Easy way of reducing Sydney teams: 1. Fucking off the Balmain part of Wests Tigers. 2. Merging Wests with Parramatta, because fuck Parramatta 3. Moving Cronulla to the Central Coast because fuck Cronulla And you've decreased the number by 2.
2017 - Perth & Brisbane 2 2020 - PNG & NZ 2 I think each team/location would engage new fan bases and source talent that would've otherwise been lost to the game. I've got no issues with 20 teams.
PNigGers are already apparently struggling living away from their families just playing in QLD Cup. All that extra travel will make it even more difficult IMO. I don't know if they have enough bamboo or whatever to pay the huge extra costs.
The idea of PNG, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa having teams in state cups (or possibly whatever the Bartercard Cup is called now?) is excellent. It really gives their players a pathway to get picked up by NRL teams, and it will foster local support too. I don't even mind the idea of giving those sides NRL funding as investments. But they're never going to be NRL sides. Who'd be up for going and living in PNG to play? No-one.
I'd live in Phillipines if they had a side. You could buy a case of beer for 3.50 or something close. A house for like $20.
So they'd just develop talent & bring local grown talent back home. Exactly what new sides should do... I'd hate to see another sterile club like the Titans enter the comp. It's a long way off & there'll be critics in the bucket loads but the potential is just way too huge to ignore IMO. When PNG test matches in PNG out rate SOO matches in Australia on TV it becomes pretty hard to ignore.
I'm on board, but only if it's subsidised by the club who develops the least of the talent pool themselves....
and good loving for a whole lot less. I'd live in the PI and never watch RL again for some of that action !!!
In regards to expansion in Queensland, although a second Brisbane side could work, you'd have a hell of a time trying to convert Broncos fans to the new team. Additionally, if a hypothetical second Brisbane side does join the comp (or anywhere else in Queensland tbh), they'll basically be another Cowboys for Brisbane fans in the sense that we'll only support them because the Broncos are shit and we'd rather support another Queensland team instead of further reminding ourselves of how we constantly throw our season down the drain year after year since Lockyer retired.
Yeah Brisbane could support easily two or possibly even three teams as long as one of them wasn't the Broncos. Obvious solution is to fold the Broncos and start two new teams from scratch.
The NRL is like Sydney in general. It worked OK when it was small (NSWRL) but over time it's expanded with no thought of future infrastructure now it's fucked. What really needs to happen is to ditch the whole competition and start from scratch with three Sydney teams, two Brisbane teams, Melbourne, Perth, New Zealand, Adelaide, Central Coast, Canberra, North Queensland, PNG and whoever the fuck else. PEACE
Old timers hate the Broncos because of the death of the Qld comp back in the day. A 2nd Brisbane team would get lots of support. Ipswich obv a better option.