Pride demands a say in competition future
YOU can’t have a Queensland Rugby League competition without representation from Cairns and Far North Queensland.
That’s the call from Northern Pride chairman Tony Williamson as questions about the club’s place in the Intrust Super Cup surfaced after comments from QRL managing director Robert Moore.
In an interview with the Sunday Mail published yesterday, Moore said the decision to cancel this year’s season was hard but stood by it, and flagged changes could be on the way to the statewide competitions in 2021.
“We don’t know what travel looks like next year,” Moore said. “We’re hopeful that domestic travel is back to some normality but we don’t know.
“If you do your simple maths and work out that if a plane can only have half the amount of people on it, logically the ticket could be double the price.
“How do you actually afford to run some of those things into the future? They’re all variables that we just don’t know about yet. What those competitions look like next year is a big piece of work.”
Williamson said if the QRL were seriously considering a future without travel – which essentially put a line through the Pride’s involvement – the club deserved to be involved in any discussion.
“Where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire,” he said.
“If they’re seriously considering our future behind closed doors, they have to open them and welcome us in.
“It’s the future of the game in this region.”
Williamson also shot down the idea of a conference system, which would separate regional clubs like the Pride, Townsville, Mackay and Capras, from those in southeast Queensland.
“It’s much easier, and cheaper, for us to travel to Brisbane than it is to fly to Mackay and Rockhampton,” he said.
That cost of travel is a major reason why Williamson said the Pride would not back a shortened competition between the regional clubs this year in lieu of the Intrust Super Cup.
The idea was for the four regional clubs to face off in a series of games when fans were allowed back at rugby league to show love to sponsors and generate income.
Williamson spoke out against the idea when it was first floated earlier this year, but it was revived last week when Pride coach Ty Williams said it was something the club should consider.
“Whether it happens or not, we’re unsure, but the thirst for rugby league in Far North Queensland is going to be very high,” Williams said.
“Footy’s not dead and buried. There’s other avenues where we can service the requirements that everybody has. There’s opportunities.”
Williamson said the priority should be for Cairns, Far North Queensland and the state to become free of COVID-19.
“We have to get back to some sort of normality first,” Williamson said.
The region will not host any senior rugby league in 2020 after Cairns District Rugby League clubs voted to cancel the season last week, though the Pride have promised to service the sport.