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Why didn't the AFL experience a super league war?

siv

First Grade
Messages
6,748
Other than the success of the Tina Turner "Simply The Best" campaign and State of Origin, how was our game setting the pace?

AwFuL drew much larger attendances and had a team in all five metro markets by 1991. We only had teams in two metro markets until 1995.


AwFuL had five metro markets covered by 1991. We didn't crack into a third market until 1995. We had more regional markets covered, but weren't Foxtel and Optus Vision limited to the metro markets back in those days?
Satellite addressed all markets
 

LeagueXIII

First Grade
Messages
5,969
Other than the success of the Tina Turner "Simply The Best" campaign and State of Origin, how was our game setting the pace?

AwFuL drew much larger attendances and had a team in all five metro markets by 1991. We only had teams in two metro markets until 1995.


AwFuL had five metro markets covered by 1991. We didn't crack into a third market until 1995. We had more regional markets covered, but weren't Foxtel and Optus Vision limited to the metro markets back in those days?

The Tina Turner campaign was a huge success and cracked the market that league has lost today. It sent the image of the game to another level which we have lost today after years of the media trashing it.
I lived in Melbourne and in the early 90s you would go to the cinema and there it was this great ad which made you feel good about the game also Ch10 at this time was televising live into Melbourne the Sunday game. The game had a huge presence it hadnt had before also a respect. Ch10 Were paying more for league than 7 Were for AFL in the early 90s. Ch10 were great partners for the game sadly they hit financial trouble and nine took over.
Corporates were throwing money at it.
By 1994 We had the big cities on the east coast and were spreading the game to country areas with the pre season challenge, Premiership club games were being taken to Adelaide, Melbourne and Nz.
Origin had played numerous games in Melbourne with 87000 at the 1994 game. The Kangaroos had returned from the UK atracting 140,000 to the tests. All these games attracting huge TV audiences. In 1995 we were expanding to NZ, Perth, Nth Qld and another Brisbane club. The feel good factor was huge. Union was pooping itself part of the reason they went pro as alot of their players were coming to league. Sure AFL had teams in 5 cities but nobody in Sydney or Brisbane watched or cared, it was the SL war that sent alot of the market we had gained their way.
So as I said if you were goig to launch pay TV what sport would you aim for, not forgetting also league is great on the box and western sydney is a gold mine for these people.
 
Messages
14,822
The Tina Turner campaign was a huge success and cracked the market that league has lost today. It sent the image of the game to another level which we have lost today after years of the media trashing it.
I lived in Melbourne and in the early 90s you would go to the cinema and there it was this great ad which made you feel good about the game also Ch10 at this time was televising live into Melbourne the Sunday game. The game had a huge presence it hadnt had before also a respect. Ch10 Were paying more for league than 7 Were for AFL in the early 90s. Ch10 were great partners for the game sadly they hit financial trouble and nine took over.
Corporates were throwing money at it.
By 1994 We had the big cities on the east coast and were spreading the game to country areas with the pre season challenge, Premiership club games were being taken to Adelaide, Melbourne and Nz.
Origin had played numerous games in Melbourne with 87000 at the 1994 game. The Kangaroos had returned from the UK atracting 140,000 to the tests. All these games attracting huge TV audiences. In 1995 we were expanding to NZ, Perth, Nth Qld and another Brisbane club. The feel good factor was huge. Union was pooping itself part of the reason they went pro as alot of their players were coming to league. Sure AFL had teams in 5 cities but nobody in Sydney or Brisbane watched or cared, it was the SL war that sent alot of the market we had gained their way.
So as I said if you were goig to launch pay TV what sport would you aim for, not forgetting also league is great on the box and western sydney is a gold mine for these people.

NSWRL did take Origin to Melbourne in the early 1990s, but only because VFL added the Bears and Eagles in Brisbane and Perth in 1987. The Swans relocated to Sydney a few years earlier in 1982.

Running Tina Turner commercials at the cinema wasn't revolutionary in any way. It's just basic marketing and was tame in comparison to VFL's expansion into Sydney, Brisbane and Perth. The only reason we got the Melbourne Storm is because of News Ltd's involvement in the game. Arthurson and Quayle would not have provided the Storm with the funds they needed to survive. Those two Sydney-centric fools set the Cowboys, Reds, Warriors and Crushers up to fail and set the game back decades.

The Brisbane Bears visited my school in 1994. That's how far ahead AwFuL's development is over our game.
 

Wb1234

Immortal
Messages
33,728
The Tina Turner campaign was a huge success and cracked the market that league has lost today. It sent the image of the game to another level which we have lost today after years of the media trashing it.
I lived in Melbourne and in the early 90s you would go to the cinema and there it was this great ad which made you feel good about the game also Ch10 at this time was televising live into Melbourne the Sunday game. The game had a huge presence it hadnt had before also a respect. Ch10 Were paying more for league than 7 Were for AFL in the early 90s. Ch10 were great partners for the game sadly they hit financial trouble and nine took over.
Corporates were throwing money at it.
By 1994 We had the big cities on the east coast and were spreading the game to country areas with the pre season challenge, Premiership club games were being taken to Adelaide, Melbourne and Nz.
Origin had played numerous games in Melbourne with 87000 at the 1994 game. The Kangaroos had returned from the UK atracting 140,000 to the tests. All these games attracting huge TV audiences. In 1995 we were expanding to NZ, Perth, Nth Qld and another Brisbane club. The feel good factor was huge. Union was pooping itself part of the reason they went pro as alot of their players were coming to league. Sure AFL had teams in 5 cities but nobody in Sydney or Brisbane watched or cared, it was the SL war that sent alot of the market we had gained their way.
So as I said if you were goig to launch pay TV what sport would you aim for, not forgetting also league is great on the box and western sydney is a gold mine for these people.
We will get all that back

it will be harder than it was 30 years ago but it’s still a fantastic product
 

siv

First Grade
Messages
6,748
NSWRL did take Origin to Melbourne in the early 1990s, but only because VFL added the Bears and Eagles in Brisbane and Perth in 1987. The Swans relocated to Sydney a few years earlier in 1982.

Running Tina Turner commercials at the cinema wasn't revolutionary in any way. It's just basic marketing and was tame in comparison to VFL's expansion into Sydney, Brisbane and Perth. The only reason we got the Melbourne Storm is because of News Ltd's involvement in the game. Arthurson and Quayle would not have provided the Storm with the funds they needed to survive. Those two Sydney-centric fools set the Cowboys, Reds, Warriors and Crushers up to fail and set the game back decades.

The Brisbane Bears visited my school in 1994. That's how far ahead AwFuL's development is over our game.
Dont forget the Broncos were born in 1988 because of the panic in Queensland over the arrival of AFL Bears in 1987
 

Ozzi_78

First Grade
Messages
7,131
Just what this forum needs, another thread about a national comp and less Sydney teams.

The fascination with the belief that an Adelaide team would be a huge success baffles me. But hey I also don’t believe the Melbourne success story is genuine either but that’s just another conspiracy theory I have about the nrl need for a good team in an afl city.
 

LeagueXIII

First Grade
Messages
5,969
We will get all that back

it will be harder than it was 30 years ago but it’s still a fantastic product
We probably will get it back and be back where we were in 1995. When we should be way ahead. We are just gaining ground we lost sadly.
 

LeagueXIII

First Grade
Messages
5,969
NSWRL did take Origin to Melbourne in the early 1990s, but only because VFL added the Bears and Eagles in Brisbane and Perth in 1987. The Swans relocated to Sydney a few years earlier in 1982.

Running Tina Turner commercials at the cinema wasn't revolutionary in any way. It's just basic marketing and was tame in comparison to VFL's expansion into Sydney, Brisbane and Perth. The only reason we got the Melbourne Storm is because of News Ltd's involvement in the game. Arthurson and Quayle would not have provided the Storm with the funds they needed to survive. Those two Sydney-centric fools set the Cowboys, Reds, Warriors and Crushers up to fail and set the game back decades.

The Brisbane Bears visited my school in 1994. That's how far ahead AwFuL's development is over our game.
I don't know how old you are. RL had virtually ZERO presence in Melbourne and was looked at as a thugs game. So to go from that and have people seeing it's positive side, buying jerseys watching games live into Melbourne etc pushed the game forward in very hostile territory.

RL started to expand in 1982 it was part of the league's plan. Go read some old copies of the SMH and you may get a feel for how the game was and it's plans for the future rather then look back in hindsight with a current mentality things were way different back then.

The Swans and Bears were struggling big time it was the SL war that gave them the impetus that they ran with and cemented their place.

Quayle and Arko did great things for RL and were fantastic administrators and new the politics of the game to get things done.

Their only problem is they trusted Packer too much.
 
Messages
14,822
Dont forget the Broncos were born in 1988 because of the panic in Queensland over the arrival of AFL Bears in 1987
The Broncos were created because the NSWRL clubs used gaming machine revenue to plunder the BRL clubs into bankruptcy. The QRL resisted fielding a team in the NSWRL until there was no other alternative.

I don't know how old you are. RL had virtually ZERO presence in Melbourne and was looked at as a thugs game. So to go from that and have people seeing it's positive side, buying jerseys watching games live into Melbourne etc pushed the game forward in very hostile territory.

RL started to expand in 1982 it was part of the league's plan. Go read some old copies of the SMH and you may get a feel for how the game was and it's plans for the future rather then look back in hindsight with a current mentality things were way different back then.

The Swans and Bears were struggling big time it was the SL war that gave them the impetus that they ran with and cemented their place.

Quayle and Arko did great things for RL and were fantastic administrators and new the politics of the game to get things done.

Their only problem is they trusted Packer too much.
Sydney Swans generated an average of 25,847 and 21,987 in 1986 and 1987. The club was successful on the field in those seasons. Success dried up and they dropped down the ladder. Attendances dropped significantly until they reached the grand final in 1996.

The game's boom period was on the back of State of Origin. The NSWRL, Sydney media and Bob Fulton were against State of Origin.

Arthurson and Quayle forced the Cowboys to fund the flight and accommodation expenses of the Sydney clubs when they played in Townsville. Cowboys also needed to fund their own travel and accommodation expenses when they played in Sydney. It cost the Cowboys 800k per annum and bankrupted the club. The same thing happened to Western Reds. Warriors were probably forced to do the same. It's why they defected to Super League.
 
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