NRL's growth mindset points to 18th team. And it ain't Perth.

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

There are 541 non-professional clubs in NSW:

185 clubs are based in various NRL affiliated districts of Sydney - The Penrith District has the most with 28, while the Roosters only have 3 district clubs.

356 clubs are located throughout regional/country NSW:

• ⁠North Coast/Northern Rivers - 60 clubs
• ⁠Newcastle/Hunter - 64 clubs
• ⁠Illawarra/South Coast - 44 clubs
• ⁠Central Coast - 22 clubs
• ⁠New England/North West - 30 clubs
• ⁠ACT & Surrounds - 32 clubs
• ⁠Riverina/Murray - 36 clubs
• ⁠Western NSW - 68 clubs

That’s actual clubs bro not auskicks blow hard bs numbers

Add these stats to the growing pile of evidence that Sydney has more NRL clubs than it can support.

 

[Perth Red]

Abdo confirmed on 100% footy tonight that they aren’t looking to bring club 18 in until 2028 and no direction yet on where it will be.

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

Abdo confirmed on 100% footy tonight that they aren’t looking to bring club 18 in until 2028 and no direction yet on where it will be.

If the ARLC is as reactionary in 2028 as it is now then it will let News Ltd and the 17 clubs in the NRL influence their decision.

Warriors won't want a second Auckland team and will only be willing to share NZ if they're excelling on and off the field. I hope the ARLC gives them the best chance of excelling in both of those areas between now and 2028, but that would require them to put the Warriors ahead of the other 16 clubs and News Ltd.

Broncos, Titans and Dolphins won't want a competitor. Not unless the introduction of the Dolphins improves business for the other two SEQ clubs and there's evidence of a third Brisbane team doing the same, but that's a lot of if's and but's that need to line up. If Titans are still struggling in 2028 and the Dolphins and Broncos are doing well then it might be best for them to negotiate with the Easts Tigers, but only if the ticketed and non-ticketed members are for it. If the fans are willing to change the club's colours to gold, black and blue to suit the Brisbane Firehawks bid and maybe even change the name to East Coast Titans, with all games played at Robina Stadium and maybe three played at Lang Park then that could help the club grow like South Sydney did after Russell Crowe and Peter Holmes-a-Court bought a stake.

 

[Colk]

Abdo confirmed on 100% footy tonight that they aren’t looking to bring club 18 in until 2028 and no direction yet on where it will be.

Let’s hope that they have made their decision on who is it by say 2024-2025. At least give the new entrant a couple of years to get ready

 

[Perth Red]

Let’s hope that they have made their decision on who is it by say 2024-2025. At least give the new entrant a couple of years to get ready

Ideally they'll announce its going to be WC Pirates and start supporting them to build the club from around that period. 3 years in NSW cup to sign quality18-20 year olds and have them NRL ready for 2028 should be the go.

 

[Bukowski]

Let’s hope that they have made their decision on who is it by say 2024-2025. At least give the new entrant a couple of years to get ready

Hopefully Vlandys is gone by then and a rational choice is made

 

[Perth Red]

Hopefully Vlandys is gone by then and a rational choice is made

Unless they are stupid enough to go with Firehawks or NSW Bears then any other option is going to need time and support to build a club from scratch. Hopefully they dont leave it till last minute and are, for once, strategic in their planning.

 

[Perth Red]

2023 A better funded Pirates U18's returns to SG Ball
2024 WC Pirates Snr club formed
2025 WC Pirates enter NSW cup
2028 WC Pirates enter NRL

that would be the ideal scenario

 

[parrawentyfan]

If the ARLC is as reactionary in 2028 as it is now then it will let News Ltd and the 17 clubs in the NRL influence their decision.

Warriors won't want a second Auckland team and will only be willing to share NZ if they're excelling on and off the field. I hope the ARLC gives them the best chance of excelling in both of those areas between now and 2028, but that would require them to put the Warriors ahead of the other 16 clubs and News Ltd.

Broncos, Titans and Dolphins won't want a competitor. Not unless the introduction of the Dolphins improves business for the other two SEQ clubs and there's evidence of a third Brisbane team doing the same, but that's a lot of if's and but's that need to line up. If Titans are still struggling in 2028 and the Dolphins and Broncos are doing well then it might be best for them to negotiate with the Easts Tigers, but only if the ticketed and non-ticketed members are for it. If the fans are willing to change the club's colours to gold, black and blue to suit the Brisbane Firehawks bid and maybe even change the name to East Coast Titans, with all games played at Robina Stadium and maybe three played at Lang Park then that could help the club grow like South Sydney did after Russell Crowe and Peter Holmes-a-Court bought a stake.

I think Gold Coast have been through enough rebadging efforts. They need to be given a chance to settle over a generation.

Please i hope no one goes with the East Coast name. I think every team in the NRL would be considered East Coast, aside from maybe Canberra. It is a nothing name that means no where.

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

I think Gold Coast have been through enough rebadging efforts. They need to be given a chance to settle over a generation.

Please i hope no one goes with the East Coast name. I think every team in the NRL would be considered East Coast, aside from maybe Canberra. It is a nothing name that means no where.

They've had 15 years to establish themselves but always fall short. I hope they come good, but I'll believe it when I see it and not a moment sooner.

 

[Perth Red]

They've had 15 years to establish themselves but always fall short. I hope they come good, but I'll believe it when I see it and not a moment sooner.

Their crowd avg is better than the sharks despite being at opposite ends of the table. They seem to be financially ok now. Only thing letting them down is some consistent on field success.

 

[MugaB]

Their crowd avg is better than the sharks despite being at opposite ends of the table. They seem to be financially ok now. Only thing letting them down is some consistent on field success.

If can use my team as an example, it took 24 years to make a grand final, and 25 years for penrith to win it in 1991, cronulla it took over 50, and pawwa haven't won for over 36 years, and from their inception it took them 34 years to win their first one, so 15 years isn't that bad, and titans aren't that bad in comparison, cowboys on the other hand, did nothing for 10 years, then made a GF in 05, finally won it a decade later, then back there 2 years later.
Not every team is the roosters and storm who both are consistently in the top 8 every year

 

[Perth Red]

If can use my team as an example, it took 24 years to make a grand final, and 25 years for penrith to win it in 1991, cronulla it took over 50, and pawwa haven't won for over 36 years, and from their inception it took them 34 years to win their first one, so 15 years isn't that bad, and titans aren't that bad in comparison, cowboys on the other hand, did nothing for 10 years, then made a GF in 05, finally won it a decade later, then back there 2 years later.
Not every team is the roosters and storm who both are consistently in the top 8 every year

I think its probably more the missing the top 8 consistently rather than winning GF's that is the issue. They haven't really had any period where they have been able to string 3 reasonable seasons back to back. Considering their ladder positions I think they've done pretty good to hold any sort of crowd! Cant be fun paying $50 to watch your team lose every other week!
Only good years they've had are
2009 3rd, 2010 4th then 2011 they dropped to last!
didnt get back into finals until 2016 in 8th
then didnt reach finals again until 8th in 2021
then this year back to the bottom

Its a pretty dismal run and good on the 13k or so fans who still support them despite that!

 

[mongoose]

whats disappointing is that the club is set up so well for success..... the Gold Coast is an absolute paradise for a cashed up NRL player who can get a beautiful house on a canal somewhere, go to the beach every day. Heaps of places to eat and drink... The team has a good purpose built stadium, strong grassroots in the area....

 

[Perth Red]

whats disappointing is that the club is set up so well for success..... the Gold Coast is an absolute paradise for a cashed up NRL player who can get a beautiful house on a canal somewhere, go to the beach every day. Heaps of places to eat and drink... The team has a good purpose built stadium, strong grassroots in the area....

Surely it'll come together at some point, though Dolphins now fishing in the same player market wont make it any easier.

 

[flippikat]

I think its probably more the missing the top 8 consistently rather than winning GF's that is the issue. They haven't really had any period where they have been able to string 3 reasonable seasons back to back. Considering their ladder positions I think they've done pretty good to hold any sort of crowd! Cant be fun paying $50 to watch your team lose every other week!

You hit the nail on the head there.

We have a handful of clubs - most notably the Titans, Tigers & Warriors - who have had far longer spells outside the 8 than you'd expect, all things being equal... especially since you just have to win more games than you lose, most years.

From a fan angle, it's easier to wear a lean period of 3-5 years outside the top 8 if there's the prospect of that lean period a) having an end, and b) having a run of playoff appearances over a few years when things improve.. hopefully a GF appearance as well, maybe a premiership.

From my point of view, seeing some teams stuck in the "trough" part of the cycle is disturbing - as is seeing some other teams stuck in the "peak" part of the cycle.

ideally all clubs form should ebb and flow like tides, over the course of about a decade (give or take).

 

[Perth Red]

It'll be interesting to see how the Dolphins go for sure and if they fall into the same 'trough' as the Titans and Warriors or can hit the peaks more often than not ala Storm? It seems they are doing well on the corporate sales side so hopefully if they can match that with a big fanbase they should have the resources to to build successful teams.

 

[Perth Red]

Abdo on expansion

 

[Get Rid of The Donkeys]

Their crowd avg is better than the sharks despite being at opposite ends of the table. They seem to be financially ok now. Only thing letting them down is some consistent on field success.

I think they need more proactive owners who are willing to invest in their football department and have better ties with the local RL scene in SEQ. If they were owned by Burleigh Bears or Easts Tigers they wouldn't make so many dumb decisions off the field.

 

[The Great Dane]

I think they need more proactive owners who are willing to invest in their football department and have better ties with the local RL scene in SEQ. If they were owned by Burleigh Bears or Easts Tigers they wouldn't make so many dumb decisions off the field.

For decades people said the same thing about Wests Rosellas before they finally got the chance to own the Knights, and look how that's turned out so far lol.

Or the Seagulls before they bought the Giants, or the Auckland RL before they were involved with the Warriors again a few years ago, I'm sure that I'm forgetting a bunch of other examples as well.

The point is that the fact that a traditional local club has been around for a while and successful in the grassroots and lower tiers doesn't necessarily mean that they are well placed, or have the means or expertise, to run a pro club successfully. Furthermore, I think it's safe to say that the three most successful NRL clubs of recent times (businesswise), the Storm, Broncos, and Rabbitohs, are all owned by private owners or corporations, not a traditional structure backed by leagues clubs.

None of that is to say that corporate or private owners are necessarily better, or that traditional clubs can't successfully run pro clubs, because it isn't that simple and there's good and bad in both methods, it's simply a warning that the grass isn't always greener on the other side.