The numbers decline of adult men playing Rugby League

[footy75]

One advantage the NRL/RL has over soccer is that we are in charge of our own rules. We can change them to make the game more suitable to younger generations who want excitement. FFA are bound by the rules of the game as dictated by the traditional power base.

yep good thinking

 

[footy75]

I thought soccer participation at a Junior level has outstripped League for a long time

Yeah but the growth rate and gap is widening...
It's not just in RL in NSW and QLD
It's smashing AFL in Victoria and SA also
Soccer is huge with the kids. Things have changed a lot.

Having said that the Storm have been huge for RL in Victoria. Great to see so many kids at games.

We need kids playing for the success of the game. They are the most valuable asset. They are the future.

 

[Nerd]

My thoughts are that touch should be used in the AFL strong states to get players playing a non contact form of RL and to capture junior players away from soccer. Oztag should be bought by the NRL and used as a social form of RL for those who can't or won't play the full contact version.

 

[Teddyboy]

Touch Rugby/Footy, OzTag and LeagueTag too many just have 13 a side full contact, then semi contact 2 hand hold and sort of non contact be it touch but make it smaller fields and 5 a side with 2 hands touch as I find that that the current 1 hand Touch Footy is ideal for skinny fast whippet types but can put off people who are more bulky and overweight.

 

[T-Boon]

1 hand Touch Footy is ideal for skinny fast whippet types but can put off people who are more bulky and overweight.

Poor buggers. When is something going to go the bulky guys way in rugby league?

 

[Teddyboy]

Poor buggers. When is something going to go the bulky guys way in rugby league?

One handed Touch is quite boring played at a good level as it's more about the players doing the 3 man drives against the slow or fat one so he is off side, looks like a sort of fast Rugby Union/Netball bollocks.

 

[legs 11]

playing participation levels have dropped off massively in the last 20 years in australia and nz....the only thing that makes it not look so bad is that we have thousands of masters and female players now......these grades are new and make those running the game survive another year.....ie help to fudge the stats

 

[T-Boon]

One handed Touch is quite boring played at a good level as it's more about the players doing the 3 man drives against the slow or fat one so he is off side, looks like a sort of fast Rugby Union/Netball bollocks.

The big problem is there are hardly ever any long range breaks or "touch downs" as they call them (they probably need to allow a limited form of short chip kicking). But close to the line the skills in Touch are awesome and improving at a rate of knots. Best sport ever invented in Australia.

 

[Perth Red]

playing participation levels have dropped off massively in the last 20 years in australia and nz....the only thing that makes it not look so bad is that we have thousands of masters and female players now......these grades are new and make those running the game survive another year.....ie help to fudge the stats

Does it matter as long as people are interested enough to play the game? What is the drop off in snrs men regos in last 5 years? What are the increases in the other areas? Do we have any firm stats available on the numbers? I'm not sure the NRL will find an answer to snr men drop off numbers by throwing money at it if it is primarily a societal change issue. (and tbh I suspect most of this so called grass roots funding they want to spend is in fact going to pay for the second tier two comps rather than genuine grass roots or jnr footy). If its a club viability issue then that would be different ie clubs are having to close down due to costs rather than lack of players.

 

[Perth Red]

Coming to a RL field near you lol. AFL's latets attempt to take over rectangular pitches

http://wwos.nine.com.au/2017/06/21/23/25/afl-to-launch-big-bash-style-competition

 

[T-Boon]

Coming to a RL field near you lol. AFL's latets attempt to take over rectangular pitches

http://wwos.nine.com.au/2017/06/21/23/25/afl-to-launch-big-bash-style-competition

It is a "can do" run code.
When our code asks "why" they ask "why not".
Actually our code doesnt even ask "why". We are the "can't be done" code.

 

[siv]

Hahahaha. Yep, this is the kind of shit that comes straight from NRLHQ. Of course when there's no senior rugby league clubs left anywhere and there's no players to coach the juniors and no money coming in because no one pays to watch junior football there won't actually be any young players for NRL clubs to sign. But that's okay. Everyone can just play touch and we'll pretend it's RL. The Helen Lovejoys at the NRL will have completed their mission of removing any contact from the game and they'll still have their participation numbers, none of which will be for actual rugby league.

The item here is not player X playing touch being counted as a RL player

Its a friend or family member who can be brought to a community game day

Where a friends parents kids who might be over playing rugby/soccer chosing to play league because of the family community days out

 

[Teddyboy]

Coming to a RL field near you lol. AFL's latets attempt to take over rectangular pitches

http://wwos.nine.com.au/2017/06/21/23/25/afl-to-launch-big-bash-style-competition

Maybe the AFL should have a nets in there goal posts.

 

[Nerd]

Coming to a RL field near you lol. AFL's latets attempt to take over rectangular pitches

http://wwos.nine.com.au/2017/06/21/23/25/afl-to-launch-big-bash-style-competition

They're having a go but won't it take interest away from their normal games/semi finals etc?

 

[johnny plath]

It is a "can do" run code.
When our code asks "why" they ask "why not".
Actually our code doesnt even ask "why". We are the "can't be done" code.

wtf you on about... its a reduced numbers comp played over a weekend??? Don't we have something like that at the beginning of each season aka Auckland nines. FMD... give some credit to rl... we have multiple reduced number/reduced impact variations of the game, but as soon as the arseFL introduces something different to their main game we bow in reverence as if we are all dumb f**ks that can;t see for shit.

 

[East Coast Tiger]

Does it matter as long as people are interested enough to play the game? What is the drop off in snrs men regos in last 5 years? What are the increases in the other areas? Do we have any firm stats available on the numbers? I'm not sure the NRL will find an answer to snr men drop off numbers by throwing money at it if it is primarily a societal change issue. (and tbh I suspect most of this so called grass roots funding they want to spend is in fact going to pay for the second tier two comps rather than genuine grass roots or jnr footy). If its a club viability issue then that would be different ie clubs are having to close down due to costs rather than lack of players.

Of course it's due to money. Clubs used to pay players and thus there were plenty of players. Now they can't afford to. The problem is, the culture of paying players was just as toxic and means players expect it and won't play otherwise, whereas union's amateur culture means players have always played for other reasons and that's why union has been far less hit by dropping numbers, despite the sport at a pro level going to shit.

 

[Scorpio30]

Rugby league keeps 72-year-old Simon Hone young - and he's not hanging up his boots any time soon

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league...and-hes-not-hanging-up-his-boots-anytime-soon

 

[ATOWN2]

I play rugby league (albeit in Adelaide) and what puts a lot of people off playing here is that there is no development pathways and the competition isn't well organised here. As a result a lot of people that would play league end up playing rugby union instead. Union has no development pathways in SA either but there are more clubs, more depth, and more divisions so people can go out and play 4th grade if they want to play social but still have the game experience. League in comparison only has a 1st grade and a 9s comp... I talk to older guys at the club and they all say that back in the 90's there were more clubs and every club had a reserve grade. The comp was very tight and it would not be out of place for the bottom side to defeat the top side. These days the top sides will beat the bottom sides by 50+ points so there were a lot more footballers running around getting quality games each week. At my club in the mid to late 90's there would be 40 to 50 at training and there was competition for positions. These days there is only half that amount. Like anything its weight in numbers.