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I know this has been spoken of before but seems ok? Thoughts?
https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/rugby-...il-gould/0abbc761-b4bd-4200-8328-e2ff0957dde2/
'The future is a two conference system': Phil Gould reveals his revolutionary plan for NRL posterity
By George Vlotis
2 days ago
Every month the debate over the future of rugby league in Australia flares up, and every month a section of the game seems to be put out.
Relocation, expansion and culls. Those three words prove enough to strike fear into even the most hardened NRL fan's heart while simultaneously leaving the game's administrators at the mercy of its pundits until hysteria dies down for another three weeks.
Rugby league guru Phil Gould sees it as a self-destructive cycle riddled with anxieties that cripples the game's ability to insure its future - and he says it's destined to repeat itself because the necessary research hasn't taken place.
"The first thing I'll say is that every time this subject comes up, people comment on about 10-seconds thought about what could be possible," Gould told Nine's 100% Footy.
Phil Gould and NRL chief Todd Greenberg (AAP)
"There is no one that has actually done research or gone into any market viability or looked at the financial structures of individual clubs or what it costs to run an NRL franchise.
"I said to (former NRL CEO) David Gallop 15 years ago 'What's the game look like in 15 years?'. You just get a blank expression. I've said it to (Gallop's successor) David Smith, I've said it to (former ARL Commission Chairman) John Grant, I've said it to (current NRL CEO) Todd Greenberg. I don't think they've done any work on this whatsoever.
"When GWS were coming into Sydney the AFL had done two decades of research on the demographic of Sydney on the financial viability of this organisation, on what the game and what Sydney was going to look like in that time.
"And I can remember them going to ANZ Stadium, looking at the future of ANZ Stadium and the bookings and those sorts of things. The ANZ Stadium boss said to me they knew more about rugby league than rugby league knew about itself.
"It had done more research on rugby league and these demographics than rugby league had ever done … they've had a cradle to the grave type of mentality with this, they've had a really long-term strategy.
Phil Gould (AAP)
"With us, we (the NRL) put (expansion clubs) somewhere where they don't go any good and we say 'Oh well that was a mistake'.
"I just don't know if the NRL over the last 10 or 15 years has done enough work to plan where it should go, or what it's going to look like when it gets there … not just for the short term but for the long term as well."
Gould's scathing view on the NRL's expansion strategy comes after weekend reports quoting Nine's Director of Sport Tom Malone suggesting a second club in Brisbane is the logical first step in expansion/relocation, arguing the move should come at the expense of a Sydney club by 2023, in time for the next TV rights deal.
Meanwhile, NSW Blues coach Brad Fittler advocated for the Cronulla Sharks to move to Perth or Manly to the Central Coast in the vain of Sydney Swans' highly successful move from South Melbourne.
Like clockwork those suggestions sparked a frenzied reaction throughout the game, overshadowing any conversation happening behind closed doors at NRL HQ.
Transplanting a team is understandably touchy, and in some cases an emotionally fraught issue.
While Gould wasn't convinced relocation was the way forward for the game, he conceded change was necessary, advocating for a revolutionary two-conference system to capitalise on the potential for local derbies to engage the tribal fans who play a massive part in the game's future.
"I think we're still a long, long way away from making this decision," Gould said. "But personally I've always believed the future of the game was a two conference system. That there needs to be nine teams in Sydney and nine teams outside of Sydney.
"Play it as a regional competition in two-conferences and then perhaps you've got your Sydney grand final, your regional grand final and you meet for a super grand final at the end of the year.
"If you're going to relocate, I don't think the new area will accept a team that has been relocated. I don't believe in relocation. I think you've got to start a new franchise that is their own. And if you do that then you've got to have more teams in the competition.
"Given the history in our game I don't think it can afford to lose a current club. I think it's the traditional club brands in Sydney that makes the regional clubs more viable."
Among the other ideas floating around, Gould blasted the NRL for failing to adequately provide their once emerging franchises with the tools and infrastructure to secure their future when they needed it most.
"The fact is that the majority of our clubs trade in a position of insolvency anyway," he said. "Most of them lose money, many of them are supported by either private owners or by poker-machine income from licensed clubs, who's days are numbered.
"Having been in clubland I know how much it costs to run a club. Not just for one or two years, it's got to be ongoing. There is no financial incentive.
Phil Gould during his time at the Penrith Panthers (AAP)
"Not enough work has been done by the rugby league to help these new and expanding franchises. They've done nothing to help the Gold Coast. It's a basket case and it shouldn't be … They're burning their money because they haven't got it right from the start.
"They need to get it right from this day and they're not going to get it right, you can see what they've done already.
"They're going to keep burning money there until people say 'nothing works on the Gold Coast' … Something's got to work. The Gold Coast can work. They've just put the wrong people there the whole time."
https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/rugby-...il-gould/0abbc761-b4bd-4200-8328-e2ff0957dde2/
'The future is a two conference system': Phil Gould reveals his revolutionary plan for NRL posterity
2 days ago
Every month the debate over the future of rugby league in Australia flares up, and every month a section of the game seems to be put out.
Relocation, expansion and culls. Those three words prove enough to strike fear into even the most hardened NRL fan's heart while simultaneously leaving the game's administrators at the mercy of its pundits until hysteria dies down for another three weeks.
Rugby league guru Phil Gould sees it as a self-destructive cycle riddled with anxieties that cripples the game's ability to insure its future - and he says it's destined to repeat itself because the necessary research hasn't taken place.
"The first thing I'll say is that every time this subject comes up, people comment on about 10-seconds thought about what could be possible," Gould told Nine's 100% Footy.
Phil Gould and NRL chief Todd Greenberg (AAP)
"There is no one that has actually done research or gone into any market viability or looked at the financial structures of individual clubs or what it costs to run an NRL franchise.
"I said to (former NRL CEO) David Gallop 15 years ago 'What's the game look like in 15 years?'. You just get a blank expression. I've said it to (Gallop's successor) David Smith, I've said it to (former ARL Commission Chairman) John Grant, I've said it to (current NRL CEO) Todd Greenberg. I don't think they've done any work on this whatsoever.
"When GWS were coming into Sydney the AFL had done two decades of research on the demographic of Sydney on the financial viability of this organisation, on what the game and what Sydney was going to look like in that time.
"And I can remember them going to ANZ Stadium, looking at the future of ANZ Stadium and the bookings and those sorts of things. The ANZ Stadium boss said to me they knew more about rugby league than rugby league knew about itself.
"It had done more research on rugby league and these demographics than rugby league had ever done … they've had a cradle to the grave type of mentality with this, they've had a really long-term strategy.
Phil Gould (AAP)
"With us, we (the NRL) put (expansion clubs) somewhere where they don't go any good and we say 'Oh well that was a mistake'.
"I just don't know if the NRL over the last 10 or 15 years has done enough work to plan where it should go, or what it's going to look like when it gets there … not just for the short term but for the long term as well."
Gould's scathing view on the NRL's expansion strategy comes after weekend reports quoting Nine's Director of Sport Tom Malone suggesting a second club in Brisbane is the logical first step in expansion/relocation, arguing the move should come at the expense of a Sydney club by 2023, in time for the next TV rights deal.
Meanwhile, NSW Blues coach Brad Fittler advocated for the Cronulla Sharks to move to Perth or Manly to the Central Coast in the vain of Sydney Swans' highly successful move from South Melbourne.
Like clockwork those suggestions sparked a frenzied reaction throughout the game, overshadowing any conversation happening behind closed doors at NRL HQ.
Transplanting a team is understandably touchy, and in some cases an emotionally fraught issue.
While Gould wasn't convinced relocation was the way forward for the game, he conceded change was necessary, advocating for a revolutionary two-conference system to capitalise on the potential for local derbies to engage the tribal fans who play a massive part in the game's future.
"I think we're still a long, long way away from making this decision," Gould said. "But personally I've always believed the future of the game was a two conference system. That there needs to be nine teams in Sydney and nine teams outside of Sydney.
"Play it as a regional competition in two-conferences and then perhaps you've got your Sydney grand final, your regional grand final and you meet for a super grand final at the end of the year.
"If you're going to relocate, I don't think the new area will accept a team that has been relocated. I don't believe in relocation. I think you've got to start a new franchise that is their own. And if you do that then you've got to have more teams in the competition.
"Given the history in our game I don't think it can afford to lose a current club. I think it's the traditional club brands in Sydney that makes the regional clubs more viable."
Among the other ideas floating around, Gould blasted the NRL for failing to adequately provide their once emerging franchises with the tools and infrastructure to secure their future when they needed it most.
"The fact is that the majority of our clubs trade in a position of insolvency anyway," he said. "Most of them lose money, many of them are supported by either private owners or by poker-machine income from licensed clubs, who's days are numbered.
"Having been in clubland I know how much it costs to run a club. Not just for one or two years, it's got to be ongoing. There is no financial incentive.
Phil Gould during his time at the Penrith Panthers (AAP)
"Not enough work has been done by the rugby league to help these new and expanding franchises. They've done nothing to help the Gold Coast. It's a basket case and it shouldn't be … They're burning their money because they haven't got it right from the start.
"They need to get it right from this day and they're not going to get it right, you can see what they've done already.
"They're going to keep burning money there until people say 'nothing works on the Gold Coast' … Something's got to work. The Gold Coast can work. They've just put the wrong people there the whole time."
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