QRL lines up Logan goal as playing fields lease under review
Queensland Rugby League is moving into Logan and could one day be set to take over coveted council playing fields at Heritage Park. WATCH THE VIDEO WITH QRL BOSS
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Queensland Rugby League is moving into Logan with a goal to set up a local league and eventually investigate coveted council playing fields at Heritage Park.
QRL chiefs Rob Moore and Adam Vanzanten visited Logan yesterday, hours before the city council held a confidential meeting to discuss leases at Logan Metro Sports Park and start an expressions of interest process for fields at the site.
The Roar and the council are engaged in a bitter court dispute over allegations the club has not paid $150,000 in bills in the council-owned precinct.
The QRL delegation told council it wanted to set up a strategy and start recruiting players in the city with a long-term goal for an Intrust Super Cup and local league.
Queensland Rugby League managing director Rob Moore said the visit to Logan was to make up for “mistakes of the past” when the QRL had neglected Logan but he said plans for a local league were still being drafted.
“We ended up with too many people with fingers in the pie in Logan and no leadership or co-ordination,” he said.
“The future growth in Logan, through new developments, leads us to the assumption that there should be an Intrust Super Cup based in Logan.
“How we get to that is our challenge.”
The city already has a name for rugby league after greats Cameron Smith and Corey Parker both started their careers in Logan.
Mr Moore said new clubs at Flagstone and Yarrabilba proved the code was growing in Logan and plans for the future would likely include expanding the Queensland Cup into the city.
He showed figures for 13 Logan-based clubs including Slacks Creek which experienced a massive 39 per cent increase in participation this year.
However, clubs such as Logan Wanderers and Logan City Hawks had felt the impact of COVID restrictions, with both suffering huge drops in participation rates.
Mr Moore said a boundary review between Logan, Ipswich and Brisbane was under way to determine ideal player numbers for a Logan league and “career pathways” for coaches and administrators.
The council was told the review would take into consideration the time and distance players had to travel and it aimed for clubs to have one field for every 150 players.
The QRL bosses also said they would consider a suggestion from Cr Natalie Willcocks to set up a local competition with winners playing other regional teams before a state cup at the end of the season.
Brisbane Roar, which moved into the council-owned Sports Complex at Heritage Park in 2018, was contacted but did not comment.