WHY JACKSONVILLE MAY WANT A PIECE OF LEAGUE ACTION
Brad Walter in Jacksonville | January 25, 2008
Just two weeks ago South Sydney officials were fearing their bold venture into the US would be a $300,000 flop but with this weekend's match against Leeds almost guaranteed a full house and Channel Nine set to broadcast it, the Rabbitohs are considering making the pre-season pilgrimage an annual event.
While rugby league can never hope to compete with American football on its home turf, Souths have found a niche in Jacksonville, and officials were in discussions on Wednesday about how they could increase the 10,000 capacity of Hodges Stadium at the University of North Florida.
With ticket sales almost trebling in the past fortnight to 7500, the inaugural Australia Day Challenge will set a new attendance record at the ground that was initially built as a training venue when the city hosted the 2005 Super Bowl.
Among those in the crowd will be Australian sporting greats Greg Norman and Layne Beachley, while Rabbitohs co-owner Russell Crowe is due to fly in on Saturday.
Thousands of other fans are also expected to converge on Jacksonville for the match, and many - noticeable by their Souths jerseys, scarves and jackets - have already arrived, helping to provide an estimated $5 million economic boost the city is likely to want to see repeated on a regular basis.
"The total budget for this is about $300,000, and when over the Christmas-New Year period ticket sales dried up and we thought 3000 fans was going to be the maximum, we would have we got all nervous but we're now very close to breaking even, and if you can do that while giving your players an incredible experience, that's a worthwhile exercise," Souths executive chairman Peter Holmes a Court said.
"We're also giving Virgin Blue, Armani and our other existing sponsors some exposure here while providing an opportunity for a new sponsor in SydneyAustralia.com. I think people will continue to take a swing at us for doing this given how small rugby league is in America but the reality is that we're only seeking a minute slice of the 300 million people who live here, and more people play rugby union in America than play rugby union in Australia so there is a base of understanding about the game."
For those who don't know anything about league, The Florida Times-Union newspaper ran a story explaining the rules, roles of each player and other aspects about the game on the front page of Wednesday's sports liftout, accompanied by a large photo of David Fa'alogo being tackled by Nigel Vagana during a training drill.
Former Rabbitohs international Mark Carroll also provided publicity for the game during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, while the match features on the cover of the January edition of Jacksonville Buzz Entertainment Magazine - although one of the photos used in the accompanying two-page article is of Penrith's Luke Lewis being tackled by Bulldogs captain Andrew Ryan.
A media conference featuring Holmes a Court, Souths coach Jason Taylor, co-captains Roy Asotasi and David Kidwell and their Leeds counterparts on Wednesday was broadcast live on sports radio station 10-10 XL, which will call the game live.
The match may also be televised in the US, as well as in Australia and Britain. "It's going to be a co-production between Channel Nine and the South Sydney Rabbitohs," Holmes a Court said. "We're still in negotiations today but I'm pretty sure it will happen. They are coming … but we've got to deliver a game for them, we've got to deliver a professionally run event, and then we'll be in a position to do a deal."
Regardless of what happens on the field, however, the biggest star at Souths is Crowe, and his involvement with the club is a major drawcard for Americans. "There's a whole bunch of us coming to the game who go on the Russell Crowe internet boards to have a chat," said Canadian Carol Stevens, who has seen the Rabbitohs play in Sydney. "We're all going to meet up before the game, and we'll all be sitting together in our South Sydney colours - you won't be able to miss us."
