AFL pressures Kangaroos to move!

[Hondo]

Queensland, like WA, is booming and its population is increasing by a bigger rate than all other states (or at least right up there).

Local businesses are clearly in support so the prospective new club's financial base is assured.

I'm on REB's side on this - get up there ASAP I reckon. There's a real opportunity for the AFL and 10 teams in Melbourne simply won't work out in the long run financially unfortunately. There's an opportunity for a club to stay intact and shore up their future here. If not the Roos then someone else.

[blink]

well in a couple of years when the Roos are up there you wont have to worry about waiting for the draw!

I didn't realise part of the proposed AFL package includes 22 home games for the Roos???

[Dogwatcher]

But....with two teams up there, there'll be a game in the Sunshine State each week.

[gadj1976]

Queensland, like WA, is booming and its population is increasing by a bigger rate than all other states (or at least right up there).

Local businesses are clearly in support so the prospective new club's financial base is assured.

I'm on REB's side on this - get up there ASAP I reckon. There's a real opportunity for the AFL and 10 teams in Melbourne simply won't work out in the long run financially unfortunately. There's an opportunity for a club to stay intact and shore up their future here. If not the Roos then someone else.

But crowds, membership and TV ratings were down in Qld this year - why would you risk putting another side up there in that environment?

The place might be booming but I think the $100 mill they spend would be better off ensuring that ONE team is sustainable, profitable and viable before shoving another up there and competing for an even lesser market share than that in Melbourne.

As a mate of mine said (Kangas supporter) if it's so viable, tell all clubs how viable it is, open it up to bidding and then the winning bid can go up there. Why are they trying to slyly tell one club "it's viable" and thereby stopping other clubs from moving, if it's SOOOO viable?

[Hondo]

Gadj1976

The Roos have previously indicated interest in the move that's why the 3 home games at the GC started

So I assume the Roos are getting first crack at the opportunity. Their last minute cold feet is clearly frustrating the AFL.

On the $100m there's propping up 1 club in a saturated market and getting nothing additional for it v opening up a totally new market and getting much better return $$$$. It's like renovating a house at Ottoway or buying a new block of land at Burnside (just trying to draw an extreme example here - no offence to residents of Ottoway or the Roos intended).

Besides, the AFL have made no secret of the viability of the venture and neither have the local business community! Geez, they've laid it our very publicly refer back to the story that started this thread. It's far from 'behind closed doors'. I suspect this public statement is designed exactly to let the other clubs know what's on offer.

[Sojourner]

North Melbourne could always agree to move - then relocate to Tasmania and stick it up the AFL and the other Melbourne based clubs that are trying to hook into that market.

The Tasmanian Government have repeatedly stated that they will garantee the funding for a club in Tassie, I doubt the Qld government will be making the same assurances.

One advantage is that the club will be not as far removed from their supporters in Melbourne as they would be in Qld, flights from Melbourne to Tassie are not too badly priced and you can easily take your car across on the ferry. It is going to be a lot easier for supporters to get there than the Gold Coast. Tassie has loads of cheap high quality accomodation and their whole economy is built around tourism, so I am sure that travellers there would be very well recieved

Tassie is also inherantly Football orientated not Rugby, so there is one less battle that the club has to fight. The Flights for the club when playing in Melbourne are a lot less than to Brisbane so that has to be an advantage as well.

The question ultimatley is does Tassie have the population and finance to support an AFL side, and will their existing supporters wear it?

Financially there is no reason why it wouldent be a success. The Tassie governments backing, their existing sponsorship and potential access to a number of Tassie run firms for further sponsorship - Cadbury, Boags, Devondale, Cascade, Aurora Energy, AusPine etc etc.

Population wise they are getting good crowds at existing matches, a club committed to all games being there along with the stadium redevelopments being currently undertaken should increase that figure.

The supporters will likely have various views, yet as a group they have struggled through some hard times financially before and took seriously the proposed amalgamation with Fitzroy, so if a definate plan can be presented that will see the club cashed up and able to continue in their current form there is no reason that a favourable response may not be voted through.

[redden whites]

And then when the government says no more?

[Wedgie]

Slightly off topic but is there any chance that North Melbourne can change their nickname?
The Australian Rugby League side are the only true Kangaroos.

[redden whites]

What about the mighty Ororroo Roos Wedgie?

[Dutchy]

Slightly off topic but is there any chance that North Melbourne can change their nickname?
The Australian Rugby League side are the only true Kangaroos.

LMAO

[Wedgie]

Slightly off topic but is there any chance that North Melbourne can change their nickname?
The Australian Rugby League side are the only true Kangaroos.

LMAO

Nah, Im serious, they had the nickname about 40 years before North Melbourne took it on and needless to say have a lot higher profile here and overseas than North Melbourne ever will. The Kangaroo is a national icon hence the name of a national team.

[MatteeG]

Slightly off topic but is there any chance that North Melbourne can change their nickname?
The Australian Rugby League side are the only true Kangaroos.

LMAO

Perhaps the "North Melbourne Archers" will suffice...

Well, it'd be a hell of a lot more respectable than the Gold Coast Olarenshaws

[Rik E Boy]

But crowds, membership and TV ratings were down in Qld this year - why would you risk putting another side up there in that environment?

The place might be booming but I think the $100 mill they spend would be better off ensuring that ONE team is sustainable, profitable and viable before shoving another up there and competing for an even lesser market share than that in Melbourne.

As a mate of mine said (Kangas supporter) if it's so viable, tell all clubs how viable it is, open it up to bidding and then the winning bid can go up there. Why are they trying to slyly tell one club "it's viable" and thereby stopping other clubs from moving, if it's SOOOO viable?

Has anyone ever asked you what you watch? No bastard has ever asked me. And Crowds for any team will diminish along with it's fortunes. The place is booming so that means we are looking to the FUTURE not at bloody 2006/07 comparisons for bloody Brisbane Lions memberships or Crowd figures. Why would the AFL spend millions on a team that IS sustainable? The Lions are not under threat despite falling memberships and crowds. Start winning games and that can be turned around. Sydney has proven that.

But hey, you're right...North Melbourne is 100% viable sharing 10% of the Melborne market and that moving to a location where they can statistically lay claim to 50% of the market is sheer lunacy.

Fair dinkum!

regards,

REB

[Psyber]

What about the mighty Ororroo Roos Wedgie?

And the Pinnaroo Pies!