Western Corridor NRL bid

[BuffaloRules]

Seriusly? I've been posting media inks featuring prominent RL people calling for expansion for 7 years. Bennett called for a Perth tam years ago but obviously now has a conflict re a second Brisbane due to working for Broncos.

I'm talking about the second Brisbane side ( this is the correct thread right?).

Why isn't the QRL actively supporting it?

Obviously they don't want it or are toeing the NRL/ Broncos line.

I repeat my question- How can Expansion happen in SEQ when there are no stake holders in the game who want it?

There is not much point posting articles quoting local politicians - their opinions alone aren't worth jackshit.

 

[alien]

He said the decision to postpone expansion was "short sighted and stupid".

the nrl has always been that way

 

[Perth Red]

All of the state bodies are now just mouth pieces for the NRL. They have effectively, through their threats of funding withdrawal, taken control over them all. There is no longer any level of independence so is it surprising there is no one questioning the nrl's lack of action? The warl were threatening to enter a team into the ESL if NRL didn't expand, now the NRLWA says nothing.

Bennett was all for expansion, at least into WA.

Six-time premiership-winning coach Wayne Bennett has thrown his support behind a WA-based team to be granted entry into the NRL by 2012.

Bennett, who will take the helm of St George Illawarra for the first time on Saturday night when his side take on the Sydney Roosters in a trial match in Perth, said a WA-based team would strengthen the competition.

The NRL have taken a cautious approach to the idea after the Perth Reds were disbanded in 1997 after a short and unsuccessful stay in the national competition.

The Western Australian Rugby League has been working hard since 2000 to formulate a re-entry plan and in 2006 the Perth Reds were revived and re-branded as the WA Reds.

The Reds currently compete in the Jim Beam Cup and will move up to the NSW Cup in 2010, with a view of breaking into the NRL in 2012.

"I came over here in the Super League years (as coach of Brisbane) and we played here in '96 and '97 and I thought it was a wonderful concept at the time and I still do today," Bennett said in Perth on Friday.

"I hope that the League, when they re-address the issue of expansion, which I think they will when the new TV contracts are re-done in 2012, will certainly look favourably upon us having a team in this part of the world.

http://www.thefanatics.com/sports.news.view.php?id=37483342

 

[BuffaloRules]

Gee, we have to go back to something Bennett said in 2009...

Since then the revenue in the game will have more than quadrupled come 2018, and the silence is deafening from him now...obviously he is back in line with the Broncos thought control process..

No one that really matters wants expansion- the NRL, the Broadcasters and of course the clubs...there isn't now even the slightest chance of it happening prior to 2023 and I would be surprised if if happens then..

Can we really be in this position several years after the Independant Commission was set up and Gallop moved on?

It seems such a waste as they will never be in a better position to expand then when the next deal comes in..

Rule on Grant... Promote one of your lackeys from within into Smiths job, continue to cater to the clubs every whim, take no chances and all will be well..

 

[Perth Red]

NRL dithering on expansion is "hurting the game"

THE NRL's dithering on expansion is hurting the fans of the game in Ipswich and stalling player pathways

That is the view of Western Corridor bid chief Steve Johnson.

Perth and south-east Queensland are favoured to receive expansion sides when the game decides to hit the go button.

The two leading NRL expansion teams in south-east Queensland are the Ipswich-based Western Corridor NRL bid and the Brisbane Bombers.

NRL head of football Todd Greenberg said recently that NRL expansion in Queensland would not occur during the current broadcast deal.

While acknowledging it was not off the table in the cycle of the next deal, he did not provide any clarity on what the NRL's strategy was.

"The expansion market of rugby league is being punished, and that is the fans and supporters, and we as clubs can only come into the competition at their invitation" Johnson says.


"When you look at the Queensland demographic, we have 40 per cent of the rugby league players represented by three NRL clubs.

"That is ridiculous.

"Clubs like our Western Corridor side need to be brought in because we will create new markets and expand the current market.

"When you have people knowing there is a game at Suncorp Stadium every Friday night they will get into that regular pattern of going to football.

"The Broncos will be getting bigger crowds, and when you are dealing with rugby league heartland like Ipswich and the Western Corridor you will bring in hopefully another 20,000 fans to support our team, so you are growing the game."

Greenberg has said that "a whole pile" of the 16 NRL clubs are going broke and that expansion would not occur while that continued, an argument Johnson rejects.

"They talk about clubs going broke, well they will continue to go broke if they follow the model they currently have," he said.

"You can't say we won't expand the game because clubs are going broke. That is the wrong way of looking at it.

"That is just a defeatist attitude and not a visionary business plan.

'If you bring in our club and we become as successful as the Broncos, when we go to their home grounds we are going to help them get bigger crowds.

"We will help them with their monetary problems."

Johnson is a big believer that no NRL club has a God-given right to exist, and that hard decisions must be made with those that continually fail to measure up.

"The difficult conversation to have is that the current NRL clubs see themselves as having a sense of entitlement to be funded by the game, because they are the public face of the game," he said.

"I am not a proponent of traditional clubs being kicked out for no valid reason.

"They need to be given the chance to succeed and given the KPIs of professionalism, player development, crowds, marketing and the like…and supported for a period if time.

"If they don't meet their KPIs then some hard decisions need to be made."


http://m.qt.com.au/news/nrl-dithering-on-expansion-is-hurting-the-game-say/2947184/

 

[Bronxnation]

From the WC Pirates site
"Our cannons are loaded and we’re aiming high. By 2020, The West Coast Pirates will be among the top five most recognised and respected Sporting Brands in Australia."
assuming these are teams
what 5 sporting teams do you think are the most recognised heading into the 2016 season?
(club teams)
edit: Australian teams from any code

 

[Perth Red]

I'd say Broncos, Essendon , Carlton, collingwood and Souths

If you asked the avg joe in the street which comps these clubs played in most would get it right, you also see their brands across Australia more than any other. International level I'd say wallabies followed by Socceroos followed by kangaroos, all blacks are probably better known than kangaroos sadly.

 

[BuffaloRules]

Essendon and Carlton...

Wow...

You don't live in Sydney do you?

I actually follow a lot of sports in this world, but I could not name a player from either team apart from Jab Watson..

 

[parrawentyfan]

If Essendon wasn't well known before, they certainly are now.

 

[Perth Red]

Exactly, as I said not who plays for them but their brand awareness and what sport they play. Most people forget 80-90% of the population Do not really follow any sport particularly closely. If I was to ask in Perth around the water cooler to name NRL clubs Broncos and Souths would be most known, likewise I'd suggest the afl clubs I've mentioned in non afl land. Daniel Riccardo is probably better known nationally than the kangaroos captain.

Happy to hear your alternates buffalo if you travel the country and have a sense of best known sporting brands.

 

[mickyj]

I'm sorry but the fact the people behind the WC bid think that people will travel from Logan to Ippy to watch a game shows just how out of touch they are.
If there is a new SEQ side it will be the Bombers or maybe one of the cashed up BRL sides. Wynnum and Redcliffe are most cashed up but too far from CBD to make it work IMO. I know East Tigers are keen to try. But Bombers the most likely.

 

[gyallop]

travel from logan to Ippy..Wynnum and reddy to far from CBD....what are you talking about?

 

[davi]

Is A-League going to beat the NRL to the punch in Ipswich? Jets don't seem too concerned insisting it will help their bid rather then hinder it.


"UNITED we stand.

That was the word from Western Corridor NRL bid and Ipswich Jets chairman Steve Johnson about the Western Pride's bid to enter an expanded A-League competition in 2018-19.

One of the two codes will win the race for a national team eventually, but if it is football Johnson said he would be cheering for the Western Pride.


"From an Ipswich Jets point of view, we welcome anything that will bring greater pride and enjoyment to our city and the people of Ipswich so it is only a good thing," he said.

"There is no downside about Ipswich getting national recognition in any code or at any time. We are excited for them.

"The two codes don't compete for sponsors and there never has been a rivalry with us and the Western Pride, nor would there ever be.

"The Western Pride's committee seems to be very aligned with the Jets with their values so we would see ourselves working cohesively in the future to give our kids greater opportunity to stay in their home town and succeed in life."


If the Western Pride gets the green light from the FFA before the Western Corridor does from the NRL, which seems likely, then there will be benefits for both codes.

City sports supremo Cr David Morrison has said Ipswich council would make every effort to upgrade facilities at North Ipswich Reserve to hold extra capacity, with a request from state and federal help, should the FFA welcome the Western Pride.

That will only assist the Jets and any NRL side by having upgraded facilities, and both codes use a field with the same dimensions.

Expansion is still in the sights of FFA CEO David Gallop for the 2018-19 season but not before a revamp of the ownership and operating model of both the A-League and W-League.

"We want to expand the leagues but this has to happen as part of a new structure," Gallop said in a statement.

"That's why we are now working with the clubs to determine the future structure of the leagues and the criteria for expansion.

"We will examine these issues in detail and expect this work will take months rather than weeks. We know that those consortia that have expressed an interest in joining the league would want to be part of something that is financially sustainable and attractive as a sound investment."

Johnson said Gallop, as the former NRL CEO, understood well the projected growth in Ipswich and the western corridor and that he was the right administrator for football and rugby league locally to get to the next level.

"The whole concept of NRL expansion arose because of Paul Pisasale's foresight in flying David Gallop up to show him the western corridor when the people in Sydney had no idea what it was," he said.

"Paul brought him up and drove him around Springfield, Ripley Valley and the rest of Ipswich and that is what got David interested in basing a rugby league team here.

"Then when he went to soccer he obviously knew about the area and it garnished his attention when they spoke about the possible expansion of their code."

Western Pride general manager Pat Boyle recently told the QT of his determination to take Ipswich up into the A-League.

"If someone said to our entity 'we want to have you in the A-League representing the western corridor but you must do this, this and this' - trust me and given the work ethic of the people in this region - we would move heaven and earth to achieve it," he said."

https://www.qt.com.au/news/nrl-bid-team-backs-western-prides-a-league-push/3149973/

 

[jim_57]

Could be a good way to get a 25k stadium in Ipswich without having to commit to playing there full time.

 

[Perth Red]

Gallop pro expansion, who'd have think it?

 

[BuffaloRules]

Only politician quoted is some local council numpty...

Does Ipswich council have sufficient funds to build the stadium?

 

[Diesel]

I doubt the Ippy Council could afford to build a stadium but the QLD Govt could chip in money like NQ (and the possible CQ bid) stadium. They'd need private investment plus NRL/FFA/ARU fund.

Heck, the amount of money AFL
and GWS manage to suck off from the taxpayers, it's only fair 3 sports that use a rectangle ground get some help too.

 

[Hello, I'm The Doctor]

Ipswich could be good as a 3rd Brisbane team, but it would be terrible for them to get in before we got a 2nd team out of Suncorp....

 

[El Diablo]

http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport...e/news-story/e5d505ed175892f70f936e16124d2ea1

Brisbane Lions return to initial plan for new training and administration base

Andrew Hamilton, The Courier-Mail
March 9, 2017 7:35pm

BRISBANE’S hunt for a new training and administration base has come full circle, with the original Springfield proposal back on the table.

It is understood the success of the Lions’ AFLW side and their lack of a suitable home ground has captured the attention of the State Government.

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan put infrastructure on the agenda in the opening weeks of the season when he said the lack of a suitable mid-sized stadium in southeast Queensland was the major issue facing the newly formed women’s competition.

Brisbane have the worst facilities in the AFL by a long way but have struggled to interest either the federal or state governments in their plight.

However, investing in women’s sport is seen as a vote winner.

State Government ministers Shannon Fentiman and Mick de Brenni, MP Scott Emerson and Federal Immigration Minister Peter Dutton have all been spotted at Lions games in recent weeks.

Brisbane’s proposal is that their new headquarters also feature a ground with a grandstand and hills or terraces that could house 15,000.

An artist’s impression of the proposed training and administration facility at the Springfield site.

They are also looking at a proposal from the Moreton Bay City Council to further develop the current home ground at Brendale.

The site at the airport has also not been abandoned. However development costs there are prohibitive and there could be issues with lighting so close to the runways.

The Lions have cut deals with Australian Catholic Universities and MDA, a migrant settlement agency, to share facilities.

Last month a $6.3 billion development agreement was signed between two Chinese companies and Springfield Land Corporation (SLC).

The residential project is next to the railway station, directly opposite the proposed site for the football facility.

Lions CEO Greg Swann said the club was talking with the state government and confirmed the Springfield proposal had been dusted off.

“Everything is back on the table,’’ he said.

“We’ve been talking to Springfield and it is definitely an option.’’

Last time the Lions were considering a move to Springfield it created internal divisions within the club between those who saw it as an opportunity to secure their future and another faction who believed the club would lose its Brisbane identity if they moved into a different city.

The Lions rejected a proposal from the Moreton Bay City Council for a new base at the Burpengary Sports Park AFL Precinct for similar reasons.

However, failure to secure funding for an alternative venue within Brisbane City Council limits since then has unified belief within the club that they must take the next decent proposal.

The Lions eventually walked away from the initial Springfield proposal when $15m in promised federal government funding fell over when the Gillard government lost power.

The Lions had also been offered a peppercorn lease on the land and Ipswich City Council had applied for $10 million through the Queensland Government’s Royalties to Regions Program and $10 million from the federal National Stronger Regions Fund.

 

[jim_57]

If any mid-sized stadium needs to be build in the Brisbane area it's a rectangular 25k seater in the West. We can play women's RL there too if that'll be a "votes winner"