The Case for Adelaide.....

[greenBV4]

Looking at the situation from a neutral perspective, I can see how moving Manly might make sense, but given that the NRL has shown they have no idea what to do with a team’s former area when they’re no longer there, it’s not a good idea. Sydney’s North Shore is already a mess of a League dead zone, add the Sea Eagles’ former area to that and the whole North side of Sydney has basically no League presence anymore. Given that there’s ~1 million people between the North Shore and Northern Beaches, it’s worth keeping a team in that market.

Between the Eastern Suburbs and Parramatta on the south side of the bridge, there’s an absolute glut of teams, you’d think one of them would be prime for relocation, but given that it’s the NRL we’re talking about, I bet it is Manly that ends up getting relocated in the future.

Roosters could probably cover the north shore as well as their pocket of the eastern suburbs and be a team for the affluent, although I do agree the inner west is the most cluttered - which of those teams would you move though? this is the question that will see no team relocate unless they financially have to.

 

[reanimate]

Roosters could probably cover the north shore as well as their pocket of the eastern suburbs and be a team for the affluent, although I do agree the inner west is the most cluttered - which of those teams would you move though? this is the question that will see no team relocate unless they financially have to.

If the NRL actually does the hard yards of carving up the North Sydney and Manly NSWRL districts and making them official Roosters territory, plus they don’t let the Roosters play on Thursday or Friday nights, I guess it could work. If the Roosters continue to play only out of the SFS, it’s not a good idea for the same reasons Manly playing out of the SFS isn’t a good idea. The travel time makes getting home from work in the city, getting kids together and back to the SFS in time for kickoff prohibitive. It seems much simpler to relocate the Roosters instead.

I agree there’s no obvious candidate for relocation, the Tigers and Dogs both have big fan bases, the Dragons have already partially relocated, the Eels have massive potential with their new stadium, Souths are a big club etc.

The two clubs with limited potential for growth and a small area are the Sharks and the Roosters. The Roosters have kept their success going through business savvy, but a few lean years and a few bad people at the helm post Uncle Nick and who knows what will happen. The Sharks have made what they have work, but they’re surrounded on both sides by St George territory and have limited potential for growth (there’s only ~240k in the shire).

 

[The Great Dane]

Looking at the situation from a neutral perspective, I can see how moving Manly might make sense, but given that the NRL has shown they have no idea what to do with a team’s former area when they’re no longer there, it’s not a good idea. Sydney’s North Shore is already a mess of a League dead zone, add the Sea Eagles’ former area to that and the whole North side of Sydney has basically no League presence anymore. Given that there’s ~1 million people between the North Shore and Northern Beaches, it’s worth keeping a team in that market.

Between the Eastern Suburbs and Parramatta on the south side of the bridge, there’s an absolute glut of teams, you’d think one of them would be prime for relocation, but given that it’s the NRL we’re talking about, I bet it is Manly that ends up getting relocated in the future.

Manly is literally the only club that it makes no sense to relocate.

Any other club you can make an argument for, but getting rid of the only team in Northern Sydney would be crazy stupid, especially when other parts of Sydney have multiple clubs.

Manly do need to get their shit together though, even if the NRL has to force them.

 

[The Great Dane]

Roosters could probably cover the north shore as well as their pocket of the eastern suburbs and be a team for the affluent, although I do agree the inner west is the most cluttered - which of those teams would you move though? this is the question that will see no team relocate unless they financially have to.

The answer is you don’t move any of them.

You set up a proper tiered system then drop the excess clubs down into a lower tier as is, that way you get what you want while having the least impact on the club possible.

 

[reanimate]

Manly is literally the only club that it makes no sense to relocate.

Any other club you can make an argument for, but getting rid of the only team in Northern Sydney would be crazy stupid, especially when other parts of Sydney have multiple clubs.

Manly do need to get their shit together though, even if the NRL has to force them.

I agree 100%, I’m only playing devil’s advocate with the idea. It’s also an area that’s going to rapidly grow in the coming years, St Leonards is getting filled with new apartment high rises, Chatswood keeps growing, all along the main road of Brookvale is slated for new apartments etc.

Moving Manly would be absolute madness, all that needs to happen is a bit of tweaking in the set up of the area and a shove in the right direction.

 

[Perth Red]

I agree 100%, I’m only playing devil’s advocate with the idea. It’s also an area that’s going to rapidly grow in the coming years, St Leonards is getting filled with new apartment high rises, Chatswood keeps growing, all along the main road of Brookvale is slated for new apartments etc.

Moving Manly would be absolute madness, all that needs to happen is a bit of tweaking in the set up of the area and a shove in the right direction.

TBF there isnt a lot to choose between the Sydney clubs in terms of fan support and financial sustainability. That may change in years to come but right now the bar is pretty low and they are mostly all meeting it.

 

[adamkungl]

I should know better than to wade into this never ending debate, but I'll do it anyway.

This is a progressive rebuild idea and most people on here will probably hate it.

I think that the outer suburban teams in Sydney need to consider relocations as serious options.
To achieve national expansion, and to ease the financial pressure in Sydney are the 2nd and 3rd reasons. But the 1st and main reason is - I think there is a bigger, brighter future for those clubs as city clubs than there is as suburban clubs.

A key supporting pillar to this would be to restructure the NSW Cup to a better competition more representative of the state, with historical and regional clubs as feeders, rather than a half reserve grade half feeder with most clubs in western sydney and almost zero regional representation.

The NRL should financially incentivise the following moves:

1. Dragons -> Wollongong (full time). St George Dragons to play in NSW Cup at Kogarah.

2. Sea Eagles -> Central Coast. Manly-Warringah to play in NSW Cup at Brookvale. Norths junior boundaries to be officially removed and redrawn such that Sea Eagles have the upper north shore and the lower is merged with Roosters.

^ Rationale: As regional city teams, regions set for big growth, they will attract more government support and investment than in the suburbs of Sydney. Sydney is also set for big growth, yes. But the way investment is targeted means that the suburban regions will always get less attention than the CBD, Parramatta, and soon the new Western "Aerotropolis". see: Newcastle, Townsville.
Dedicated fans and sponsors are also an advantage. While Sydney has more potential fans and sponsors, they are also spoilt for choice, leaving clubs fighting tooth and nail every day. Regional city support gets clubs out of that fight.
There has been talk of upgrading some or all of the suburban stadiums in Sydney, but I'm both wildly sceptical it will actually happen and don't really agree with it as the best way forward for either the city or the NRL.

3. Sharks -> Adelaide. Cronulla-Sutherland to play in NSW Cup at Shark Park.
Cronulla are consistently at the bottom end of every financial measure you can look at. A fresh start in one of Australia's capitals, while retaining their junior region and historical local presence in NSW Cup, would position them comfortably to grow into a powerhouse on and off the field. As the OP in this thread mentioned, Adelaide has quality stadiums, loyal potential fans, huge financial potential. The brand is a good fit. The rivalry with Melbourne would go up another notch.

4. Wests Tigers -> Perth. Western Suburbs to play in NSW Cup at Campbeltown. Wests and Balmain to both run in Jersey Flegg, Ron Massey and Womens NSWRL.
Tigers represent an area that overlaps multiple other clubs without seeming sure of what they actually do want to represent themselves. A capital city move could let them move fully forward from the Balmain and Magpies days, and reposition themselves as one of the games top clubs. Perth is an opportunity begging to be taken. The leg work has already been done. The fanbase is wanting. Tigers have the most to gain, without even changing their branding. Roosters, Souths, Eels, and Bulldogs will always push them around financially in Sydney. With a parochial city the size of Brisbane behind them, they could be the next Storm or Broncos.

NSW Cup:
In addition to the above 4 clubs retaining their local historical teams, NSW Cup should be restructured so that feeders to NSW/ACT teams are either a) a historically significant former first grade club or b) a regional club.

Which leaves us with:
NRL - NSW Cup
Sydney Roosters - North Sydney Bears
Canterbury Bulldogs - Newtown Jets
South Sydney Rabbitohs - Albury/South West
Parramatta Eels - Tamworth/North West
Penrith Panthers - Bathurst/Central West
St George Illawarra Dragons - St George Dragons
Central Coast Sea Eagles - Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
Adelaide Sharks - Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Wests Tigers - Western Suburbs Magpies
Canberra Raiders - Nowra/South Coast
Newcastle Knights - Port Macquarie/North Coast
Auckland Warriors - Auckland Warriors
Brisbane Broncos
Gold Coast Titans
Melbourne Storm
North QLD Cowboys
(and 2 obvious expansions in South Queensland and NZ South)


The 2 obvious criticisms i'm going to get:
1. Roosters should be relocated, no juniors no fans!
Aside from these likely criticisms being factually incorrect - the Roosters are the most successful club in Sydney on and off the field, and is the only club playing in the wealthy inner city. They're the major tenant in the new stadium.
Local juniors don't matter in professional sport, but if they did, the club has an arrangement with Norths and pathways through the Central Coast anyway.
If I own 9 stores, and want to expand my reach but have limited resources, I'm not shutting down my most successful franchise, i'm pruning the weaker ones.

2. You can't relocate Manly/etc or this part of Sydney won't have a team!
Not every part of town needs a first grade Rugby League team. And in particular reference to the north shore, the existing teams aren't doing a particularly good job of representing that area anyway. Leaving that area as official Norths junior region has been a failure. It should have been divided up between Manly and Roosters 15 years ago.
A restructured NSW Cup will ensure that every region of Sydney and NSW has a 1st or 2nd grade professional team.

 

[Perth Red]

I should know better than to wade into this never ending debate, but I'll do it anyway.

This is a progressive rebuild idea and most people on here will probably hate it.

I think that the outer suburban teams in Sydney need to consider relocations as serious options.
To achieve national expansion, and to ease the financial pressure in Sydney are the 2nd and 3rd reasons. But the 1st and main reason is - I think there is a bigger, brighter future for those clubs as city clubs than there is as suburban clubs.

A key supporting pillar to this would be to restructure the NSW Cup to a better competition more representative of the state, with historical and regional clubs as feeders, rather than a half reserve grade half feeder with most clubs in western sydney and almost zero regional representation.

The NRL should financially incentivise the following moves:

1. Dragons -> Wollongong (full time). St George Dragons to play in NSW Cup at Kogarah.

2. Sea Eagles -> Central Coast. Manly-Warringah to play in NSW Cup at Brookvale. Norths junior boundaries to be officially removed and redrawn such that Sea Eagles have the upper north shore and the lower is merged with Roosters.

^ Rationale: As regional city teams, regions set for big growth, they will attract more government support and investment than in the suburbs of Sydney. Sydney is also set for big growth, yes. But the way investment is targeted means that the suburban regions will always get less attention than the CBD, Parramatta, and soon the new Western "Aerotropolis". see: Newcastle, Townsville.
Dedicated fans and sponsors are also an advantage. While Sydney has more potential fans and sponsors, they are also spoilt for choice, leaving clubs fighting tooth and nail every day. Regional city support gets clubs out of that fight.
There has been talk of upgrading some or all of the suburban stadiums in Sydney, but I'm both wildly sceptical it will actually happen and don't really agree with it as the best way forward for either the city or the NRL.

3. Sharks -> Adelaide. Cronulla-Sutherland to play in NSW Cup at Shark Park.
Cronulla are consistently at the bottom end of every financial measure you can look at. A fresh start in one of Australia's capitals, while retaining their junior region and historical local presence in NSW Cup, would position them comfortably to grow into a powerhouse on and off the field. As the OP in this thread mentioned, Adelaide has quality stadiums, loyal potential fans, huge financial potential. The brand is a good fit. The rivalry with Melbourne would go up another notch.

4. Wests Tigers -> Perth. Western Suburbs to play in NSW Cup at Campbeltown. Wests and Balmain to both run in Jersey Flegg, Ron Massey and Womens NSWRL.
Tigers represent an area that overlaps multiple other clubs without seeming sure of what they actually do want to represent themselves. A capital city move could let them move fully forward from the Balmain and Magpies days, and reposition themselves as one of the games top clubs. Perth is an opportunity begging to be taken. The leg work has already been done. The fanbase is wanting. Tigers have the most to gain, without even changing their branding. Roosters, Souths, Eels, and Bulldogs will always push them around financially in Sydney. With a parochial city the size of Brisbane behind them, they could be the next Storm or Broncos.

NSW Cup:
In addition to the above 4 clubs retaining their local historical teams, NSW Cup should be restructured so that feeders to NSW/ACT teams are either a) a historically significant former first grade club or b) a regional club.

Which leaves us with:
NRL - NSW Cup
Sydney Roosters - North Sydney Bears
Canterbury Bulldogs - Newtown Jets
South Sydney Rabbitohs - Albury/South West
Parramatta Eels - Tamworth/North West
Penrith Panthers - Bathurst/Central West
St George Illawarra Dragons - St George Dragons
Central Coast Sea Eagles - Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
Adelaide Sharks - Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Wests Tigers - Western Suburbs Magpies
Canberra Raiders - Nowra/South Coast
Newcastle Knights - Port Macquarie/North Coast
Auckland Warriors - Auckland Warriors
Brisbane Broncos
Gold Coast Titans
Melbourne Storm
North QLD Cowboys
(and 2 obvious expansions in South Queensland and NZ South)


The 2 obvious criticisms i'm going to get:
1. Roosters should be relocated, no juniors no fans!
Aside from these likely criticisms being factually incorrect - the Roosters are the most successful club in Sydney on and off the field, and is the only club playing in the wealthy inner city. They're the major tenant in the new stadium.
Local juniors don't matter in professional sport, but if they did, the club has an arrangement with Norths and pathways through the Central Coast anyway.
If I own 9 stores, and want to expand my reach but have limited resources, I'm not shutting down my most successful franchise, i'm pruning the weaker ones.

2. You can't relocate Manly/etc or this part of Sydney won't have a team!
Not every part of town needs a first grade Rugby League team. And in particular reference to the north shore, the existing teams aren't doing a particularly good job of representing that area anyway. Leaving that area as official Norths junior region has been a failure. It should have been divided up between Manly and Roosters 15 years ago.
A restructured NSW Cup will ensure that every region of Sydney and NSW has a 1st or 2nd grade professional team.

This would only work if the NRL introduced a reasonable total spend cap on clubs. At the moment the never ending arms race means it would be totally nonviable for a lot of your suggestions as there simply isnt enough money/fans in those places to sustain a $30mill a year spending NRL club.If you capped club spending at around $23mill a year we would have pretty much ever club making a surplus and the opportunity to move into small regional markets or new cities with minimal risk to the future of those clubs.

 

[adamkungl]

This would only work if the NRL introduced a reasonable total spend cap on clubs. At the moment the never ending arms race means it would be totally nonviable for a lot of your suggestions as there simply isnt enough money/fans in those places to sustain a $30mill a year spending NRL club.If you capped club spending at around $23mill a year we would have pretty much ever club making a surplus and the opportunity to move into small regional markets or new cities with minimal risk to the future of those clubs.

Are you trying to claim that expansion isn't sustainable after years of pushing for expansion

 

[Perth Red]

Are you trying to claim that expansion isn't sustainable after years of pushing for expansion

I'm saying places like Gosford, Wollongong and Adelaide arent going to be able to sustain a FT $30mill a year NRL club. There would be much greater chance of both investors and long term sustainability for a Perth club if it wasnt caught in an arms race and was spending at a limit capped at a reasonable level.
Pretty much every club at the moment is one main sponsor pulling out away from insolvency. Every time a LC backed club runs in the red thats millions of $'s less flowing to grassroots RL. Imagine how much stronger grassroots and Jnr RL would be in Sydney if the $20mill plus a year that is going from LC to NRL clubs to cover gaps was going to them instead!

 

[adamkungl]

I'm saying places like Gosford, Wollongong and Adelaide arent going to be able to sustain a FT $30mill a year NRL club. There would be much greater chance of both investors and long term sustainability for a Perth club if it wasnt caught in an arms race and was spending at a limit capped at a reasonable level.

If Townsville, Canberra and Newcastle can support an NRL club, so can Gosford, Wollongong and Adelaide.

Entering the so called arms race is a choice. No one's making anyone spend Broncos-like money, certainly clubs like Manly, St George, Cronulla aren't doing that now. But I think that medium to long term, regional cities and state capitols will have far more financial benefit than Sydney suburbs.
Also - hasn't the NRL already said they're putting in a football dept spend cap?

Furthermore, for any relocated/expansion teams the NRL should be supporting at least the marketing budget and probably even tipping in a bit more central funding as an expansion bonus.

 

[Perth Red]

If Townsville, Canberra and Newcastle can support an NRL club, so can Gosford, Wollongong and Adelaide.

Entering the so called arms race is a choice. No one's making anyone spend Broncos-like money, certainly clubs like Manly, St George, Cronulla aren't doing that now. But I think that medium to long term, regional cities and state capitols will have far more financial benefit than Sydney suburbs.
Also - hasn't the NRL already said they're putting in a football dept spend cap?

Furthermore, for any relocated/expansion teams the NRL should be supporting at least the marketing budget and probably even tipping in a bit more central funding as an expansion bonus.

Townsvile has been touch and go on and off for large parts of its history. Canberra only exist because they have massive pokie backing. Newcastle, despite having the second largest active fanbase went bust and now are reliant on pokies to exist.

The thing with arms races is it really isnt. You feel compelled to spend to keep up. If not you know your sacked, be it as a chairman or a coach or a owner. Take a look at the books of the likes of Manly, Sharks etc. Take a look at Souths, they made a loss last year but still spend $millions on "retiring" players into non playing positions. Clubs are spending multiple millions more than they are earning. Roosters spent $1.6mill last year more than they earnt, and they are one of the most successful clubs in recent times. Clubs will sack a coach with 2 -5 years on their contract at a cost of many millions as they seek instant success or your gone.

The Football Cap is supposed to be in now but I see no evidence of any impact and with Vlandys moving the cap compliance team to now also having to run the financial dept of the NRL I doubt they are even looking that hard tbh.

In Feb next year we will get a rude awakening to how much Covid has cost the game, the books are going to look very ugly. The NRL isnt going to have $millions to support relocation for a very long time.

 

[reanimate]

I think that the outer suburban teams in Sydney need to consider relocations as serious options.
To achieve national expansion, and to ease the financial pressure in Sydney are the 2nd and 3rd reasons. But the 1st and main reason is - I think there is a bigger, brighter future for those clubs as city clubs than there is as suburban clubs.

A key supporting pillar to this would be to restructure the NSW Cup to a better competition more representative of the state, with historical and regional clubs as feeders, rather than a half reserve grade half feeder with most clubs in western sydney and almost zero regional representation.

2. Sea Eagles -> Central Coast. Manly-Warringah to play in NSW Cup at Brookvale. Norths junior boundaries to be officially removed and redrawn such that Sea Eagles have the upper north shore and the lower is merged with Roosters.

2. You can't relocate Manly/etc or this part of Sydney won't have a team!
Not every part of town needs a first grade Rugby League team. And in particular reference to the north shore, the existing teams aren't doing a particularly good job of representing that area anyway. Leaving that area as official Norths junior region has been a failure. It should have been divided up between Manly and Roosters 15 years ago.
A restructured NSW Cup will ensure that every region of Sydney and NSW has a 1st or 2nd grade professional team.

I strongly disagree, the North side of Sydney isn't just 'part of Sydney', it's an enormous area (basically geographically half of Sydney) that will be experiencing strong population growth in the coming years. It already has around 1 million people there, which really isn't that much less than Adelaide and is certainly much, much more than the Central Coast. It needs a full time NRL presence, far more so than the various pockets that the other teams inhabit between the Eastern Suburbs and Parramatta. The Central Coast should get regular games from teams though- maybe a couple of Roosters and Manly games?

I definitely agree though that the Norths district needs to go. Whether it's split between Manly & the Roosters or it all goes to either team, it just needs to be redrawn and eliminated now. It's a joke that it continues to exist.

 

[adamkungl]

Townsvile has been touch and go on and off for large parts of its history. Canberra only exist because they have massive pokie backing. Newcastle, despite having the second largest active fanbase went bust and now are reliant on pokies to exist.

The thing with arms races is it really isnt. You feel compelled to spend to keep up. If not you know your sacked, be it as a chairman or a coach or a owner. Take a look at the books of the likes of Manly, Sharks etc. Take a look at Souths, they made a loss last year but still spend $millions on "retiring" players into non playing positions. Clubs are spending multiple millions more than they are earning. Roosters spent $1.6mill last year more than they earnt, and they are one of the most successful clubs in recent times. Clubs will sack a coach with 2 -5 years on their contract at a cost of many millions as they seek instant success or your gone.

The Football Cap is supposed to be in now but I see no evidence of any impact and with Vlandys moving the cap compliance team to now also having to run the financial dept of the NRL I doubt they are even looking that hard tbh.

In Feb next year we will get a rude awakening to how much Covid has cost the game, the books are going to look very ugly. The NRL isnt going to have $millions to support relocation for a very long time.

The losses aren't real losses. That money is spent knowing full well in advance that the Leagues clubs, rich owners, etc will pay for them. It's budgeted for. Roosters football club lose $1.6M? Who cares. Easts property empire gained 10s of millions (presumably).
This is what Leagues clubs exist for.
There's nothing to suggest that staying in Sydney provides any particular advantage over regional cities. Sydney clubs have been as 'touch and go' and more.

 

[adamkungl]

I strongly disagree, the North side of Sydney isn't just 'part of Sydney', it's an enormous area (basically geographically half of Sydney) that will be experiencing strong population growth in the coming years. It already has around 1 million people there, which really isn't that much less than Adelaide and is certainly much, much more than the Central Coast. It needs a full time NRL presence, far more so than the various pockets that the other teams inhabit between the Eastern Suburbs and Parramatta. The Central Coast should get regular games from teams though- maybe a couple of Roosters and Manly games?

I definitely agree though that the Norths district needs to go. Whether it's split between Manly & the Roosters or it all goes to either team, it just needs to be redrawn and eliminated now. It's a joke that it continues to exist.

My view of this area is that it should be split between Roosters and Manly. Lower NS / Eastern Suburbs are basically identical demographics and a short drive. Beaches connects well to the Upper side.

As for whether the North side of the harbour would lose much by relocating Manly...debatable.
Currently the Shore side isn't represented at all, so no loss there.
I don't expect Manly fans to agree, but I believe the club would be better position for long term success basing the first grade team out of Gosford while retaining the Beaches for NSW Cup. It's a huge support footprint. There's less competition for scraps. Investment into the stadium is more likely (i'll believe Brookvale gets rebuilt when I see it tbh). The council would be supportive rather than antagonistic.

 

[Perth Red]

The losses aren't real losses. That money is spent knowing full well in advance that the Leagues clubs, rich owners, etc will pay for them. It's budgeted for. Roosters football club lose $1.6M? Who cares. Easts property empire gained 10s of millions (presumably).
This is what Leagues clubs exist for.
There's nothing to suggest that staying in Sydney provides any particular advantage over regional cities. Sydney clubs have been as 'touch and go' and more.

And thats why we have an arms race! Which is all well and good whilst the LC is flourishing and can put in but if you dont have a LC or its not doing well then you end up like Knights or Titans or numerous other clubs.

Funny I thought LC's got the pokie licenses and tax breaks because they existed to fund grassroots sport and give back to the community, not to cover the losses of largess professional sports clubs. How much better would RL be doing if these LC's didnt need to be bailing out over spending NRL clubs and could put all that money to better uses?

Of 16 clubs weve got 2 or 3 (if that) doing ok without LC backing or other sources tipping in money to cover losses. The idea of an NRL where all clubs were making surpluses and operating on a reasonably level playing field financially seems to me a no brainer. They can then use those surpluses to build their nest eggs and investment portfolios so if another covid rainy day comes along they arent screwed.

The NRL basically upped their central payment by 40% in one year and guess what, they all went out and blew it! Few of them are more sustainable now than they were 5 years ago when the NRL grant was half what it is now.

 

[Perth Red]

Just a reminder on what the avg NRL club actually generates from its FC operations (in 2019):

Cronulla Sharks
football revenue
NRL Grant $13.5mill
Sponsors and Box sales $5.6mill
Memberships $1.9mill
Gate sales $919.5k
Merch $356k
Total $22.275mill
$3.2 mill loss
https://www.sharks.com.au/siteasset...cronulla-sutherland-leagues-club-limited_.pdf

Roosters
football revenue
NRL Grant $13.3miill
Sponsors and Box sales $8.9mill
Memberships $1.8mill
Gate sales $1.9mill
Merch $723k
Total $26.6mill (+$2.1mill LC Grant & $1mill other revenue) FC operating costs $29.7mill
https://www.roosters.com.au/siteassets/2020/documents/sr2019-annualreport-spreads_opt.pdf

Eels
football revenue
NRL Grant $12.7mill
Sponsors and Box sales $6.8mill
Memberships & Gate sales $5.6mill
Merch $700k
Total $25.7mill
FC Loss for the year $5.2million
https://www.parraleagues.com.au/content/uploads/2020/01/2019-Eels-annual-report.pdf

Cowboys
FC profit of $400k, FC and LC $1.4million profit for year
https://cowboysleagues.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/CLC-Annual-Report-2019-WEB-1.pdf[

Broncos
football revenue
NRL Grant $13.7mill
Sponsors and Box sales $15.3mill
Memberships & Gate sales $16mill
Merch $1.6mill
Other $1mill
Total $47.6mill
Profit $3million
https://www.broncos.com.au/siteassets/about-us/pdfs/bb_ar_2019_web-lr-final.pdf

 

[reanimate]

My view of this area is that it should be split between Roosters and Manly. Lower NS / Eastern Suburbs are basically identical demographics and a short drive. Beaches connects well to the Upper side.

I'd be fine with that, whatever it takes to get rid of the Norths district and get the area reengaged with an NRL team. It'd probably work better with the whole area under one team for juniors etc, but splitting it is a far superior solution to what is happening there now.

As for whether the North side of the harbour would lose much by relocating Manly...debatable.
Currently the Shore side isn't represented at all, so no loss there.
I don't expect Manly fans to agree, but I believe the club would be better position for long term success basing the first grade team out of Gosford while retaining the Beaches for NSW Cup. It's a huge support footprint. There's less competition for scraps. Investment into the stadium is more likely (i'll believe Brookvale gets rebuilt when I see it tbh). The council would be supportive rather than antagonistic.

I disagree, the area North of the harbour is full of wealthy people, a lot of whom hold important positions in companies, government etc. Manly and the NRL have far more to gain with a full time presence in the area with an upgraded Northern stadium with good corporate facilities. The Central Coast is a much smaller market and unless you're a hardcore fan, not many are going to be travelling the hour plus up to Gosford to see them play very often. Getting good, solid support and engagement with fans out of the North side of Sydney should be a priority for the NRL, pushing the only NRL team there up to the Central Coast does the opposite of that.

 

[adamkungl]

I'd be fine with that, whatever it takes to get rid of the Norths district and get the area reengaged with an NRL team. It'd probably work better with the whole area under one team for juniors etc, but splitting it is a far superior solution to what is happening there now.

I disagree, the area North of the harbour is full of wealthy people, a lot of whom hold important positions in government, companies etc. Manly and the NRL have far more to gain with a full time presence in the area with an upgraded Northern stadium with good corporate facilities. The Central Coast is a much smaller market and unless you're a hardcore fan, not many are going to be travelling the hour plus up to Gosford to see them play very often. Getting good, solid support and engagement with fans out of the North side of Sydney should be a priority for the NRL, pushing the only NRL team there up to the Central Coast does the opposite of that.

We can agree that it's a debate that needs to be had at least. It's been ignored by the NRL and NSWRL for 20 years.

 

[Perth Red]

I'd be fine with that, whatever it takes to get rid of the Norths district and get the area reengaged with an NRL team. It'd probably work better with the whole area under one team for juniors etc, but splitting it is a far superior solution to what is happening there now.

I disagree, the area North of the harbour is full of wealthy people, a lot of whom hold important positions in government, companies etc. Manly and the NRL have far more to gain with a full time presence in the area with an upgraded Northern stadium with good corporate facilities. The Central Coast is a much smaller market and unless you're a hardcore fan, not many are going to be travelling the hour plus up to Gosford to see them play very often. Getting good, solid support and engagement with fans out of the North side of Sydney should be a priority for the NRL, pushing the only NRL team there up to the Central Coast does the opposite of that.

Yeh splitting it horizontally with Manly spreading into norhern half and Roosters linking with Bears permenantly and spreading into southern half would seem logical, probably why it will never happen!

Not sure Ive seen much innovation from Manly though to spread the wings into adjoining locations at NRL club level?

Maybe use the A8 and Warringah Road as the boundary lines?