Big Bash expansion plans

[aussie1st]

Gold Coast, Canberra, Newcastle and Geelong are all in the running to have a Big Bash League team as soon as next summer as the reinvigorated KFC T20 competition continues to explode.



With ratings and crowds surging ahead of expectations, Cricket Australia has already started looking at further expansion years ahead of its original timetable.

http://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket...nd-crowd-figures/story-fn5k3es5-1226242268221

It really is all about the ratings for them not the quality as I can't see how we are going to find another 30 more players to fill in these two teams. The ACT play in the Future League so at least they have some players but none of the other places mentioned are in that comp. If anything get rid of the second teams from Melbourne and Sydney and give it to ACT and another place.

 

[Underarm]

they could move thunder from ANZ stadium (which is way too big....) to Canberra; and Renegades could (probably should have been to begin with...) play out of Geelong.

Introducing new teams will just dilute those markets even more, turning it more into district cricket rather than domestic cricket.

 

[Dont be a lemon]

The Sixers and Renegades won't be moving. The former especially.

 

[madmug]

CA need to be Vewy Vewy careful about changing the format too much, or too quickly.
Apparently the MCC got excited about T20 in the UK. They ended up with too much of a good thing which lost a lot of the early interest.
I would also be Vewy Vewy careful of whatever the marketing nut cases want to change or 'market'. They would like the money but wouldnt care about any negative consequences they might cause.

 

[The Speaker]

I hope CA aren't forgetting that you actually need enough players for those teams to have them playing.

 

[the 5th wiggle]

This is good news for those average players in club cricket.

 

[Tassieboy]

 

[CAS79]

This is excellent news for all of us

keep it coming and we'll be talking about our performance in the games instead of watching them.

 

[Selective Retention]

I hope CA aren't forgetting that you actually need enough players for those teams to have them playing.

Where are they going to find the bowlers? We've already got long retired players like Warne/MacGill/Hogg etc going around, and doing ok too, but to find another dozen or so bowlers for squads if you want 2 extra sides is going to be difficult. I guess that is what they want, guys like Gayle going to town on pie chuckers.

CA need only look to the A-League to see how premature expansion goes wrong.

 

[Bradesmaen]

This is excellent news for all of us

keep it coming and we'll be talking about our performance in the games instead of watching them.

Just waiting for the Glenelg team to pop up, might get myself a game.

 

[Cousin Jed]

The A-League model for expansion is not one they should be copying. Unless they want to kill it.

Oh....

 

[Bucking Beads]

Maybe in 5-10 years we could expand and have 2 more teams but not next summer. We don't have the talent in our ranks to sustain decent cricket with that many teams. We hardly have the talent now.

 

[red+black]

Already too many teams. Maybe we should run the BBL for 2 months like the IPL

 

[Tassieboy]

BRB - going to start playing cricket again.

 

[XFactor1979]

Ooh what a lovely concept

How about teams from Broome, Singapore and New Zealand next eh?

 

[Arbuckle]

CA need to be Vewy Vewy careful about changing the format too much, or too quickly.
Apparently the MCC got excited about T20 in the UK. They ended up with too much of a good thing which lost a lot of the early interest.

Agree with this.

Have to say that I'm not a huge fan of T20 anyway. But that I am finding this series tediously boring now.

The Hurricanes are the most entertaining side to watch, followed by the Scorchers. But the rest of the teams are near-unwatchable for me.

Despite the crap about T20 being so 'exciting', 'intense', 'action-packed' etc, think carefully about how many times in this format you actually see a genuinely close finish. It's extremely rare, with most games effectively decided at least 5 or 6 overs before the end of the second innings, if not even earlier.

To expand a series that already has 8 (mostly uninteresting) teams, a lack of a sufficiently deep well of talent and spans way too many matches and too long a period of time would be a mistake IMO. A big mistake.

They've already weakened and hacked into the Ryobi Cup (which is a far better competition) to facilitate this T20 series, and compromised the capacity of state players to participate in any FC cricket ahead of Test matches for a month-and-a-half. So one only wonders what else they now want to compromise.

 

[rioli is a hack]

Agree with this.

Have to say that I'm not a huge fan of T20 anyway. But that I am finding this series tediously boring now.

The Hurricanes are the most entertaining side to watch, followed by the Scorchers. But the rest of the teams are near-unwatchable for me.

Despite the crap about T20 being so 'exciting', 'intense', 'action-packed' etc, think carefully about how many times in this format you actually see a genuinely close finish. It's extremely rare, with most games effectively decided at least 5 or 6 overs before the end of the second innings, if not even earlier.

To expand a series that already has 8 (mostly uninteresting) teams, a lack of a sufficiently deep well of talent and spans way too many matches and too long a period of time would be a mistake IMO. A big mistake.

They've already weakened and hacked into the Ryobi Cup (which is a far better competition) to facilitate this T20 series, and compromised the capacity of state players to participate in any FC cricket ahead of Test matches for a month-and-a-half. So one only wonders what else they now want to compromise.

I didn't know Carlton fans were capable of this level of analysis.

 

[red+black]

My feeling is that the finals should be on this weekend. Obviously not going to happen with the Test on but I would have been happy with it ending about now.

 

[Arbuckle]

I didn't know Carlton fans were capable of this level of analysis.

Hahahahaha.

Get lost.

And why on earth would anyone supporting some Johnny-come-lately like 'Western Sydney' or GWS feel empowered to have a go at a great traditional club like the Blues anyway?!?!

 

[Underarm]

Despite the crap about T20 being so 'exciting', 'intense', 'action-packed' etc, think carefully about how many times in this format you actually see a genuinely close finish. It's extremely rare, with most games effectively decided at least 5 or 6 overs before the end of the second innings, if not even earlier.

well this is oh so very wrong. Most games are close as the game can change from just one bad over where 20 runs get hit making the batting side back in it.
Though I agree with the rest of your post.

what about New Zealand's competition? is there something we could do with them to expand it?

My feeling is that the finals should be on this weekend. Obviously not going to happen with the Test on but I would have been happy with it ending about now.

yeah I agree. they could push the games closer, play more double matches to get through them and maybe start the tournament a week earlier or something.

The tournament is going to take a while to finish as the semi's and the Finals have a whole week in between them. Madness.

 

[StringyDog]

Would be a disaster, should only be 6 teams as that's all the talent there is at moment with a couple of players in most sides not deserving a spot in squad letalone playing, especially if they limit the internationals and can't attract more talent as some of the imports this season are terrible players

 

[The Passenger]

i reckon they'll seriously considering ditching the 50 over internationals, or only play maybe 3, and using that period to play the big bash and try and convince the touring internationals to play in it.

i really couldn't care less as long as they

1) play shield cricket when the test series is on
2) play 5 or 6 tests every season (i don't see why ashes shouldn't be six tests. they used to be in england.
3) conduct a pretty study into possible effects of injuries on quick bowlers and the relationship with T20 cricket.

you've got to remember amongst the buzz of ratings and crowds so far you've got to remember they increased their expenditure massively. the figure mostly bandied around is mid 30 millions... i couldn't tell you how much it was last season as a comparison but i would be suprised if it was above 10... you just have to look all the additional advertisement which would be the main thing.

they seem to have a pretty good thing going. one of the biggest killers of any product is market saturation.

an australian cricket calendar something like;

1) shield and one day cricket, from early october to the boxing day test. 6 or 7 games of each.
2) 5/6 tests going from early to mid november (fitting in 3 shield games prior to the first test) to the sydney new years test. 5 ODI's from ~jan 10 to ~jan 20. if no test played at hobart, they must get an ODI. capital city missing ODI to rotate (but admittedly CA won't let sydney or melbourne miss)
3) big bash going from jan 10 to feb 10.
4) recommence shield and one day competitions mid feb to end of march.
5) australia's post summer tour commence start of april.

what they do with the big bash is up to them... i reckon they'll probably look at two conferences of six, with quarters, semi and final. 37 games in about a 30 day period.

test players available for the last section of shield matches, and the section prior to the tests if not on a pre summer tour.

i do fear this would take state players completely out of grade cricket. that is a massively packed schedule compared to summers gone.... but that is the way it's going.

if we end up with a system whereby state players don't get any exposure to test cricketers, and grade cricketers get none to state cricketers, then it will hurt us as a whole.

both should play a third of the season below them - so far test cricketers they should be looking at about 3 state games, and state cricketers should be looking at about 5 or 6 grade games.

a lot of that will be determined by CA and the players associations collective bargaining agreement which i couldn't find on the net. that would no doubt have something regarding how many days of play they could play, possibly also subdivided into each format - tests, 4-day first class, 2 and 3 day grade or touring games, 50 over matches and 20 over matches....

 

[arkie]

So will they change the name to Enormous Bash League?

 

[Northern_Swan]

Where in Newcastle are they going to play if they expand to a Newcastle franchise? The cricket ground has only a 1000 seat grandstand (if that) and the only ground with a decent facility for spectators is the Jets home ground which is rectangular! Absolute pie in the sky stuff!

 

[madmug]

Where in Newcastle are they going to play if they expand to a Newcastle franchise? The cricket ground has only a 1000 seat grandstand (if that) and the only ground with a decent facility for spectators is the Jets home ground which is rectangular! Absolute pie in the sky stuff!

They will want to careful in Newcastle too. If they get an upgraded cricket facility in the future, the next thing would be the AFL wanting to use it for its own expansion