Yeah i used to like Origin, back when i was a kid, much like you are no doubt now



Now it just bores me & i'd say a hell of a lot of other people.

As for the swans, hate them, never been to a game, never watched a game.

I still say AFL all over us, the biggest market is still Sydney for League & everyones to busy & got to much going on & to many things to choose from to really give a toss, hence Sydney clubs at most only get 16000 odd average at best.

All you can keep bringing up is three origin games that are most years hit & miss.

As for the World Cup, do you really think most people even know its on??

I know its going to happen, will i bother to watch games? probably not, will i be Surfing every chance i get??..you feckin bet, most people are over League now, the crowds will be a pretty big dissapointment i reckon, you'll have a few thousand weirdo muppets from England coming over for the greatest show on earth & nobody will be home

And yet Aukland, Brisbane, Canberra, Canterbury, Cronulla, NQ and Penrith do?

That argument doesn't make sense.



You've completely ignored the point of the post again.



Ideally, it shouldn't, as I said. But, as I said, given the choice between losing one of the weaker Sydney teams to gain the same fan base elsewhere in an untapped market seems a worthwhile exchange.

Sydney would not be lost to RL on the back of one team moving. But that one team could open up a new market elsewhere.



Which is why I haven't suggested doing that.



I agree, QLD need another team. But I don't agree that the NRL should do merely that, and feel smug. there are other markets which need to be addressed alongside this.



I always get slightly nervous when people mention Wellington. NZ produce loads of top players, but I'm not sure they're quite ready for another NRL franchise.

From what I can gather, outside of the heart of RL in NZ (Aukland) Wellington is the next strongest area.



Adelaide, I can understand. Not Perth; you're always going to have less TV cash than the AFL.

"Look! We've got another team in QLD!"
"So what? They were all watching the NRL anyway, it adds no extra value to our TV stations."



Looks good, but that setup will be a long, [ilong[/i way off.

I'm intrigued by a PNG team, but can't for the life of me see how it would be arranged.

I'm sure a good performance from the Kumuls in the coming weeks would increase the calls for such a team, but unfortunately I don't think the money or the political will is there.

maybe you arent much of a RL fan mate.

im going to 7 WC games myself, and cant wait for it actually.

since the final is close to sold out, you really should read the papers in this country before sprouting the BS you do.

and do you surf in the dark champ, most of the WC games are held at night!.







origin
NZ Warriors.
Internationals

vs AFL - collingwood vs carlton

news ltd chose which SL clubs to keep and which to kill off. no perth team now is the fault of news ltd. news ltd had the power to make the choice because perth went to news ltd. so its their fault they are no longer in.

im not saying we should ignore perth forever. i am saying though that other areas can offer more for the game now, and if we ignore perth next time round its not that bad.

just because AFL has a team in all capitals doesnt mean we need them now.

more queensland teams would improve the ratings as there would be more high ratings games in queensland which they would watch. more people from queensland would watch a game form their club than a perth team.

PNG - the nrl has looked at a joint venture between darwin and PNG, with darwin being the training facilities and 1/2 the games and PNG the rest.

re wellington - given the number of kiwi RL players in the nrl and overseas, NZ could easily handle another side. indeed we would keep more of our juniors that go to the dark side.

The Gold Coast were also axed in the formation of the NRL; they therefore shouldn't be in the NRL. They made their bed by staying with the ARL, etc.



I'm not suggesting you are!

But long term plans need the planning to start [inow[/i. The Perth junior team is doing all the right things, with apparent support from the appropriate people in the game.



Remind me, what is the money difference in the TV contracts between the NRL and the AFL?



But the Perth team brings greater exposure, and is a more powerful statement to the press and the RL fans in Aus. It opens up a market you otherwise would not have access to.



Seems like a half measure, to me; I'd prefer the franchise to be based in PNG, but I appreciate the difficulties with that.



Most of the NZ juniors seem to come from the NRL academies, so I'm not sure those that leave for RU are motivated by being unable to get a place in any other NRL team. They're motivated by money; another NRL team means more places available at first grade (more cash), and in Wellington is undoubtably more attractive than in Aus for native NZ'ers.

But I don't believe we're not losing juniors because there's not enough teams, we're losing juniors because we're up against the allure of an All Blacks jersey, and fair enough.

Origin .....Overated, only three games, big poo, blink & its over

NZ warriors......?????

do you really think having a team from the land of the long white errrr sheep makes us international & makes the AFL boys poo their pants??





Internationals...



The North of England, a few lonely farmers in NZ & the odd left out Moari, A few frogs still trying to scratch back assets lost during the war, & odds & sods from third world islands...wow, the AFL must really be shaking now, & Union positively crapping themselves..

the guy that claims to be a RL fan and also surfs at night.






good luck with those waves at night bro

AFLs fans start a petition calling for them to have State of origin : www.gopetition.com/petitions/bri ... tball.html AFL player wants origin football to return : www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008 ... 240447.htm AFL boss wants state or origin : www.realfooty.com.au/articles/20 ... 49754.html RL : 3 origins, internationals and a world cup, plus a team in NZ. AFL : essendon vs carlton

AFLs fans start a petition calling for them to have State of origin : www.gopetition.com/petitions/bri ... tball.html AFL player wants origin football to return : www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008 ... 240447.htm AFL boss wants state or origin : www.realfooty.com.au/articles/20 ... 49754.html RL : 3 origins, internationals and a world cup, plus a team in NZ. AFL : essendon vs carlton

1. the gold coast didnt choose to turn their back on the games founders and the group that brought them into the comp. perth did. karma.

2. the money difference is a result of the SL war and the ownership of news ltd of RL.

3. a perth nrl team will take a decade of losses of millions of dollars to take off. a perth team has done nothing for union, their crowds have fallen qutie a bit. queensland clubs will be strong from day one. id rather have more strong clubs in the nrl atm and leave perth for later.

4. players like jonah lomu and tana umaga were RL juniors who we lost along the way through lack of opportunity. another NRL team offering more money than semi pro will help us keep our talent.

the ABs jersey doesnt mean much, they are losing their best players to france as well. we need to get the player salaries up to a level where union in the SH cant compete then we will have all the best talent.

the S14 is failing, union is no longer a threat to RL from australia or NZ.

Yes, by definition.



The AFL have nothing compared to the RL international scene. I don't know why you're playing it down; RL will be played professionally in 5 countries next year (depending on whether you view Wales as separate and distinct to England in terms of the UK), and with organised tournaments consisting of quite a few teams in others.

All this bloody expansionism, you have to be kidding!!

1. Boot all QLD teams & NZ out of the NRL

2. Bring back Newtown, Norths, Wests & Balmain, maybe even Glebe & UNI, possibly even Annandale ( what a great blast from the past that would be!!)

3. Change name back to NSWRL

4. Burn down ANZ & the Football stadium & make a law that all grounds must have a grass hill & must sell KB in cans ( preferably the old style heavy duty tins )

5. Bring back proper Kangaroo tours, all palyers must grow ridiculous beards & moustaches & must play Euchre, all non drinkers to be banned from tour, two teams to be picked with the nuffys playing midweek against club teams & the kangaroos saved for the big games on weekends.

6. get rid of all these poxy third world islanders & sheep fiddling kiwis

where would souths rabbitohs play

Redfern you dimwit!!!

heres a pom perspective.i do often see huge attendances for afl.WHY?WHY THE @UCK does inferior product get em in?is it marketing?is it mass auto suggestion?im baffled.over here we havd to suffer soccer even the most dull 0-0draw doesnt detract from the massif crowds .incedently the most boring arrogant git of an ozzie i ever met in uk ....was a braindead union bum .

AFL is ingrained in the public much more than RL. There has been a long history of club membership (season tickets) and entire families sign up to be members. Also RL is mostly in a city where they don't have a great tradition of going to live sports games. Some comes down to marketing, some comes down to stadiums, some of it just comes down to Sydneysiders blase attitude to following their team. In non heartland areas RL has a very low profile and so attracts ltd fanbase at the moment. This is mainly due to no FTA coverage and poor marketing/management/media for the sport.

IMO the main reasons why the AFL has bigger crowds are:
1. Good, cheap public transport.
2. Big modern, central stadiums shared by many teams. (Melbourne has 9? AFL teams and onyl two stadiums)
3. They've been pushing memberships for a couple of decades.

The NRL in Sydney is only starting to push memberships and encourage teams to move into central stadiums. Hopefully it starts to pay off sooner rather than later.

Just for an example, I'll compare Brisbane to Sydney. Brisbane has large crowds, it also has a large, modern, central stadium, public transport to the stadium is great and the cost of the bus/train is included in the ticket price. Meanwhile in Sydney most teams play out of small stadiums, getting to the stadiums is an issue and most stadiums are not near PT.

When i went to Cronulla it was no dramas hopping on a train and a free bus to the ground. ANZ is easy to get to as well. SFS isn't too hard. Not been to Brooky, Parra or Penrith so can't comment.

If you've ever tried to get from Dandenong to the MCG you might not think PT in Melbourne is so great! PT to Subi in Perth is great with a train station right next door and trains running from virtually everywhere. Never been to Adelaide so can't comment.

kogarah. wonglonggong 10 mins walk from stations

not now . its a building site

thanks for the answers!interesting it does begger the question why the hell have the powers that be in rl not come up with an idea like 'membership'?i mean its not cutting edge marketing.also to cocede hegemony to afl,certainly in terms of game stewardship.our sport is blighted with d..kheads at the top its almost customary to self implode at the top .this is very similar to uk run by half wits post war who let a magnificent sport fall from grace.tell me someting positive !!is there a visionary in power yet?finally this greatest game deserves.finally who has been your worst and greatest rl ambassadors?(im thinkin more bosses and rl chief's,).tell me theres a deliverer in the making?

Not to mention the small fact that it has existed in the Southern States without any serious competition for over a century. It's the only game in town.

Unlike Rugby league which has had to deal with being one of four football codes in NSW and Qld for it's entire existence, Aussie Rules has had Vic, SA and WA all to itself since it invented the game.

As a spin-off, the media is very much more complimentary to the game than the media is to RL in Sydney or Brisbane.



While I agree that far-flung suburban ovals are an issue - it all comes down to a simple fact: Brisbane has one team. Sydney has 8.5.

No, it's finished - even has grass on the pitch.

FFS fredie... I would have thought that you could spell the names of the areas your team plays in. Especially as you come from the Gong don't you?