NRL 2009

[Druzik]

May 26, 2009 8:49:54 GMT 10 Ryan N said:

McManus. Easy haha. No need for a clue.

And Hayne to an extent perhaps...

Very good... give that man a new.

Are there any orthers in that list? Curious what the QLD team will have.

[Ryan N]

Jennings? Although of that I am un-sure.

Queensland won't be an issue.

[supersteve]

QLD team:

1. Billy Slater
2. Darius Boyd
3. Greg Inglis
4. Justin Hodges
5. Israel Folau
6. Darren Lockyer (c)
7. Johnathan Thurston
8. Steve Price
9. Cameron Smith
10. Petero Civoniceva
11. Ashley Harrison
12. Sam Thaiday
13. Dallas Johnson

Interchange

14. Karmichael Hunt
15. Ben Hannant
16. Nate Myles
17. Michael Crocker


Not many surprises, although I consider Thaiday pretty lucky to be there, his form lately hasnt been much to write home about. Id have had Neville Costigan, hes a tough hard worker, perfectly suited to Origin.

[Druzik]

No... cause costigan played for PNG didnt he? Thus as far as I am concerned he should not be in contention anymore for Origin.

[sportsmad]

who knows with eligibility theses days druzik..... hayne played for fiji , and jennings played for tonga think

[Druzik]

Thats my point... its why wee need a revamp of origin... its what killing the game internationally and around the world.

Origin in its present form needs to be killed or utilised in a different manner.

Agree Hayne, Jennings should not be there for that fact, neither should McManus.

[supersteve]

I agree with your points about eligibility...

But it is to me ludicrous to suggest killing Origin. It is really the only rep series that attracts large numbers of fans outside of QLD. Origin is a good thing for the game, it brings in people that otherwise would not watch a game of League, and you can be sure a small fraction of those fans each year will see the games and watch league on a more regular basis, and even become true fans of their local clubs.


The International game should be the pinnacle, but Origin does not have to be killed in order to get the priorities right. What so wrong about changing the eligibilty rules to "You must be born in QLD or NSW to be eligible to play State of Origin?.

[Druzik]

May 26, 2009 18:01:55 GMT 10 supersteve said:

I agree with your points about eligibility...

But it is to me ludicrous to suggest killing Origin. It is really the only rep series that attracts large numbers of fans outside of QLD. Origin is a good thing for the game, it brings in people that otherwise would not watch a game of League, and you can be sure a small fraction of those fans each year will see the games and watch league on a more regular basis, and even become true fans of their local clubs.


The International game should be the pinnacle, but Origin does not have to be killed in order to get the priorities right. What so wrong about changing the eligibilty rules to "You must be born in QLD or NSW to be eligible to play State of Origin?.

Killing origin in its CURRENT form.

What I suggest would be this.

a 20 round NRL, with an ANZAC test in between, as well PNG and other nations have their own rival test, so a POlynesian test bewteen Tonga and Samoa and a melynesian test between PNG and Fiji... I am not sure what to do with the cook is though, this is where the USA or Jamaica could come in handy to provide an intyernational. then a 4 round play offs, then city/country and then 3 weeks of SoO... have a week off and go into internationals.

Currently the australian calandar represents what is wrong with IRL in general... its all over the place... can you imagione AFL and Union completely shitting themselves with the thought of their play offs and internationals having to go up against the Juggernaught that soO is at the end of season.

I would also make the 3/4 weeks of pre season games, into a knockout comp, with the 1st round, quarters and semis taken still to all the country and expoansion areas, and the final at the SFS or some other neutral ground.

Thus you get 33 weeks of meanigful games which is two less than what we have now. The players get rested a bit more and the rep calandar makes a lot more sense and players can really gauge themselves.

as for SoO criteria, well we know that flew out the window when inglis was selected for QLD... The IRL selection farce is now in Australia.

[sportsmad]

agree with both posts there. sounds like a great schedule druzik. although i would scrap city country. make it up to the country via a pre season comp staged there, with the final at a regional centre rather than sydney. State of Origin should be sold as a separate package to the NRL in my opinion. imagine how much channel 10 or 7 would pay for the rights.

[supersteve]

That is a superb season model.

I think we could only dream of that becoming a reality.

[Druzik]

May 26, 2009 19:02:47 GMT 10 sportsmad said:

agree with both posts there. sounds like a great schedule druzik.

Look in the dead of winter in germany when its -20 outside... there is a lot of time to sit and ponder these things. check out my international schedule here.

although i would scrap city country.

disagree... city/country is a great concept, but make it that IT IS the selection criteria for the SoO team. Why not have the best players in NSW battle it out for all spots... at the moment C/C is a farce because its only there for a few spots. IMO many SoO spots are not really earned in NSW... C/C could really provide this.

make it up to the country via a pre season comp staged there, with the final at a regional centre rather than sydney.

Country shoudl get these games... OK I can deal with the final in a regional center, why not have, say, Coffs Harbour or Wagga or or Towoomba or Rocky stage a final... I could live with that. You have 16 games... what would be a good 15 cities to get these?
Darwin, Coffs, Lismore, Orange, Wagga, Towwomba, Cairns, Rocky, Sunshine Coast, Adelaide, Alice springs, Perth, Parkes, Dubbo, Wollongong(?), Queenbeyan(?), Bathurst, Wellington(NZ).

State of Origin should be sold as a separate package to the NRL in my opinion. imagine how much channel 10 or 7 would pay for the rights.

I thought it already was... but yes agree on that... if your going to milk that then really milk it, also sell the internationals as a seperate package... and the pre season comp.

The pre season I would have ABC cover it, they would do great with national and regional services.

[Druzik]

May 26, 2009 19:04:09 GMT 10 supersteve said:

That is a superb season model.

I think we could only dream of that becoming a reality.

Yurp, thats right.

[sportsmad]

yet another great article from roy masters

www.leaguehq.com.au/news/lhqnews/roy-masters/2009/05/25/1243103465532.html

Deep North saviour for the Sharks
Roy Masters | May 25, 2009 - 10:03AM

The Sharks' home crowd on Saturday night was their biggest of the season, a surprise considering the ugly headlines the club has generated. But it was not a shock to supporters of the opposition team, St George Illawarra, who didn't have to travel far from their district, which effectively surrounds Cronulla.

The Sharks' future though is in Cairns, driven by Queensland parochialism.

A confidential report commissioned by the NRL demonstrates the number of TV viewers surges in the northern state for matches involving the Broncos, Cowboys or Titans, but falls when two non-Queensland teams meet.

The introduction to the NRL of the Titans on the Gold Coast, together with Channel Nine's double-header format on Friday nights, has increased Queensland audiences by 25 per cent. (See first graph).

The average audience for Queensland for Friday free-to-air home and away (regular season) games has increased from 300,000 in 2005 to 400,000 at the end of last year

If the near bankrupt Sharks relocate to Cairns, it would give Channel Nine a fourth Queensland team to telecast, allowing it greater options with its 7.30pm Friday night coverage in the north of a match involving a Queensland team, concurrent with one involving a Sydney club shown in NSW. It flips the games at 9.30pm.

Similarly, Nine's coverage of Sunday afternoon matches has been affected by Queensland parochialism (See second graph).

The average audience for Channel Nine's Sunday 4pm games in Queensland has declined over the four year period, consistent with fewer Queensland teams being broadcast in this slot.

Again, the Cairns Sharks would give Nine greater Queensland options on a Sunday.

Figures for NSW suggest the exit of the Sharks from Cronulla would not affect viewer numbers in Sydney or its regional areas significantly.

The double-header format has had limited effect on NSW viewing numbers, while the Sunday afternoon free-to-air game has provided consistent numbers.

Nine and Fox Sports allocate the eight matches per round on the basis of Nine having first choice (Friday night), second choice (Sunday) and fifth (second Friday night game).

NSW's consistent audience numbers suggest fans seem content to watch a competitive match, with the geography of the team not as important as in the parochial north.

The Sharks' bottom of the ladder position this season has not damaged Nine's ratings, based on OzTAM figures for the first five rounds.

Nine is attracting an average 761,000 viewers per match in Sydney and Brisbane, up 9 per cent on the 2008 season average.

The second match on Friday nights is experiencing solid audience growth, up 42 per cent on last year's average.

Cronulla has lost $1 million in sponsorships since a Four Corners report on group sex was aired, placing pressure on a short-term debt of more than $11 million and an overdraft of more than $2 million. In 2008 the Sharks operated at a loss of $1.4 million, they face a tax debt of $800,000, and a receiver is monitoring their parlous state.

Should they move north, it would be consistent with a general population shift. One estimate suggests Queensland's population of 4.2 million will increase to 6 million within 15 years and 8 million within 30 years.

The Queensland Government is committed to supporting its sporting teams, contributing the major share of a $126 million stadium for the AFL's Gold Coast team, scheduled to enter that competition in 2011.

The Papua New Guinea Government also wants an NRL team, with their parliament approving a 30 million kina ($14 million) allocation to a new stadium in Port Moresby and appointing a bid team to lobby the NRL.

It is highly unlikely the bid will succeed until PNG has enough TV sets to generate the ratings which drive the broadcasting dollars, the principal source of revenue to the NRL. However, the NRL may look more favourably on an association between the Cairns Sharks and PNG, particularly the expected sponsorship from mining companies.

The Cairns Sharks would bid up the broadcasting fees paid in the next TV contract, scheduled from 2013, and fund the $15 million that the club would expect in order to relocate.

Cronulla recently had a bid to play five games a year for five years at Gosford rejected by the NRL.

Should they make a similar request to play out of Cairns, TV ratings suggest the NRL would view the request more favourably.

[sportsmad]

All regular seating for Wednesday night’s Harvey Norman State of Origin Series opener at Melbourne’s Etihad Stadium is now ‘sold-out’, but some of ‘the best seats in the house’ are still available for purchase.

The signage placement for this match at Etihad Stadium means that first three rows of the ‘lower-bowl’ are in fact sight restricted and these were released for sale only last Friday.

These seats around stadium the perimeter, are the closest to the playing surface.

A number of standing room only tickets have also been made available to the public today.

ARL CEO, Mr Geoff Carr, said that demand for tickets in Melbourne again underlined the strength of the Harvey Norman State of Origin Series:

“The appetite for Origin football in Melbourne seems to grow with each visit.

“Already over 50,000 tickets have been sold and there will be over two million viewers likely to be watching on the Nine Network television across Australia.”

i think there will be a lot more actual melbourians here than last time they took origin down tehre a couple of years ago. they took origin to melbourne in the early 90's and first got something like 87,000 at the MCG so they kept taking it back. slowly numbers declined until it was held at olympic park in front of less than 20,000 people. i dont have the stats on me so these could be wrong but theyre in the ball park. i hope this doesnt happen if they take origin there again next year or so. this year took a lot longer to "sell out" than before. hopefully poplularity will increase so the game will end up at MCG

[England 3 Lions]

May 26, 2009 22:10:54 GMT 10 sportsmad said:

yet another great article from roy masters

www.leaguehq.com.au/news/lhqnews/roy-masters/2009/05/25/1243103465532.html

Deep North saviour for the Sharks
Roy Masters | May 25, 2009 - 10:03AM

The Sharks' home crowd on Saturday night was their biggest of the season, a surprise considering the ugly headlines the club has generated. But it was not a shock to supporters of the opposition team, St George Illawarra, who didn't have to travel far from their district, which effectively surrounds Cronulla.

The Sharks' future though is in Cairns, driven by Queensland parochialism.

A confidential report commissioned by the NRL demonstrates the number of TV viewers surges in the northern state for matches involving the Broncos, Cowboys or Titans, but falls when two non-Queensland teams meet.

The introduction to the NRL of the Titans on the Gold Coast, together with Channel Nine's double-header format on Friday nights, has increased Queensland audiences by 25 per cent. (See first graph).

The average audience for Queensland for Friday free-to-air home and away (regular season) games has increased from 300,000 in 2005 to 400,000 at the end of last year

If the near bankrupt Sharks relocate to Cairns, it would give Channel Nine a fourth Queensland team to telecast, allowing it greater options with its 7.30pm Friday night coverage in the north of a match involving a Queensland team, concurrent with one involving a Sydney club shown in NSW. It flips the games at 9.30pm.

Similarly, Nine's coverage of Sunday afternoon matches has been affected by Queensland parochialism (See second graph).

The average audience for Channel Nine's Sunday 4pm games in Queensland has declined over the four year period, consistent with fewer Queensland teams being broadcast in this slot.

Again, the Cairns Sharks would give Nine greater Queensland options on a Sunday.

Figures for NSW suggest the exit of the Sharks from Cronulla would not affect viewer numbers in Sydney or its regional areas significantly.

The double-header format has had limited effect on NSW viewing numbers, while the Sunday afternoon free-to-air game has provided consistent numbers.

Nine and Fox Sports allocate the eight matches per round on the basis of Nine having first choice (Friday night), second choice (Sunday) and fifth (second Friday night game).

NSW's consistent audience numbers suggest fans seem content to watch a competitive match, with the geography of the team not as important as in the parochial north.

The Sharks' bottom of the ladder position this season has not damaged Nine's ratings, based on OzTAM figures for the first five rounds.

Nine is attracting an average 761,000 viewers per match in Sydney and Brisbane, up 9 per cent on the 2008 season average.

The second match on Friday nights is experiencing solid audience growth, up 42 per cent on last year's average.

Cronulla has lost $1 million in sponsorships since a Four Corners report on group sex was aired, placing pressure on a short-term debt of more than $11 million and an overdraft of more than $2 million. In 2008 the Sharks operated at a loss of $1.4 million, they face a tax debt of $800,000, and a receiver is monitoring their parlous state.

Should they move north, it would be consistent with a general population shift. One estimate suggests Queensland's population of 4.2 million will increase to 6 million within 15 years and 8 million within 30 years.

The Queensland Government is committed to supporting its sporting teams, contributing the major share of a $126 million stadium for the AFL's Gold Coast team, scheduled to enter that competition in 2011.

The Papua New Guinea Government also wants an NRL team, with their parliament approving a 30 million kina ($14 million) allocation to a new stadium in Port Moresby and appointing a bid team to lobby the NRL.

It is highly unlikely the bid will succeed until PNG has enough TV sets to generate the ratings which drive the broadcasting dollars, the principal source of revenue to the NRL. However, the NRL may look more favourably on an association between the Cairns Sharks and PNG, particularly the expected sponsorship from mining companies.

The Cairns Sharks would bid up the broadcasting fees paid in the next TV contract, scheduled from 2013, and fund the $15 million that the club would expect in order to relocate.

Cronulla recently had a bid to play five games a year for five years at Gosford rejected by the NRL.

Should they make a similar request to play out of Cairns, TV ratings suggest the NRL would view the request more favourably.

Interesting proposal.