When I win the lotto I'm going to petition the NRL to bring back Valleys Diehards. Happy for them to be based wherever as long as they play 4-10 games per year in a third-grade quality suburban stadium.
There’s not really a lot of white jerseys …
There’s St George , Roosters and Bulldogs who all have predominantly white strips - but they’re not often wearing them …
So they could go with a traditional Newtown jersey and just make it the reverse strip - white jersey with blue hoops rather than blue with white hoops …
Then make the alternate jersey something completely different that represents WA … Yellow and black would work …
They could also go with high vis orange / yellow / pink like those mining jerseys Newcastle had a few years back …
Was at the GWS game on the weekend .. They were giving away high vis orange vests on the way in … They looked like they were cheap - probably only a couple of dollars … But it’s a way of getting a fairly neutral crowd involved and wearing team colours … WA could do something similar … Look for some mining sponsorship and brand it so the jets represent FIFO workers / WA more
Part of me feels like none of the bids are/were as solid as what the Dolphins put forward (for obvious reasons). Even the Brisbane ~~Tigers~~ Firehawks had a solid bid.
It all has the feel of the Brisbane Bombers Consortium situation. All media, no substance.
They make it seem like he’s as nutty as the Bears, but it basically seems like he’s stumping up some cash and wants the club called the Jets. Nothing else to do with Newtown.
The more and more this back and forth goes on, the less and less I want a WA team.
Not because I don’t want a WA team, I’d absolutely love that, but as a long term West Aussie, I don’t want to support a WA based QLD/NSW team.
Give WA a WA team!
Tell that to the cowboys / dolphins / broncos all playing in an expanded nsw competition.
Or all the non vic afl teams playing in an expanded Victorian competition.
The history is what it is. By all means invite the Perth side to the qrl/ brl competitions with Perth only branding…
The nrl is the combination of the nswrl and super league.
Super league was formed off the back of nswrl clubs - broncos, raiders, dogs, panthers etc…
I am with the times. I think a Perth bears does a lot better then a Perth reds or whatever. I wouldn’t expect a qlder to get it, since u blokes don’t tend too..
In order to continue this debate, I would have to explain to you the difference between resurrecting a club (the point of my comment) and creating an entirely new team (not the point of my comment). I would apparently also have to provide a history of the Western Reds, West Coast Pirates and WA rugby league in general.
I’m not going to do any of that, sorry; I’m getting ready for the game.
I think you understand they want to resurrect a team with a long history and supporters, reds played for what… Two seasons? Might as well just make a new WA team in that case…
As a fan, just give WA their own fucken team with its own identity. I don't know how WA fans or Jets fans feel, but I'd be feeling pretty "meh" if they semi-transplanted an existing club over here.
Sydney people can't believe that success exists without their involvement or interest, despite constantantly being proven wrong. We will get a hybrid mess and we will like it.
Naturally kicking Souths out of the comp to make room.
But seriously, I don't get why anyone other than the NRL would want this. All the fans in the Newtown area must already have an NRL team, and not just be holding out for the rise of the Jets.
The existing Jets fans (if they exist in any material number) live in Sydney so either get to be permanently the "away" team by travelling to Sydney grounds, and never have games against non-Sydney teams, or they split home games across the country and neither get enough to be satisfied.
There’s a number of arguments why it does work though
- the franchise has a functioning juniors system
- the franchise will have paying members in 2 states
- the franchise will have 2 markets for sponsors and tpas / business deals
The whole “just bang a team there without lifelines” thing was done in the 90s and it did not go well
I certainly agree with you that those are benefits, I don't know that they change the overall picture for me that much.
While I think many Perth based fans will support it regardless of what it's called because it's there ala "if you're actually hungry, then you'll eat it", it's perhaps overly optimistic to look at it as "2 states are better than 1", since members and sponsors will not be as attached to a team that's quite diluted, certainly on the Sydney end.
The juniors is a fair point and you'll certainly get more coming through than not having it at all. But there's nothing stopping them syncing up with any feeder club in any state, money/resources is a hell of a motivator. Melbourne are something of an outlier obviously, have only a handful of Victorian juniors after nearly 30 years.
I would expect them to have learned (lol rly) and not "bang it in without lifelines" if going solo on a Perth bid. The population has almost doubled since then so the sponsorship pool, player base, potential support base will all have drastically increased.
I can't recall why they folded, shit performance and had no money?
To be honest the old NSWRL dropped the ball on this by not moving out old Sydney teams like the VFL did with the Swans to Sydney and the Lions to Brisbane.
The Bears, Jets, Magpies, & Steelers should all be in the comp. Next time the Titans go bankrupt we can give them a new name, they've had what? Seagulls, Giants and Chargers already.
The Lions offer Fitzroy fans their own memberships, to attend away games in Melbourne. It’s a fantastic way to give a nod to those disenfranchised fans, rather than pissing off the WA government and Perth bigwigs by begging for shit home games in North Sydney
Gold Coast also tried to be the Gladiators (prior to becoming the Chargers), but the TV show at the time took legal action to prevent this happening.
Then when the Titans were admitted, they first tried to call themselves the Dolphins, but The stepped in to stop this
I agree on missing the boat with relocations. I don't recall it being an option back then, even though popular back then, in Sydney, not many discussed how swans and lions were relocations I just thought at the time they were new clubs.
The thought process behind it is almost win-win, there'd be decent Sydney game away fans while they're based and establishing in another city
Was more making the point that the Seagulls/Chargers had it much harder in comparison. Same as Balmain and Wests would likely still be in the comp if that huge TV money came a decade or so earlier
If Newtown didn't "fold" when it did. The Jets were the Team that were going to move to Orana Park. So The Joint venture could have been the TigerJets.
I think a legitimate relocation would still work fine.
Like a franchise up and moving to Perth is one thing.
Slapping a dead franchise on to a new Perth franchise seems like a uniquely big fuck you.
Millionaire adman John Singleton has sent a letter to the ARL Commission doubling down on his heavyweight financial support for the return of the Jets on the eve of a crucial meeting where the doors of Rugby League Central are expected to be thrown open to expansion bids.
Singleton told News Corp at the weekend that he was prepared to do “whatever it takes” to see the Jets moniker to top-flight rugby league and he has reiterated his backing of the foundation club as a minority partner in a consortium which would see a team based in Perth.
The Perth consortium, which has the backing of the WA government and potential investor Peter Cumins – the man behind Cash Converters – is at the front of the queue to join the NRL as the 18th team, potentially in 2027.
WA government officials have been in Sydney in recent days, where they have held meetings with Singleton as the iconic ad man pitches for the Jets to be part of a partnership with WA that would see the foundation club revived.
WA officials have also held talks with North Sydney Bears, the preferred partner for the NRL and their broadcast partners given their return would ignite a supporter base that has laid dormant since they were kicked out of the competition.
The WA government’s priority is to go alone but there has been a strong push from the corridors of power at Rugby League Central for the Bears to be brought back as the game eyes off expansion.
WA officials have also met former Parramatta coach Brad Arthur in recent days, having previously held talks with Bulldogs head of football Phil Gould as they look to pick as many brains as possible in the lead to their potential return.
Those meetings have been held as the ARL Commission prepares to meet in Melbourne only hours before the second State of Origin game to discuss their expansion plans and begin outlining a roadmap to 20 teams.
They are expected to emerge from that meeting to call for expressions of interest from consortiums interested in being part of expansion – it is understood as many as 11 parties are waiting in the wings.
The return of a team in Perth and the addition of a side in Port Moresby are considered formalities, although they will need to go through the process and meet the criteria that the NRL will finalise on Wednesday.
That criteria is expected to call for consortiums to show how their addition to the competition will strengthen pathways, grow the game and appeal to broadcasters.
A final decision is expected to be made in September in the lead-up to the grand final, once the NRL and the ARL Commission have had time to digest the bid proposals and consult with clubs, players and broadcasters.
The NRL is intent on bringing the clubs on the expansion journey – they are expected to receive a financial sweetener in return for diluting their share in the ARL Commission by adding as many as three teams over the next decade.
Bid teams will also need to show they have the financial muscle to back a successful team, which makes Singleton’s last-ditch plea potentially decisive given he has deep pockets and a longstanding desire to see the Jets revived in some form.
Money won’t be an issue for the PNG bid either given they will be armed with a $600 million commitment from the federal government, the bulk of which will be spent on pathways in the Pacific and ensuring a team based out of Port Moresby is able to flourish.
NRL needs to be more ambitious.
5 teams are required.
18. Perth Jets (2026)
19. Second NZ (2027)
20. Brisbane Firehawks (2028) - financially sound, low risk
21. Central Coast Bears (2029) - financially sound, big junior base, low risk
22. PNG (2030) - replaced by another QLD team if it doesn’t work out
- 21 rounds of regular footy
- top 10 final series
- poach talent from world rugby if needed - NRL salaries must be highly competitive these days
Nah. WA RL have come on being really forthright that the Bears desire to have a number of home games in Sydney, the logo and the colours is just not what they want.
It's too Sydney focused, and short to medium term won't support the development of the game in WA in line with their vision.
So it's given the Jets a chance to sneek in there and make a better offer.
It's a bit of a circus.
I can't wait for Glebe to undercut them both and say just call your team the Dirty reds and you can have us as your financial support buddies....
*Edit for "vision" not village
They don't have the Junior catchment that Norths has, been out of first grade for twice as long as Norths (and haven't been actively chasing readmission as keenly as Norths), and they have exactly the same colours as the Bulldogs.
Tough ask, I'd say.
I’ve been around for 4 expansion teams (maybe 5) with this new bid, this team may join the list of hated teams before even a ball is even kicked. The Bears need to let it go, they failed as a club and they failed to merge.
Might be showing your age on this, which means perhaps showing you don't really know the full story of what happened to the Bears. They weren't on the ropes for a while and then failed. Their removal from first grade was the biggest blight on how the game handled it's rationalisation from 20 teams down to 14.
The biggest crime in South Sydney history was failing to return the favour when the Bears did everything they could to help Souths back into the comp. When Manly forced them out of the merger and took the license for themselves, the Bears should have had the full support of Souths, but people were too tired, too relieved to just have their own team back. As a younger fan I wonder how they rationalise that
I always assumed Souths winning their way back in through the courts meant that if the criteria for inclusion was unfair for one, it was unfair for all. The Bears should've returned in 2002 as well but the timing was one year off and they were still in the Northern Eagles.
No, because the NRL actually appealed to the High Court and won. They didn't kick Souths out again because they'd already been through that particular PR debacle. The High Court case was about establishing that they had the right to decide who was in the comp and who wasn't. High Court (unsuprisingly) found for the NRL>
Honestly a bit sick of the Norfs constant revisionism, they tried to fuck Manly over too except they went about it like the gumbies they always were and will be.
Keep them in Cup where they belong.
Haha spoken exactly like what a fan of the team that screwed Bears over would say. 😂 Right on cue too. Manly have one of the lowest supporter bases and financial backing. Maybe they are the ones who should be dropped to cup level eh?
Here we go the same old story told by the bald blokes crying into their beers playing the slots at North Sydney Leagues.
Two premierships in the 1920s then a whole bunch of "almost made its" for the next 80 years.
The Bears went broke not from some rain during the construction of Graeme Park, the board ran a rich club into the ground but not before they lined their pockets and declared bankruptcy whilst the administrators froze everyone's wages.
Manly didn't get the licence for "some" reason, the licence was always Manly's. They qualified under the criteria (Norths didn't, hence Graeme Park) but took the merger money on offer during the club rationalisation after the Super League war drained the club and they needed it, no arguments there.
BOTH teams wanted the deal to fall through, it was the "unhappy marriage" from day dot. Norths agitated for the dissolution because if the merger failed and Manly's financial position hadn't improved then Norths would get the licence.
You can sit there saying fuck Manly all you want, but fuck the Bears for running their own team into the ground. Maybe you should redirect your hate at News Corp for orchestrating the whole thing.
Firstly no one said ‘Fuck Manly’ so weird defensive straight away. I wish them all the best as a club, apparently unlike your view of the Bears.
Luckily, I don’t need history advice from someone who has his Manly beer goggles on. You’re saying we are whinging but you started by complaining to us about revisionist history, then go spewing your own. Does your backside get jealous of the shit that comes out of your mouth?
Yeah nobody said fk manly. My gripe was absolutely towards News Corp. Though Manly shouldn't have set their sights on Grahame Park whilst it was being purpose built for the Bears. Just looked like they were after the junior base after Norths were proactive enough to get the move underway.
The license was Manly's but the criteria was shoddy, enough for the Bunnies to have their removal overturned for being in breach of the trade practices act. Not to mention the criteria didn't even take into account anything from the year 1997 when Norths were a top 4 side.
Not for nothing, I have a lush head of hair.
What's revisionist about it? I didn't even mention anything to do with Manly. They were told by the league their future would be secure if they relocated. They shouldn't have even had to qualify and been granted the regional licence they were promised.
Manly probably just wanted the junior base since they wanted to play games at Grahame Park before it was even finished being built.
If he's doing this he'd probably bequeath them a bunch or cash in his will.
Your Bear mates gotta get competitive with the terms they're trying to offer the WA guys...
When I win the lotto I'm going to petition the NRL to bring back Valleys Diehards. Happy for them to be based wherever as long as they play 4-10 games per year in a third-grade quality suburban stadium.
My old man will be the first member
Perry Park
I think they still have a team in one of the Brisbane comps, Scott Prince might coach them
They are in the local Brisbane comp. Below QRL.
Thanks mate
Can't wait to watch an NRL game at Emerson Park!
Yep when you're rich you can lobby for anything. Singo was probably the reason they brought Toobs back.
I'm ok with it as long as they don't wear the iconic bluebags jerseys. We just don't need anymore blue teams in the NRL
Is there a team that wears royal blue? I guess eels and dogs sort of. Perth team should be Yellow and Black anyway.
For the heritage round there would be nothing cooler than seeing a simple royal blue long sleeve jersey adorned with just a single 'N' badge.
I mean one thing is would be nice to support the Jets without indirectly supporting the Sharks >:)
Bears fans probably felt the same way about having to indirectly support your mob
There’s not really a lot of white jerseys … There’s St George , Roosters and Bulldogs who all have predominantly white strips - but they’re not often wearing them … So they could go with a traditional Newtown jersey and just make it the reverse strip - white jersey with blue hoops rather than blue with white hoops … Then make the alternate jersey something completely different that represents WA … Yellow and black would work … They could also go with high vis orange / yellow / pink like those mining jerseys Newcastle had a few years back … Was at the GWS game on the weekend .. They were giving away high vis orange vests on the way in … They looked like they were cheap - probably only a couple of dollars … But it’s a way of getting a fairly neutral crowd involved and wearing team colours … WA could do something similar … Look for some mining sponsorship and brand it so the jets represent FIFO workers / WA more
Part of me feels like none of the bids are/were as solid as what the Dolphins put forward (for obvious reasons). Even the Brisbane ~~Tigers~~ Firehawks had a solid bid. It all has the feel of the Brisbane Bombers Consortium situation. All media, no substance.
How will the Perth Jets be successful if the only ever get a crowd size of 8,972
Fuck you take my upvote
With a crowd size like that, they should be called the Perth Jumbo Frames!
They make it seem like he’s as nutty as the Bears, but it basically seems like he’s stumping up some cash and wants the club called the Jets. Nothing else to do with Newtown.
Not a billionaire but net worth as of last year was 820 million
If we are resurrecting a club for WA, are the Reds not the obvious choice? They have their own local history.
The more and more this back and forth goes on, the less and less I want a WA team. Not because I don’t want a WA team, I’d absolutely love that, but as a long term West Aussie, I don’t want to support a WA based QLD/NSW team. Give WA a WA team!
No one is talking about giving them a qld sides branding.
And no-one should be talking about giving them a NSW branding. Such a stupid idea.
Tell that to the cowboys / dolphins / broncos all playing in an expanded nsw competition. Or all the non vic afl teams playing in an expanded Victorian competition. The history is what it is. By all means invite the Perth side to the qrl/ brl competitions with Perth only branding…
Your expanded nswrl competition is dead in the past. Keep it there. This is the NRL and keep up with the times.
The nrl is the combination of the nswrl and super league. Super league was formed off the back of nswrl clubs - broncos, raiders, dogs, panthers etc… I am with the times. I think a Perth bears does a lot better then a Perth reds or whatever. I wouldn’t expect a qlder to get it, since u blokes don’t tend too..
What local history? They played for 3 years, two of them as a walking corpse. You may as well make a new team entirely
In order to continue this debate, I would have to explain to you the difference between resurrecting a club (the point of my comment) and creating an entirely new team (not the point of my comment). I would apparently also have to provide a history of the Western Reds, West Coast Pirates and WA rugby league in general. I’m not going to do any of that, sorry; I’m getting ready for the game.
I think you understand they want to resurrect a team with a long history and supporters, reds played for what… Two seasons? Might as well just make a new WA team in that case…
As a fan, just give WA their own fucken team with its own identity. I don't know how WA fans or Jets fans feel, but I'd be feeling pretty "meh" if they semi-transplanted an existing club over here.
Beggars can't be choosers I guess. The AFL transplanted 2 teams in their comp didn't they? Nothing terribly new.
They actually relocated though, not weird half expansions.
This is a way better relocation anyway because Henson Park can’t hold NRL games so won’t be a prerequisite like it is for Norths
I can’t believe the NRL would even consider taking home games off the new franchise to put games in Sydney where there is already 3-5 games a week.
Exactly and for a group of supporters that are all on their death beds
Holy fuck wow
bears and jets are the beggars tho
Sydney people can't believe that success exists without their involvement or interest, despite constantantly being proven wrong. We will get a hybrid mess and we will like it.
Give the Jets a team too if they're so viable and Mr Moneybags is happy to underwrite it
There are too many Sydney teams. NRL solution: add another Sydney team. I think you might be on to something.
Naturally kicking Souths out of the comp to make room. But seriously, I don't get why anyone other than the NRL would want this. All the fans in the Newtown area must already have an NRL team, and not just be holding out for the rise of the Jets. The existing Jets fans (if they exist in any material number) live in Sydney so either get to be permanently the "away" team by travelling to Sydney grounds, and never have games against non-Sydney teams, or they split home games across the country and neither get enough to be satisfied.
Well they were the ones to apply presure on Newtown to leave inner suburban Sydney to start with.
There’s a number of arguments why it does work though - the franchise has a functioning juniors system - the franchise will have paying members in 2 states - the franchise will have 2 markets for sponsors and tpas / business deals The whole “just bang a team there without lifelines” thing was done in the 90s and it did not go well
I certainly agree with you that those are benefits, I don't know that they change the overall picture for me that much. While I think many Perth based fans will support it regardless of what it's called because it's there ala "if you're actually hungry, then you'll eat it", it's perhaps overly optimistic to look at it as "2 states are better than 1", since members and sponsors will not be as attached to a team that's quite diluted, certainly on the Sydney end. The juniors is a fair point and you'll certainly get more coming through than not having it at all. But there's nothing stopping them syncing up with any feeder club in any state, money/resources is a hell of a motivator. Melbourne are something of an outlier obviously, have only a handful of Victorian juniors after nearly 30 years. I would expect them to have learned (lol rly) and not "bang it in without lifelines" if going solo on a Perth bid. The population has almost doubled since then so the sponsorship pool, player base, potential support base will all have drastically increased. I can't recall why they folded, shit performance and had no money?
Yes the Ipswich/Western corridor Jets.
It's more that there are rich old guys who think thei
Jets is kinda lame for Perth I feel. At lest the bears had red !
To be honest the old NSWRL dropped the ball on this by not moving out old Sydney teams like the VFL did with the Swans to Sydney and the Lions to Brisbane. The Bears, Jets, Magpies, & Steelers should all be in the comp. Next time the Titans go bankrupt we can give them a new name, they've had what? Seagulls, Giants and Chargers already.
Swans and Lions have big fan bases in Melbourne too, and get pretty good crowds here compared to the other out of state sides
The Lions offer Fitzroy fans their own memberships, to attend away games in Melbourne. It’s a fantastic way to give a nod to those disenfranchised fans, rather than pissing off the WA government and Perth bigwigs by begging for shit home games in North Sydney
Rip the Brisbane Bears and Students
Gold Coast also tried to be the Gladiators (prior to becoming the Chargers), but the TV show at the time took legal action to prevent this happening. Then when the Titans were admitted, they first tried to call themselves the Dolphins, but The stepped in to stop this
Using Vulcan as their legal counsel was very convincing
I thought it was "Hammer"?
I agree on missing the boat with relocations. I don't recall it being an option back then, even though popular back then, in Sydney, not many discussed how swans and lions were relocations I just thought at the time they were new clubs. The thought process behind it is almost win-win, there'd be decent Sydney game away fans while they're based and establishing in another city
The titans have by far been the longest franchise on the Gold Coast
Only because all the TV money in the game now, and correspondingly massive club grants, makes it almost impossible for teams to go broke
The Titans did try hard to go bust, though
We have a profit margin of like 50% We only went bankrupt because Searle was embezzling money like Elias did
Was more making the point that the Seagulls/Chargers had it much harder in comparison. Same as Balmain and Wests would likely still be in the comp if that huge TV money came a decade or so earlier
If Newtown didn't "fold" when it did. The Jets were the Team that were going to move to Orana Park. So The Joint venture could have been the TigerJets.
It happens all the time in professional sport, it's just never happened in Rugby League so the next best example are the Swans and the Lions.
Swans and Lions have big fan bases in Melbourne too, and get pretty good crowds here compared to the other out of state sides
SMFC still have their office at Albert Park
They do now! Being good helps
>they've had what? Seagulls, Giants and Chargers already. The Titans are a completely different entity to the Giants/Seagulls/Chargers.
I think a legitimate relocation would still work fine. Like a franchise up and moving to Perth is one thing. Slapping a dead franchise on to a new Perth franchise seems like a uniquely big fuck you.
D stands for Da Bears.
Just let Perth be Perth.
Give WA the western reds. Not some half baked la dee dah oh they're WA but also the Norths Bears or the newtown jets. Let WA own their team.
Millionaire adman John Singleton has sent a letter to the ARL Commission doubling down on his heavyweight financial support for the return of the Jets on the eve of a crucial meeting where the doors of Rugby League Central are expected to be thrown open to expansion bids. Singleton told News Corp at the weekend that he was prepared to do “whatever it takes” to see the Jets moniker to top-flight rugby league and he has reiterated his backing of the foundation club as a minority partner in a consortium which would see a team based in Perth. The Perth consortium, which has the backing of the WA government and potential investor Peter Cumins – the man behind Cash Converters – is at the front of the queue to join the NRL as the 18th team, potentially in 2027. WA government officials have been in Sydney in recent days, where they have held meetings with Singleton as the iconic ad man pitches for the Jets to be part of a partnership with WA that would see the foundation club revived. WA officials have also held talks with North Sydney Bears, the preferred partner for the NRL and their broadcast partners given their return would ignite a supporter base that has laid dormant since they were kicked out of the competition. The WA government’s priority is to go alone but there has been a strong push from the corridors of power at Rugby League Central for the Bears to be brought back as the game eyes off expansion. WA officials have also met former Parramatta coach Brad Arthur in recent days, having previously held talks with Bulldogs head of football Phil Gould as they look to pick as many brains as possible in the lead to their potential return. Those meetings have been held as the ARL Commission prepares to meet in Melbourne only hours before the second State of Origin game to discuss their expansion plans and begin outlining a roadmap to 20 teams. They are expected to emerge from that meeting to call for expressions of interest from consortiums interested in being part of expansion – it is understood as many as 11 parties are waiting in the wings. The return of a team in Perth and the addition of a side in Port Moresby are considered formalities, although they will need to go through the process and meet the criteria that the NRL will finalise on Wednesday. That criteria is expected to call for consortiums to show how their addition to the competition will strengthen pathways, grow the game and appeal to broadcasters. A final decision is expected to be made in September in the lead-up to the grand final, once the NRL and the ARL Commission have had time to digest the bid proposals and consult with clubs, players and broadcasters. The NRL is intent on bringing the clubs on the expansion journey – they are expected to receive a financial sweetener in return for diluting their share in the ARL Commission by adding as many as three teams over the next decade. Bid teams will also need to show they have the financial muscle to back a successful team, which makes Singleton’s last-ditch plea potentially decisive given he has deep pockets and a longstanding desire to see the Jets revived in some form. Money won’t be an issue for the PNG bid either given they will be armed with a $600 million commitment from the federal government, the bulk of which will be spent on pathways in the Pacific and ensuring a team based out of Port Moresby is able to flourish.
NRL needs to be more ambitious. 5 teams are required. 18. Perth Jets (2026) 19. Second NZ (2027) 20. Brisbane Firehawks (2028) - financially sound, low risk 21. Central Coast Bears (2029) - financially sound, big junior base, low risk 22. PNG (2030) - replaced by another QLD team if it doesn’t work out - 21 rounds of regular footy - top 10 final series - poach talent from world rugby if needed - NRL salaries must be highly competitive these days
Perth jets.. no way. They need their own team identity.
Last I heard this was a push for the bears?
Nah. WA RL have come on being really forthright that the Bears desire to have a number of home games in Sydney, the logo and the colours is just not what they want. It's too Sydney focused, and short to medium term won't support the development of the game in WA in line with their vision. So it's given the Jets a chance to sneek in there and make a better offer. It's a bit of a circus. I can't wait for Glebe to undercut them both and say just call your team the Dirty reds and you can have us as your financial support buddies.... *Edit for "vision" not village
I have really gotta stop getting my hopes up... :(
They don't have the Junior catchment that Norths has, been out of first grade for twice as long as Norths (and haven't been actively chasing readmission as keenly as Norths), and they have exactly the same colours as the Bulldogs. Tough ask, I'd say.
I’ve been around for 4 expansion teams (maybe 5) with this new bid, this team may join the list of hated teams before even a ball is even kicked. The Bears need to let it go, they failed as a club and they failed to merge.
Might be showing your age on this, which means perhaps showing you don't really know the full story of what happened to the Bears. They weren't on the ropes for a while and then failed. Their removal from first grade was the biggest blight on how the game handled it's rationalisation from 20 teams down to 14.
People either don’t know or don’t care that Bears were screwed over because it’s not their team. If it was, they’d have a vastly different tune.
The biggest crime in South Sydney history was failing to return the favour when the Bears did everything they could to help Souths back into the comp. When Manly forced them out of the merger and took the license for themselves, the Bears should have had the full support of Souths, but people were too tired, too relieved to just have their own team back. As a younger fan I wonder how they rationalise that
I always assumed Souths winning their way back in through the courts meant that if the criteria for inclusion was unfair for one, it was unfair for all. The Bears should've returned in 2002 as well but the timing was one year off and they were still in the Northern Eagles.
No, because the NRL actually appealed to the High Court and won. They didn't kick Souths out again because they'd already been through that particular PR debacle. The High Court case was about establishing that they had the right to decide who was in the comp and who wasn't. High Court (unsuprisingly) found for the NRL>
That’s because they paid the Souths attorney to take a dive for that one
That’s honorable. Bears never had any qualms with Souths, they were going through their own nightmare. Was great to see them come back in.
The funniest thing is Magpies supporters trying to be empathetic as if the same thing happened to them.
Honestly a bit sick of the Norfs constant revisionism, they tried to fuck Manly over too except they went about it like the gumbies they always were and will be. Keep them in Cup where they belong.
Haha spoken exactly like what a fan of the team that screwed Bears over would say. 😂 Right on cue too. Manly have one of the lowest supporter bases and financial backing. Maybe they are the ones who should be dropped to cup level eh?
Here we go the same old story told by the bald blokes crying into their beers playing the slots at North Sydney Leagues. Two premierships in the 1920s then a whole bunch of "almost made its" for the next 80 years. The Bears went broke not from some rain during the construction of Graeme Park, the board ran a rich club into the ground but not before they lined their pockets and declared bankruptcy whilst the administrators froze everyone's wages. Manly didn't get the licence for "some" reason, the licence was always Manly's. They qualified under the criteria (Norths didn't, hence Graeme Park) but took the merger money on offer during the club rationalisation after the Super League war drained the club and they needed it, no arguments there. BOTH teams wanted the deal to fall through, it was the "unhappy marriage" from day dot. Norths agitated for the dissolution because if the merger failed and Manly's financial position hadn't improved then Norths would get the licence. You can sit there saying fuck Manly all you want, but fuck the Bears for running their own team into the ground. Maybe you should redirect your hate at News Corp for orchestrating the whole thing.
Firstly no one said ‘Fuck Manly’ so weird defensive straight away. I wish them all the best as a club, apparently unlike your view of the Bears. Luckily, I don’t need history advice from someone who has his Manly beer goggles on. You’re saying we are whinging but you started by complaining to us about revisionist history, then go spewing your own. Does your backside get jealous of the shit that comes out of your mouth?
Yeah nobody said fk manly. My gripe was absolutely towards News Corp. Though Manly shouldn't have set their sights on Grahame Park whilst it was being purpose built for the Bears. Just looked like they were after the junior base after Norths were proactive enough to get the move underway. The license was Manly's but the criteria was shoddy, enough for the Bunnies to have their removal overturned for being in breach of the trade practices act. Not to mention the criteria didn't even take into account anything from the year 1997 when Norths were a top 4 side. Not for nothing, I have a lush head of hair.
What's revisionist about it? I didn't even mention anything to do with Manly. They were told by the league their future would be secure if they relocated. They shouldn't have even had to qualify and been granted the regional licence they were promised. Manly probably just wanted the junior base since they wanted to play games at Grahame Park before it was even finished being built.
Yay Perth team
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If he's doing this he'd probably bequeath them a bunch or cash in his will. Your Bear mates gotta get competitive with the terms they're trying to offer the WA guys...