NRL expansion: Pros and cons of the contenders

THE NRL has confirmed expansion is back on the agenda and there’s a host of bids on the table. Nick Campton looks at all the places rugby league could spread to next.

Western Reds player Mark Geyer acknowledges crowd support after beating St George Dragons in the Winfield Cup rugby league game at the WACA in Perth, 12/03/1995. Pic Ken Matts.

EXPANSION!

As Troy McClure says, is there any word more thrilling to the human soul?

If the words of Peter Beattie and Todd Greenberg are anything to go by, the NRL will be seriously considering any and all bids for future NRL teams over the next few seasons.

“We’re putting out the clear intention that expansion is back on the agenda. We want to do it, you’ve got to show you’re able to do it,” Beattie, the Australian Rugby League Commission chairman, said on Tuesday.

“People have to demonstrate one, that they’ve got the financial capabilities, they’ve got the players to do it and they’ve got the capacity to deliver on the game.

“If an NRL club fails, at the end of the day we have to pick up the crumbs that costs a lot of money.

“Now we’re transferring so much to the clubs and the players we don’t have a huge amount of money to do that.

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“Whoever gets this, and I’m saying this absolutely clearly, you’ve got to be financially viable.”

Beattie has already expressed his belief rugby league must expand or die, and Greenberg echoed Beattie’s thoughts while also making it clear any bids must be viable from a footballing standpoint, as well as financially.

“What we are calling out though is an ambition and an aspiration to grow, and that starts with New South Wales and Queensland competitions.

“It starts with opportunities for new teams to enter those markets, and we’ve already seen that, this is well underway.”

It seems unlikely any new teams will enter the league for the next few years or so, but the NRL should have not a shortage of suitors. It’s been 11 years since the league expanded so let’s stretch out, throw on our best Hunter Mariners jerseys and take a look at all the potential teams that could enter the competition.

SECOND BRISBANE TEAM

Pros: Getting another team in a strong rugby league market that currently only has one club. Provides another pathway to first grade for one of the most talent-rich areas in the country. Already have a world class stadium. Built-in rivalry with the Broncos.

Would give broadcasters a match in Brisbane every week, boosting the code’s overall television value. One of the standout candidates.

Has the advantage over bids from Ipswich and Redcliffe in that their blanket appeal can be all across Brisbane and its surrounds, not restricted to a single area or suburb.

Cons: Given the way the Broncos are entrenched in Brisbane it could be difficult to capture local support in terms of crowd numbers.

How can they draw fans away from three decades of success? Avoiding the mistakes of the Crushers will be paramount.

A second Brisbane team would have to avoid the failure of the Crushers.

PERTH

Pros: Would finally put rugby league back on two coasts and make the N in NRL a little more solid. Have two excellent stadium options — NIB Stadium for regular matches and Optus Stadium for potential finals.

Due to expats from eastern states and New Zealand there’s a stronger appetite for rugby league in the west and Perth is already an underrated league city, with several juniors from WA playing in the NRL.

Could fill the vacuum left by the Western Force. Opens up another timeslot for broadcasters. Were it not for Super League, the Western Reds would have stuck around — their first season in the big time in 1995 was a raging success.

There’s been grassroots planted already, with Perth fielding SG Ball teams for several seasons. If they adopt the name and colours of the Bears they have a strong link to rugby league’s past and therefore some historical credibility.

Along with a second Brisbane side, Perth is a standout candidate.

Cons: Rugby league in this country has only gone into non-rugby league cities three times — with the Storm, Reds and Adelaide Rams.

The track record is not great when the soil isn’t fertile.

Perth is crying out for another NRL side.

IPSWICH

Pros: As with the second Brisbane side, a team based in Ipswich would give rugby league another pathway in Queensland but would exist outside the orbit of the Broncos.

As North Queensland have shown, there is an endless appetite for big time rugby league in regional Queensland regardless of results.

The Ipswich Jets have an established brand in Queensland and in the Walker brothers they have an exciting style with built-in appeal to the wider rugby league world.

Cons: North Ipswich Reserve, where the Jets play, is not an NRL standard venue, meaning the team would either have to play out of Suncorp Stadium full time or until a suitable stadium could be built.

That would require a huge commitment from the State Government, which could be a deal breaker.

Ipswich are a strong candidate.

CENTRAL QUEENSLAND

Pros: Same as Ipswich and a second Brisbane side, it’s another pathway. But the advantage of a Central Queensland side is they can exist separately from the Broncos, Cowboys and Titans with their own catchment area for juniors and their own geographic territory.

Games could easily be taken to Mackay, Gladstone and Bundaberg. North Queensland have shown this kind of regional model can work.

Cons: Attracting corporate support and establishing a strong financial base would be a problem. Crowds would be small initially as the team would be forced to play out of smaller grounds.

If a top class stadium was to be built the question of where it’s located would be a difficult one. North Queensland has the greater Townsville area to fall back on and act as a base for the region.

WELLINGTON

Pros: The explosion of New Zealand and Polynesian talent over the last two decades is inextricably linked to the inclusion of the Warriors and a second team in the Shaky Isles would only make that pathway stronger.

Boosting the profile of league in New Zealand would aid the international game and a rivalry with the Warriors would be a serious boost to both clubs.

In Westpac Stadium there’s a world class venue and rugby league has a strong history in the region, with a nine-team competition that is over a century old.

Have bid for an NRL team before, with the Southern Orcas competing with the Gold Coast to secure a team back in 2004.

Matches in Wellington have attracted good crowds over the last 20 years and the team could even act as a South Island team and use Wellington as a base.

Behind Perth and Brisbane, but can be considered the next cab off the rank.

Cons: Splitting the Warriors fan base is a risky call given the financial success the club has enjoyed despite their on-field futility. Long-term stability would be the real issue.

It’s a cosmetic concern, but calling one team New Zealand and having another team from New Zealand in the competition is problematic for reasons of clarity if nothing else.

Papua New Guinea is mad for rugby league.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Pros: Nobody loves rugby league more than they do in PNG and the success of the Hunters in the Queensland Cup over the last two seasons has shown the region can support a team. Providing an elite pathway for PNG players would give international footy a real boost. Sellout crowds every single week would be guaranteed.

A joint PNG-Cairns bid is reportedly being put together, which would solve some of the financial queries behind the team and give them a strong home base in Barlow Park.

Cons: Is the infrastructure there to support a team?

Can a Papua New Guinea side attract long-term, sustainable corporate support without the aid of the government? It would also be incredibly difficult to attract non-PNG players to move to Port Moresby, which means the club would rely entirely on local talent.

They’d have some serious players without a doubt, but that’s a difficult ask if they’re to be competitive.

A decade or two down the line, the Hunters could push for a lock, stock and barrel promotion to the NRL, but it’s perhaps a little too soon.

If the joint bid with Cairns was to get off the ground, Barlow Park would have to be renovated to boost the capacity.

The Central Coast may have fallen behind the eight ball.

CENTRAL COAST

Pros: A strong rugby league area with a top class stadium. Plenty of local juniors and community support. If they were to adopt the name and colours of the Bears, they’d have a built-in credibility with league fans that other expansion teams would need to develop.

Cons: Is there enough scope for growth?

The Central Coast has had a team before (kind of) in the Northern Eagles and things went south very quickly. The Bears may align themselves with the Perth bid in order to gain a more realistic chance of returning to the big time.

With larger, richer and faster-growing regions all on offer, the ship may have sailed on the Central Coast getting a first grade team.

There are practical concerns behind a Country NSW team.

COUNTRY NSW

Pros: Would give rugby league in the bush the shot in the arm it has been crying out for and if they were to wear the colours of the Country Origin teams they’d get some automatic historic credibility.

There’s a litany of venues across the state that can host NRL games in towns as varied as Mudgee, Bathurst, Coffs Harbour, Tamworth and Wagga Wagga.

Cons: It just doesn’t seem practical. There is no fixed place for the team to be based week to week, no way for home fans to attend every game and attracting sustained financial support would be a nightmare.

Coffs Harbour and Wagga Wagga are the only two towns in country New South Wales with populations over 50,000.

Originally published as NRL expansion: Pros and cons of the contenders