The Rocket
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Posts posted by The Rocket
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1 hour ago, StandOffHalf said:
You could be right. I increasingly hear Aussies saying NRL, when they mean the sport itself.
I visited my university attending daughter on the weekend, her flatmate a girl from Sydney`s north shore told me that her South African father was watching the rugby, I assumed she referring to the union world cup, she said no the one with the Warriors in it, I said that`s Rugby League, she had no idea what I was referring to, she said do you mean NRL, that`s all she knew it by. Yes the term is getting quite powerful brand recognition now.
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11 minutes ago, StandOffHalf said:
I fast-forwarded to the last five minutes. I find it sad that it's even a conversation point that the NRL should be running internationals.
4 minutes ago, Barley Mow said:I find it very odd.
It would make perfect sense to say that the ARLC should play a leading role in developing the international game worldwide. I think the vast majority of us would support that.
But the NRL, as a club competition, running internationals just seems wrong.
We very rarely here the ARLC referenced, but I suspect, and especially in cases like this, that when the term NRL is used, they are actually referring to the ARLC.
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On 24/09/2023 at 10:43, unapologetic pedant said:
I watched a YouTube video of the end of Friday's MCG atrocity exhibition. Nothing more than 2 minutes of preposterous fumbling and bumbling.
Aahh !! you can`t beat a good highlights reel.
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Couldn`t put this on the cross-code, but it`s such great news I`ll put it here.
What’s the Buzz: Endeavour Sports High School shuts down rugby program | The Australian
"One of the state’s top sporting high schools has shut down its elite rugby union program in the latest grassroots blow to the struggling code.
Endeavour Sports High School will no longer offer a rugby union curriculum to its students following a steady decline in interest in recent years."
The Sunday Telegraph has received a copy of a letter school principal James Kozlowski sent to parents and carers of the boys in the rugby program.
“Due to several factors out of our control, we have steadily seen a decline in the Boys Rugby Targeted Sports Program over the past several years,” he wrote.
“Other NSW Sports High Schools are looking at their rugby programs and this will be the beginning of the end for the sport in public schools.
“Junior league is flourishing while junior rugby is dead.”
Poor old rugby.
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No question we need to make the game more accessible for players like Reece Walsh, he and players like him are the way we will attract the casual sporting fan to watch our game.
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Will be interesting to see how many of the supposed latent 200 000 fans turn up for their GF. I`m sure potential partners in other regions would be very interested just to see just how latent that support is. Big Bears dominated crowd would certainly give them more bargaining power at the table in any merger talks.
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On 19/09/2023 at 16:37, unapologetic pedant said:
Hard to trust the Fox League and Fox Fumble data. We've been told for years of an ongoing migration from STB to streaming. Then from March to June this year there were more 300k+ NRL Fox STB games than ever before. Run-of-the-mill regular season games rated higher, in some cases substantially higher, than recent finals. The BVOD estimates are all over the place. None of it adds up.
Who lifteth the veil of what is to come.
On 19/09/2023 at 16:37, unapologetic pedant said:There was a time when I half suspected the bloke at sportsindustry moonlighted as a purveyor of sports prophecy on TRL. But the personal details don't fit. He purports to be a Carlton-supporting Queenslander based in Adelaide. Arguably therefore, character more sinister and motives more suspect than a born-and-raised Victorian Fumbler.
Who painteth the shadows that are beneath.
On 19/09/2023 at 16:37, unapologetic pedant said:BTW, NRL are claiming an average overall audience for NRLW games of 150k with an aggregate of over 6 million for the regular season.
Yeah, great news especially the 25% growth YOY. Interestingly the NRLW Wrap rated 180 000 the other day, seems a bit like that conundrum you posed the other day re f-ballW, a lot more watching the highlights than watching the games, no so pronounced in the League though.
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22 minutes ago, Dunbar said:
Forgive my ignorance but can you clarify the data we are seeing here.
How can NRL aggregate viewing be 125.661m and then have NRL 128m in brackets. What is the ~2.4m difference?
Yeah it`s a bit confusing, the 128m figure is what the NRL are claiming, fumbleball loving sportsindustry the other figure. It`s an odd number to round up to if that`s what the NRL are doing, my bet is that they know something that sportsindustry don`t.
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4 minutes ago, Dave T said:
I don't disagree - and it would be interesting to see how this could have done with full support. But I would note that I dont think there was a single sponsor for this event.
I think this was the event that was the first instance of the NRL actually actively harming an international game, and I don't think they were justified at all. And I don;t think there were any major problems. We are in the business of staging rugby events, and it is shown up for what it was with the Vegas events (a power grab).
At the risk of aggravating you further in regards NRL intransigence I believe a major sponsorship for the game with a major airline fell through once the NRL failed to back the event.
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NRL buys 71-room hotel next to Shark Park after Peter V’landys’ funding promise | The Australian
"Peter V’landys vow to keep the Sharks in the Shire has taken even more significance for the ARL Commission after head office revealed they had purchased a 71-room hotel adjacent to Cronulla’s home ground.
"The commission confirmed the purchase on Tuesday morning in a move designed to future-proof the code’s financial stability. It comes hot on the heels of V’landys’ declaration at the weekend that he was committed to securing the Sharks’ funding for a centre of excellence and upgrading its home ground.
"The commission’s latest investment, which follows their $25 million purchase of Gambaro’s hotel and restaurant in Brisbane last year, means the Sharks take on even more strategic importance for the code given the hotel overlooks Pointsbet Stadium.
The hotel is due to open in October and accommodation will be fully managed and operated by Quest. V’landys has been outspoken in his support for suburban grounds, claiming the code needs to nurture its tribalism.
As well as the hotel, the area around Pointsbet Stadium will accommodate shopping centres, cafes, bars and restaurants.
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8 minutes ago, ghost crayfish said:
In the aftermath of the Super League war, I never thought we'd see rugby league in Australia this healthy again. Those crowd figures and TV ratings are phenomenal.
The only thing missing now is an international scene to match what we had pre-1995, and I am starting to feel optimistic we'll see that rectified in the next few years. Great times for the game in this part of the world, and here's hoping we see some of that momentum flow into the northern hemisphere, too.
One of my highlights for the year has been seeing Australia`s oldest and first (est. 1817) bank Westpac come on board as a major sponsor. Rugby League needs more blue-chip sponsors like this. I`d like to think they would be pretty pleased with the amount of exposure they`ve been getting this year as well.
Their humorous Rugby League themed advert has been a brilliant change from the usual advertising we attract as well.
westpac rugby league ad - Google Search
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Here comes another one, here it comes again....
Storm sign impressive young forward to long-term deal - NRL News - Zero Tackle
"His debut in the competition came after the Melbourne local progressed through the club's SG Ball U19s side"
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48 minutes ago, Sports Prophet said:
USA RWC booked for the USA. I expect World Rugby have much planned for the 15 a-side club game in the USA between now and then.
What would be needed for RL in both the USA and abroad to capitalise in almost an ambush marketing manner, on a largely ignorant rugby audience?
I fear that the fractious nature of RL in USA will all but see the sport there keel over following the 2031 Cup.
Five minutes ago you were telling us that World Cups were worthless, (only a fumbleball fan would believe that anyway), now the union world cup is going to kill off any Rugby League played in the US. Have you got any more bad news.
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2 hours ago, unapologetic pedant said:
Storm could have spent millions back then and produced nothing.
They did, I remember reading a few years back that they had spent several million dollars on junior development in Melbourne over the previous twenty years. Things got so desperate that it was only a few years back they ran a campaign aimed at kids with the tag line " you can try both codes you know".
1 hour ago, Damien said:You could equally say that clubs have increased in line with the Storm taking development much more seriously and working with the Vic RL to develop the game, especially through things like tag and modified games up to u12s.
This does to be the accepted wisdom, the Storm name, Storm colours, Storm involvement. Someone on here said the Storm relied for far too long on recruiting out of Qld-and I`d add NZ - and they were probably right.
I`d add one other thing here for all those that I`ve noticed have been knocking the Storm`s development success rate, I believe that these things may tend to be exponential up to a point. Getting that initial critical mass engagement is the hard part, once the game reaches that point, engagement will be a lot easier after that. Hopefully Rugby League in Victoria has now reached that point.
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Two Victorians and two Western Australians in tonight`s game. So great to see players from other states making an appearance. Hopefully with Victorian Rugby League working with the Storm more nowadays and a Western Australian team likely entering the competition a sign of things to come. Great for the game in so many ways.
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9 hours ago, langpark said:
As I mentioned in the other post, it was a 2nd string Serbia team.
2nd string, 1st string, who cares, it`s just great to see these nations having the desire to play each other. For me it gives the game more cred that we have an international scene no matter how small the number of participants in the countries involved.
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18 hours ago, Pulga said:
NRL has gone to another level this year. Really good to see. Let's not forget the NRLW too which is producing some fantastic quality.
There was a push to reintroduce reserve grade by V`landy`s to provide more game day content and hopefully boost crowds like we had in the past where you could watch your team`s 18`s, reserves, and first grade on the one day. I don`t think V`landy`s, or anyone for that matter, anticipated how entertaining the NRLW was going to be and it strikes me that the men`s, women`s double headers are the way to go.
I`d be interested to know whether clubs like Newcastle, who are getting up to 17 000 turning up early for the women`s, are sticking a few extra dollars on the ticket price. Seems like a good way to me to help the women`s game to start paying for itself. Saying that while acknowledging all the non-monetary positive externalities the NRLW is bringing to the code.
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The media coverage has pretty well been relentlessly positive throughout the whole tournament and only getting bigger and bigger as the Matildas progressed, and then there was this:
The Australia media giving Eddie Jones and his wallabies a right royal send-off on their way to their own world cup.
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1 hour ago, Gomersall said:
Apparently the NRL have contacted the USARL. No idea what that contact entails though.
Fire up the barby and get the beers in the fridge, we`re coming over.
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16 minutes ago, Damien said:
I've always been sceptical about PNG but if this $25 million a year is true and is locked in for a minimum of 10 years then it should be a no brainer as it would pay for itself (and presumably the PNG government would provide guaranteed cash too):
The Australian Government has reportedly indicated that up to $25 million a year would be committed to underwriting a PNG franchise. The PNG Government, as well as a slew of cashed-up corporate behemoths in the region – such as ExxonMobil, Santos and Newcrest – are expected to cover any shortfall.
I`m taking the $25 million comment with a very large grain of salt as well, the use of the word `reportedly` probably sums it up. What does appear to be fact though is the Federal Gov`t tipping in $5.5m to invest in junior pathways, this would be much more in line with a team coming in in the future.
I have to admit I`m confused as to why we continue to read P.N.G. as being the 18th team frontrunner, the only justification I can think of is a) the Federal Gov`t wanting to continue to curry favour with the P.N. G. Gov`t, and b) V`landy`s continuing to apply pressure on the West Australians to up their bid.
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Seeing so many games played out of P.N.G.(and hopefully on an on-going annual basis) may be part of the strategy to encourage the P.N.G. Gov`t to start upgrading infrastructure in readiness for an NRL team in the future.
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27 minutes ago, audois said:
What do you think the Dracs should do. The club I've followed since the start in 2006 when they were selling club items on wooden tables in the open behind the rugby union clubs stand. Today is far,far from all that.
They run 6 teams, SL, Elite 1, U19s, Womens team, an Academy and Wheel chair section. The stadium is improving as the years go by.
What are your thoughts for them - going forward.
Seems like they are doing a lot of things right given that growth trajectory and their on-field success but I do know that one thing that the Victorian Rugby League has done recently and many are claiming it to be a very successful move and that is attach the Storm name to just about everything they can in the Victorian Rugby League scene. Thereby leveraging the success of the Storm and generating what you might call I suppose the halo effect on all things Rugby League Victoria.
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18 hours ago, Dave T said:
But I would add, this kind of thing does sort of show that maybe people aren't as bothered about Variety and everyone being a winner as we've convinced ourselves they are.
In that case call it an investment in maintaining and growing the supporter base of those two clubs. I`m always struck by the number of twenty somethings who formed an allegiance to West Tigers off the back of one GF and a couple of good years in the mid-2000`s.
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There`s an article in the Totalrl news Forum of the 10 biggest crowds in Challenge Cup history, many from the 60`s through to the 80`s. Capitalising on the popularity of the game during that era could have made a big difference. Let`s hope we don`t say the same thing about broadcast viewing numbers in forty years time.
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Phil Gould on International RL
in The General Rugby League Forum
Posted
Let me tell you this as an Australian, no matter how many times you come close will not count for a tinker`s cuss until you actually start beating us at least 50 % of the time, more would be even better. Most Aussies will assume the team was just in the ` doing enough ` mode.