Growth pains to be felt on Coast
PHIL Gould, for all his vexing tomfoolery, owns the most sensible string of quotes made about league for decades.
The former NSW mentor last year suggested the NRL take a step back from the cliff’s edge, as enticing as a nosedive into the unknown may seem, and instead think long and hard about the impact of such a leap of faith.
His comments were about the expansion of rugby league and what that looks like, a subject broached again this week, much to the pants-wetting of fans and nervous facial contortions of administrators.
Brisbane, footy bosses say, is the prime market for a second side, one to cattle prod the Broncos out of their complacency and – I would argue – to punch the undermanned but hardworking Titans square in the face. Frankly, I can’t see the addition of another team in the southeast Queensland market doing anything but ripping more talent out of the greater Gold Coast region. But more on that later. Almighty Gould, when quizzed on expansion last year, demanded “don’t think about the NRL next year, but what does it look like in 20 years?”
Good question.
In 2040 surely Perth is a must, a second New Zealand side is a must and Sydney has undergone footy’s own survival of the fittest.
Do we have the talent for more than 16 teams? Not sure.
Do we want to grow the game? Yes.
Is beefing up an already strong market like southeast Queensland the answer? No.
The Titans have worked tirelessly to reach out to grassroots footy across the region, and that includes hubs to the south, north and west.
A second Brisbane side will only slip on goggles and dive deeper into the region’s talent pool. That’s hardly an endorsement for growth.
As much as I love footy I don’t want to see Gold Coast get squeezed off the lounge just so the hungry Brisbane market can fit in extra slices of pizza.
Then again, there are some all-powerful TV executives happy to bite off as much as they can chew.
A SECOND BRISBANE SIDE WILL ONLY SLIP ON GOGGLES AND DIVE DEEPER INTO THE REGION’S TALENT POOL.