The Swamp I

[Willow]

chili troll,
FYI, its a parish. And you're man-child.

 

[chili pepper]

There's been "writers block" for 38 years...

Yes....its a terrible curse.

 

[chili pepper]

chili troll,
FYI, its a parish. And you're man-child.

ooooh - and your bottom of the table :lol:

 

[Willow]

And you're under the table. Stop looking up. :lol:

 

[Squishy_Da_Byatch]

Reffering to page one of this thread WHO THE f**k said that Saints fund our Junior league?? HUH HUH? TELL me, I hate to tell you buddy that the Illawarra Juniors FUND THEMSELVES ASSHOLE. Thats why they pay when they register thats why they have fund raisers trackhead...................GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT before you go shooting your f**ken mouth off dickhead

 

[God-King Dean]

GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT before you go shooting your f***en mouth off dickhead

Take you own advice

 

[Squishy_Da_Byatch]

Whatever.........what havn't I got right?!?!?!

 

[Drew-Sta]

The Illawarra Leauges is what, $8 million in debt? If we didn't prop up the club for Illawarra, the juniors wouldn't be able to support themselves, hence the region would flounder.

Stop your swearing, and if you have an argument, word it without offending everyone on the forum. You make yourself look like an ignorant fool when you possibly have a good point.

 

[S2H]

There is a difference between the Illawarra Leagues and the Steelers Leagues club.

If the Steelers went belly up the juniors wouldn't suffer too much.

However in business terms a company with the turnover of the Steelers club, a debt of 8mil is not a big risk. It would not be hard for the club to find a bank to finance the loan.

 

[Drew-Sta]

Hmm, maybe I should do more research for my next post

 

[Squishy_Da_Byatch]

Sorry bout the swearing but im sick of people saying our juniors wouldnt survive, not to mention i was havinga REALLY bad day.....that just made it worse .........our juniors are different to the steelers as S2H said, they do all their own funding hence why they have to pay rego fees and stuff like that.

 

[drake]

I think one of the things people forget is that Rugby League is bigger than the NRL, which is a commercialised competition constructed to make money providing "Sports Entertainment" (sounds like WWE to me).
As long as kids want to play footy, and parents want to take them, there will be rugby league.

 

[Southern Rooster]

How are my facts wrong

Illawarra were broke and didn't have any money and would not have competed in the 1999 or be definately extinct by 2000

St George put a reported 3.5 to 4 mil a year and Illawarra put in 500,000. St George Leagues Club also put the majority of the money in Illawarra Leagues renovations at well over 4 million

If St George are paying all the bills then we are funding junior development in the Illawarra

Check your figs Benny. You are talking big figs. Remember the Dragions wanted to merge with the Roosters as they were not travelling that greatly

Actually it was the Roosters that approached St George.
The club was to be known as Sydney City Saints. Phil Gould was to coach em. The jersey was a half white half blue strip with a Red V.
The agreement was all but done until the SOS commitee stepped in and started protests about it.
The deal fell through and so did Geoff Carr.

The Illawarra Steelers were not financial enough to stand on there own two feet and would have been dead within a matter of years. Whilst the St George area in Sydney is undergoing a major shift in it's influence in it's society (A greater influx of Asians in the Hurstville and surrounding areas and the Balkans in the Rockdale/Banksia area) which has lead to less younger kids playing rugby league and hence the Illawarra region and it's juniors would be looked after by Illawarra juniors whilst Saints benefit from that, the Illawarra still has access to top quality league. From 1921 to 1982 the Illawarra supported Saints (mostly) and vice versa. Eventually when people in charge realise that it is one club now and stop the infighting they will be a lot better of again.

 

[drake]

Nice succint post Southern Rooster.

 

[Willow]

The Illawarra Steelers were not financial enough to stand on there own two feet and would have been dead within a matter of years.

Absolutely correct and with the sponsorship cards were simply not falling in their favour. Their CEO said that the Steelers would not have survived for much longer.

Whilst the St George area in Sydney is undergoing a major shift in it's influence in it's society (A greater influx of Asians in the Hurstville and surrounding areas and the Balkans in the Rockdale/Banksia area) which has lead to less younger kids playing rugby league

Sort of. Perhaps for the short term.

It was one of the arguments being put forward by the Dragons JV to move out of St George. But these things are cyclical and we see changes with each generation.

Its as if people are trying to say that Rugby League can only be popular in areas where the cultural or racial conditions are favourable. Whatever that means...

I would have thought a healthier approach would see the cultural changes as an opportunity. That is, a whole new section of the community who could be sold on the greatest game of all.

Its been proven to work. Rugby League isn't big in the Middle East or Asia but within two generations, the game certainly has plenty of support in the west of Sydney.

From 1921 to 1982 the Illawarra supported Saints (mostly) and vice versa. Eventually when people in charge realise that it is one club now and stop the infighting they will be a lot better of again.

Its one of the arguments I've been using for a while. History shows that there has been a strong connection between St George and the Illawarra since the 1920s. In my opinion, what happened in 1999 was more like a reunification. The history should be allowed to conrinue. Formalising it into a JV however, appears to have brought about a number of difficulties.

 

[Follow Me Up To Carlton]

Whilst the St George area in Sydney is undergoing a major shift in it's influence in it’s society (A greater influx of Asians in the Hurstville and surrounding areas and the Balkans in the Rockdale/Banksia area) which has lead to less younger kids playing rugby league

That may have been the case in the days of yore but you wont find bigger League fans then the Greeks, Maco's, Croats, lebanese ect in the District.

And more and more these days their kids are taking up the game. If not with the clubs then with the schools.

It's just a shit argument. If success was beholden on the WASPyness of an area then Cronulla might have actually won something, or the Steelers for that matter.

And what about the Eastern Suburbs where people just dont have have children? ;-)

 

[drake]

the Illawarra isn't a WASPy area.
In my experience Macos, lebanese and Greeks may like Rugby League, but they are discouraged from playing it in preference to Soccer. This may be changing with second generation families, but there aren't many Slavs, Greeks or lebanese in comparison with Kooris, Anglos and Polynesians in the NRL.

 

[Follow Me Up To Carlton]

I know Wollongong is quite multi cultural but I was thinking more about Kiama, Dapto, Gerringong ect...

You're right that in the past they have been discouraged but the times they are a changin.

 

[Willow]

I think we've established that the ethnic argument doesn't really hold much water.

Quite clearly Rugby League has proven itself to be good enough to cut across the cultural divide.

 

[drake]

Good stuff!