Wigan seeing mileage in big game on road
NEW START: Wigan and Hull will renew rivalry Down Under EYEBROWS were raised when Wigan announced they were taking a ‘home’ fixture against Hull FC 10,000 miles away to Wollongong in Australia.
Saturday’s clash at the beachside WIN Stadium, home of NRL side St George Illawarra, will be the first Super League match to be staged outside Europe.
The significance of playing on the other side of the world goes deeper than swapping an English winter for an Australian summer.
Wigan view the trip, which will also see them play South Sydney Rabbitohs and Hull face St George in exhibitions, as a money-maker.
Warriors executive director Kris Radlinski would not have arranged the venture if it simply meant breaking even. The driving force has been owner Ian Lenagan, who took Shaun Wane’s side to Sydney in 2014 for the World Club Challenge and was instrumental in creating the World Club Series the following year.
Lenagan, chairman of the Football League and a close associate of Hull counterpart Adam Pearson, has brokered a deal which will see Destination Wollongong and Destination New South Wales paying Wigan to stage the games.
The Australian government agencies hope to recoup the money paid to Wigan in the number of tourists who will spend cash in hotels, bars and cafes throughout the two clubs’ stay Down Under.
Wigan have covered the cost of Hull’s trip, but hope to make profit from gate receipts, merchandise and sponsorship deals.
Radlinski stressed all money made will be reinvested into the squad and, with two marquee players, Wigan spend more on players’ wages than any other Super League club.
The number of fans heading out from the UK is not known, but with a number of ex-pats and interested locals, the gate for Saturday’s match is expected to be 10,000-plus.
One of the bestsupported and most famous clubs in the 13-man code, Wigan are no strangers to innovation.
They once played Warrington in a friendly in Milwaukee, won the Twickenham Sevens and hammered Bath 82-6 in a cross-code match.
Three seasons ago they hosted Catalans in a gospel-spreading mission at Millwall FC which drew 8,101 – the largest Super League crowd in London for nine years.
The concept of taking big games on the road is not new but Lenagan sees a potential ‘international competition’ emerging within the next five years. Toronto Wolfpack are seeking promotion to Super League and a New York-based franchise is hoping to enter the British game. This year’s launch of single flights between London and Perth could see a Western Australia outfit operate on a similar basis as Toronto, playing home and away games in blocks.
Lenagan, a key figure in driving through changes at the Rugby Football League, said: “The Super League is doing a lot of innovative things to take the game forward and it wouldn’t surprise me if Perth became interested.”
Wane admits the travel will disrupt Wigan’s season but said: “It’s worthwhile to show the NRL what we can do and spread the word of the Wigan brand. It’s an important trip.”
There is also the small matter of defending Super League champions Leeds facing NRL kings Melbourne Storm in the World Club Challenge in Melbourne next Friday.
That match, along with the Wigan-Hull clash and the two exhibition games, will all be shown live on Sky Sports.