollongong has had a better crowd average than kogarah of late (although both have been pretty poor)

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

Dragons should drop St George from their name and logo. It's stupid having both Saint George on his horse and a dragon in the logo when the legend goes he slayed the beast with his sword.

Illawarra Dragons. Steelers' red jersey. Based full time in Wollongong. Market it to the Chinese population in Australia as their team. That way the Leagues Club in Kogorah will still be an attractive asset to the Chinese population that live there.

 

[reanimate]

You really think this is the thing not NRL clubs being lazy and having zero ambition?

Yes, the Roosters have been spreading their wings as of late and have been doing a lot of promotion and marketing on the Central Coast. They’re looking to grow their brand, yet they haven’t done any of the same activity in the North Sydney region, even though they’re the current Bears partner club.


It’d be easy for the Bears partner clubs to do promotions like this one in the Bears area, yet they never do. Not even in partnership, promoting both brands at the same time.

Same goes with Souths when they had the partnership, they didn’t do any promotion or marketing of themselves on the North Shore. It was the Bears with Bears NSW Cup players going to junior RL games, schools etc.

 

[T-Boon]

Dragons should drop St George from their name and logo. It's stupid having both Saint George on his horse and a dragon in the logo when the legend goes he slayed the beast with his sword.

Illawarra Dragons. Steelers' red jersey. Based full time in Wollongong. Market it to the Chinese population in Australia as their team. That way the Leagues Club in Kogorah will still be an attractive asset to the Chinese population that live there.

Gold

 

[T-Boon]

Yes, the Roosters have been spreading their wings as of late and have been doing a lot of promotion and marketing on the Central Coast. They’re looking to grow their brand, yet they haven’t done any of the same activity in the North Sydney region, even though they’re the current Bears partner club.


It’d be easy for the Bears partner clubs to do promotions like this one in the Bears area, yet they never do. Not even in partnership, promoting both brands at the same time.

Same goes with Souths when they had the partnership, they didn’t do any promotion or marketing of themselves on the North Shore. It was the Bears with Bears NSW Cup players going to junior RL games, schools etc.

This would be due to the partnership agreement they have. An agreement to leave North Sydney to the bears. So its the Roosters who don't compete with the Bears due to having an agreement with them that their juniors will get moved to Roosters and Roosters will use Bears as their reserve grade.
But there is nothing stopping Manly today changing their name to Northern Sydney Sea Eagles and taking 4 games to North Sydney oval and training there once a week (open training kids coaching sessions) and having their players sign autographs and Westfield Hornsby and Westfield Chatswood.

 

[T-Boon]

Would it not make more sense for Cronulla to move to the SFS and have the Dragons move entirely to Wollongong?

I just think the St George Dragons are far more of a historic Sydney team than Cronulla. It is also closer to the SFS than Cronulla is. Maybe the Sharks and the Dragons should fight over the Gong.

 

[T-Boon]

The reason I think the Knights should take over the Central Coast is because most of the Central Coast is North of Gosford and within about 45 minutes drive/train of Hunter Stadium. The Knights would already easily be the most supported team on the Central Coast and that is without them ever really trying to represent the area.
The Knights should definitely incorporate the CC into their name: Newcastle CC Knights and commit a couple of games in Gosford each year and train there once a week with open training sessions.
They could expand into the central coast without upsetting existing fans as well unlike most other ideas for a team expanding to CC.
This is such a logical expansion that I cant believe it hasn't already happened.

 

[reanimate]

This would be due to the partnership agreement they have. An agreement to leave North Sydney to the bears. So its the Roosters who don't compete with the Bears due to having an agreement with them that their juniors will get moved to Roosters and Roosters will use Bears as their reserve grade.
But there is nothing stopping Manly today changing their name to Northern Sydney Sea Eagles and taking 4 games to North Sydney oval and training there once a week (open training kids coaching sessions) and having their players sign autographs and Westfield Hornsby and Westfield Chatswood.

I know you love NSO, but it’s a terrible ground for RL, even worse than Brookvale. Manly will need somewhere to play though if Brookvale ever gets the upgrades it needs, maybe we will end up playing out of NSO and the Central Coast for a season.

I agree Manly should still be going to the shopping centres etc, even if they aren’t welcome at Norths juniors events.

Or, alternatively, the NRL could just do the same thing they did with Newtown’s old district and end its existence and hand the junior clubs and territory over to NRL teams to work with. No other NSW Cup-only team has this weird arrangement where they still control their territory. The Jets don’t have it, there’s zero reason for Norths’ one to still exist.