NRL 2020: Brisbane Bombers need name change for expansion spot
The NRL’s 17th team must be based in the Brisbane metro region, but it cannot be named the Bombers - here’s why. What should Brisbane’s new NRL team be named? HAVE YOUR SAY
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The National Rugby League’s 17th team must be based in the Brisbane metro region, but it cannot be named the Bombers.
The expansion debate has reignited following ARL Commission chairman Peter V’landys’ suggestions a new team could grace the River City as early as 2022.
The logistics around introducing a new club for the 2022 season seem difficult for that to happen, particularly with the NRL focused on restructuring in the post-COVID environment.
But I wouldn’t bet against V’landys playing rugby league on Mars, given his efforts in resurrecting the 2020 premiership.
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Before the coronavirus pandemic brought a dramatic halt to the world, V’landys kicked the expansion door wide open.
It was a fait accompli that Queensland would be home to a fourth NRL club in 2023 to join the Brisbane Broncos, Gold Coast Titans and North Queensland Cowboys.
The bids emerged thick and fast.
The Redcliffe Dolphins lodged interest. The Easts Tigers jumped on board. Ipswich’s longstanding desire to be part of the NRL had not wavered.
Then there is the Brisbane Bombers, a bid team which has been plugging away since 2010.
In the public eye, the Bombers seem the most advanced of the licence bids.
Under CEO Nick Livermore, and with the backing of wealthy businessmen like Craig Davison and Bill Rae, the Bombers pushed for NRL inclusion from 2013.
HAVE YOUR SAY: What should Brisbane’s new NRL team be named? Leave a comment below
It wasn’t to be. Now, nearly a decade later, the Bombers are back in full flight.
They have beefed up their bid and brought in former Queensland Origin players Billy Moore and Scott Sattler to boost their appeal.
But there remains one major problem with their bid – the name.
Brisbane’s second NRL franchise should not carry the same name as an AFL club, Essendon, that is nearly 150 years old.
A start-up club’s moniker seems immaterial but it is arguably the most important factor in engaging with potential fans.
The fans need to see a synergy and emotional connection. I can’t see that occurring with the Bombers in Brisbane.
Livermore explained the reasons behind the decision to choose the Bombers.
“Going back to 2010, we were the Brisbane NRL Expansion Bid, and calling it that didn’t mean anything. Going up against the Broncos, it doesn’t represent anything,” he said.
“At the start of 2011, when it looked like a new team would be introduced in 2013 with the new TV deal, we launched a name-the-team competition with Austereo.
“We had 10,000 entries from the Bengals to River City Wombats.
“What caught our attention with the Bombers was aviation and being able to sell a brand. The Bombers brand had the most opportunity.
“It’s not about planes dropping bombs. Think about Top Gun, old school vintage planes. War wasn’t the reason for it.
“It was the same when the Broncos came out.
“People said it was an American horse and they should have been the Brumbies. Now they’re one of the most popular brands in the country.
“It’s very hard to create all of that emotive connection when you don’t have players, a game day experience, and all it is a name.
“I get why people are critical and I don’t take offence – I just say give us an opportunity to showcase it and hopefully we can turn a few heads.”
It is futile criticising a problem without offering a solution, so I thought long and hard about what Brisbane’s new team should be called.
The team should be based in the metro region to appeal broadly, rather than Redcliffe or Ipswich, which would alienate most of the south east corner.
The Easts bid has strong prospects, but the Tigers are already entrenched in the NRL and Easts would not win that battle.
So what screams not only Brisbane, but appeals to wider Queensland?
What is bold, empowering and intimidating? What does the AFL or NRL not have already?
The Bulls. The Brisbane Bulls. The Broncos’ arch rival.
Then it all came crashing down.
Remember Queensland’s great cricket team that became a state treasure when they won the Sheffield Shield for the first time in 1995?
The Queensland Bulls are not the darlings that they once were due to domestic cricket’s dramatic drop in popularity, but they are still there, and with a rich history.
Maybe choosing a team name isn’t so easy after all.
Bombs away!
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