Rugby League Dying...

[Green Machine]

Crystal ball-gazing in the wake of the soccer (oh all right, football) World Cup, I suspect that league is on a slow but inexorable decline in Australia.

Mike probably doesn't know about the NRL's new TV contract

The Crikey.com.au website reported on Wednesday that this season's NRL crowds are down by almost 10 per cent. The once mighty Roosters, now bumping along near the bottom of the comp, have lost about 23 per cent of their home game fans.

so what?

Ten years out, the football scene will look like this: the AFL will maintain its stranglehold in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania, and to a lesser extent in Western Australia.

I wonder why AFL will be less dominate in Western Australia?

Soccer will rise to become a truly national code, especially if Australia does well at the next World Cup in four years.

Union, with the glamour and money of big-time international football, will cream off more and more league players and crowds, especially if the code junks some of the impenetrable penalty laws which litter the game.

If the News Ltd empire then pulls out of its investment in league, the rest, as they say, is history.

Some interesting points in there. Socceroo players who currently get 10 times the money Wallaby players get, will in tens years, when soccer which is played in summer, will be the truly national code, only if soccer do well at the next World Cup in Rugby Union’s South Africa, of course. Somehow, Union will be the glamour and money of big-time international football code, even though Soccer, which will take over from the AFL and NRL as the dominate domestic code. But this can’t happen until Union junks some of the impenetrable penalty laws which litter the game and Union will make their rules more like Rugby League.
And of course, News Ltd will dump the NRL because it will go from the top rating sport on Pay TV to the worst rating sport, like say…………….. Rugby Union.

Makes sense,

 

[Cobra Kai]

Excellent response to this wacker by all posters. I was livid when I first read the article. I'm glad others seem just as fired up.
While the SMH has quantity in its league coverage, its quality is less than desirable. The union writers are always looking to sink the boot in.

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

you can email the old rah rah merkin on smhcarlton@hotmail.com and argue your side of the story. I did on monday - no response yet but he might respond in his saturday column.

And Carlton has been willing RL to die for many years....

Did you get any response yet?

I did... LOL

The bloke is lame and has nothing....

 

[ParraEelsNRL]

I hope I get a reply.;-)

Here's what I said.

Whats your go?

All you ever do is bag my sport, I hope you and your rugga mates all die and get reincarnated as Leaguies, ya dumb merkin.

Take your Vichy ball and shove it up your arse.

Australia is a free country, hence we watch what we want.

Notice how hardly anyone watches vichyball?

Because we hate NAZI supporters.

The truth always comes out, and the truth about union is a very nasty history.

It does feel good in a way when dickheads like you attack another sport all the time, it shows you are running scared.

Number 4

Number 4

Number 4

Soon no more lol.

Go and get stuffed.

 

[bulldog]

He replied to mine, he called me a sick puppy, now how the hell did he know that?

All I did was call him a bitter, twisted, senile old rugger bugger.

 

[The Money Box Man]

Did you get any response yet?

I did... LOL

The bloke is lame and has nothing....

no reply - this is what I sent him:

Mike,

Was your article based on any sort of fact, or is it just what you hope will happen???

Clinton Shifcofske is a good player but he is hardly worth boasting over - he's 30 years old and his best years are behind him. If union had signed Mark Gasnier, Wille Tonga, Sonny-Bill Williams or Karmichael Hunt then Rugby League would have a reason to be worried, but we're certainly not throwing in the towel because Clinton Shifcofske has defected.

Moreover, what sort of message does Shifcofske's signing send to young union players? It says to them, if you want to play union at a high level, the best way to get there is to play league first.

Let's also look at a few facts: State of Origin easily outrated the Bledisloe Cup on television. Friday night football recently outrated the England V Australia union game. If you require sources here I will happily provide them. There's only a handful of union games on FTA television all year - League has upwards of 80. Channel 7 punted Super 12 years ago as no one was watching.

Rugby League crowds have dropped since last year, however last year was an all time record year for crowds in the history of Rugby League. This season is still the 2nd best ever year for Rugby League crowds, St.George Illawarra in fact had a record crowd at Kogarah on friday night.

Face facts Carlton, Rugby Yawnion is still stuck in it's little upper class enclaves (Mosman, Wahroonga) and has very little appeal to the broader population. I know the Barker and Knox old boys like to congregate at Yawnion matches to discuss investment portfolios and the latest BMW 4WD over a few Pimms and a bit of foie gras whilst showing off their latest tweed jacket, but the masses just aren't interested.

As for News Ltd pulling the plug on RL - they've just doubled the amount they're paying for the next 6 years, so I don't think they'll be pulling out any time soon.

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

You weren't nasty enough to get a reply TMBM.

Here's mine.

Dear Mr. Carlton,


I don't normally email people in the media but I'll make an exception in your case.

You recently wrote an article about Rugby League and once again you seem to be death-riding it. Actually, that is incorrect, you are death-riding it.

Good luck.

This time your reasons for League's imminent death are so bizarre that if even you stepped back and re-read what you wrote, you'd be satisfied that you're barking mad.

Average attendances may be down 10% on the record set last year, but they are still the second highest on record. It would also be salient to point out that Australian Super 14 average attendances are down on 2005 by about 10%, and that's with the introduction of the Western Force whose average was well above the overall average.

No one's watching Union, its ratings are abysmal. The Bledisloe Cup match rated less than 1/2 State of Origin Australia - wide, Super 14 isn't even on FTA TV and the Club Union matches rate slightly less than the Test pattern. Melbourne, which was once a city that Union could rely on, has changed Bledisloe to a 10.30pm timeslot program.

The crowds are dwindling on the once "thriving International Union" scene. No longer can Union fill Suncorp or Telstra Dome and it remains to be seen if Union can fill Telstra Stadium. Or is it even being played there?

Union is slowly dying in this country and I for one will show my gratitude to the "Gods that be" on the day it shuffles off this mortal coil by dancing the Macarena on its grave. And when you get on the plane to move to another country because your livliehood as a professional Rugby League bitch is over, I'll be the one waving goodbye from the departure lounge.

Regards,

I don't buy the Herald(or the Telgraph for that matter) but I'm fairly certain that his only mention of the emails will be something along the lines of "Oh, you should have seen how many Neanderthals emailed me with their vileness"....

 

[Mr Saab]

EA would you be able to post his reply to your email?

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

Nah, I'll PM it.

Even I have standards. lol

 

[Mr Saab]

No probs..thanks

 

[Cobra Kai]

Antichrist and Moneybox - you just summed it all up in those letters. Good stuff.

 

[Thomas]

I hope I get a reply.;-)

Here's what I said.

Whats your go?

All you ever do is bag my sport, I hope you and your rugga mates all die and get reincarnated as Leaguies, ya dumb merkin.

Take your Vichy ball and shove it up your arse.

Australia is a free country, hence we watch what we want.

Notice how hardly anyone watches vichyball?

Because we hate NAZI supporters.

The truth always comes out, and the truth about union is a very nasty history.

It does feel good in a way when dickheads like you attack another sport all the time, it shows you are running scared.

Number 4

Number 4

Number 4

Soon no more lol.

Go and get stuffed.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Please tell me you didn't send that!! That's f**king funny!


Oh and EA...I'd be very interested to read Mike Carlton's response. He is a twit of the highest order and I'd love to see what he sent back to you.

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

He's still biting but Jesus wept he's weak as piss.

I've seen more stinging repartee from oneye than this plonker.

 

[Brutus]

Rugby union signs ben cwslowski for 500,000 a season...

Rugby league is dying.

 

[ParraEelsNRL]

I got a reply from the sad ****.

It's going in my quote.:lol:



What a pathetic little jerk you are.

Mike Carlton
The Sydney Morning Herald

I wonder if I accidentally sent it to Gort/Nook:lol:

 

[greenhat]

Just cause someone called me a SMH publicist there, i feel i need to declare my allegiance. The canberra times is the greatest paper in the history of journalism.

On an unrelated note, canberra milk is the greatest drink in the history of cows, the canberra raiders are the greatest team ever and canberra > your dad.

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

I got a reply from the sad ****.

It's going in my quote.:lol:



What a pathetic little jerk you are.

Mike Carlton
The Sydney Morning Herald

I wonder if I accidentally sent it to Gort/Nook:lol:

He just cut and pastes that reply to League fans.

He's a boring tit.

 

[Mr Saab]

8 yrs on, league gets Billion dollar TV deal, union is an irrelevant code whereby they cant fill out their GF....and Mike Carlton has a hissy fit and quits fairfax

 

[Edwahu]

8 yrs on, league gets Billion dollar TV deal, union is an irrelevant code whereby they cant fill out their GF....and Mike Carlton has a hissy fit and quits fairfax

Be careful... he may tell you to f**k off

 

[juro]

Maybe we are like Bruce Willis in the 6th Sense. We're dead and we just don't realise it...

Sorry for the spoiler...