NRL boss Dave Smith says WA is ticking all the boxes as the state pushes to house a rugby league team of its own once expansion is put back on the table at the end of next year.
Smith is in Perth this week for his maiden visit to the city as NRL chief executive ahead of Sunday’s blockbuster between premiership favourites South Sydney and the red-hot New Zealand Warriors at nib Stadium.
A bumper crowd of around 20,000 is expected to be at the clash, continuing the momentum built from Perth-hosted NRL games in the past four years that have attracted attendances of more than 15,000 people.
While Smith reaffirmed the ARL Commission’s viewpoint that expansion won’t be considered until late next year, he said WA was looming as “a strong option” as a potential base for a club.
“I think Western Australia has done a great job, and you can see that the junior base is growing, and that’s always a good sign,” Smith told
PerthNow.
“The Origin II figures with people watch on TV (in WA) were just amazing too. So all of the indicators are really strong.
“I’m really supportive and committed to Western Australia – it’s strategically important to us.
“The commission very clearly has said that we won’t consider growth until the end of 2014. There’s a lot of work to do in terms of just making sure we’re operating off a strong base, so we’re concentrating on that (until then).
“I think we’ll be ready around about that time, and quite clearly, Western Australia is a strong option.”
Smith described the upgraded facilities at nib Stadium as “phenomenal” ahead of the Rabbitohs’ meeting with the Warriors this weekend.
The league boss – who yesterday watched junior training at South Perth – also spoke of the importance of the state of the game at grassroots level.
“It’s vital wherever you are, but it’s certainly vital for any team where we choose to either relocate or establish a team,” Smith said.
“I think it’s strong here, and the key indicator is the growth.
“When you’re growing the market share effectively by 14 per cent from 2012, that’s very strong, and I think that shows that there’s a natural interest.
“The WARL guys have done a really good job and punched well above their weight. I think with our development expertise – we’ve put three new development officers on the ground here – we’ll continue to look how we can grow that base, because it’s really important to our game.”
Sunday’s game kicks off at 4.30, with tickets available from Ticketmaster.
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