Sounds good, but imo if you get rid of the traditional identities (team names) in one go then you lose some of the sense of tribalism that makes fans stick with and actively support rugby league.
So the mergers have to be handled sensitively, sometimes carrying through a known lead partner's identity to survive in NRL and the remaining identities staying alive in a NSW Cup/feeder club type of future?
Sydney North - boundary change could happen tomorrow but need to play out of a ground soemwhere other than Brookvale - their fans won't come to Homebush - before any name change would be needed/make any sense... keep Manly Sea Eagles moniker, maintain Manly and North Sydney identities in NSW Cup, and swap the name only if an alternate ground can be found.
Sydney Central - this seems the unwilling merger, Roosters have been positioning for years with their name, Rabbitohs positioning with their home stadium. But maybe this partnership just needs a re-launch and new moniker - Sydney Stars? - playing out of Homebush with "back to" Redfern and Moore Park home games each year, and keep the Roosters and Rabbitohs identities alive in NSW Cup.
Sydney South & Illawarra - Easy - relocate the Sharks entity to one of the new terittories, maintain the Cronulla Sutherland identity in NSW Cup, and call the team the Southern Dragons. Done.
Sydney Sth West - shame the Oasis Liverpool stadium never got built back in the day... these guys can play out of Homebush too, add some blue to the black and gold jersey, call them the South West Beasts (instead of Dogs/Tigers) and keep the original teams alive in NSW Cup.
Western Sydney (Eels & Panthers current areas) - seems inevitable, at some point in the future? Throw some black on our jersey, have us play out of our new stadium with a couple of "back to" Penrith games per year. Time for a new name, with the others kept alive in Reggie Cup. Club has to be active in the grater west to counter the dual threats of AFL and A-League.
