Your thoughts about a possible North Melbourne relocation

[Hollow Knight]

Putting aside how it effects us as a club, I just feel sorry for the North Melbourne supporters for the horrible way they've been treated by their own board and the AFL.

We should be fighting it on the principle that if it was us on the line, we'd like other clubs to support us.

 

[lionbear]

It's going to be the biggest 30 days the Kangaroos have gone through off the field in their history.

With the 2008 memberships being available the Kangaroos will be able to gauge where they are at. Any North person who doesn't sign in the next 30 days to let the club know how many members they have if they stay in North is not a True North supporter.

I hope they can survive at Arden Street but it is going to be a long tough fight.

It would be interesting to know Southport's position on all this.

 

[Hollow Knight]

It's going to be the biggest 30 days the Kangaroos have gone through off the field in their history.

With the 2008 memberships being available the Kangaroos will be able to gauge where they are at. Any North person who doesn't sign in the next 30 days to let the club know how many members they have if they stay in North is not a True North supporter.

I hope they can survive at Arden Street but it is going to be a long tough fight.

It would be interesting to know Southport's position on all this.

Wonder how long till John Howard and Kevin Rudd step in to be the heroes of the day?

 

[lionbear]

Wonder how long till John Howard and Kevin Rudd step in to be the heroes of the day?

AD V James Brayshaw (The Great Debate), would be interesting to see how the worm goes with this one

 

[Ry009]

AD V James Brayshaw, would be interesting to see how the worm goes with this one

Andy IS the worm!


By the way thanks for the words of support guys, much appreciated.

 

[Vidman]

Wonder how long till John Howard and Kevin Rudd step in to be the heroes of the day?

Good call

 

[dlanod]

Judging by the most recent reports of the Roos vs the AFL, I think Bowers has seen the tide coming and decided to swim with it. By the sounds of http://afl.com.au/Season2007/News/NewsArticle/tabid/208/Default.aspx?newsId=52916 there's going to be a team there regardless of whether we like it (Roos or some new team), so our best bet may be to get the AFL to acknowledge its impact on us and see what support we can get out of it. It'll make a nice change from the fines, corporate showdowns, etc, in previous years.

 

[Hollow Knight]

This is the package the AFL has offered to Roos. Its a doozy.

■A written guarantee of between seven and eight home-and-away games in Melbourne.

■A special deal for the club's Melbourne members.

■A promise to ensure the club's on-field success in the short-term via priority picks, further potential to pick up uncontracted players and a Gold Coast zone.

■Continuing support of Arden Street as a permanent Melbourne training base for the club and the wider community.

■State-of-the art training facilities and an AFL-funded marketing team to promote the team in the increasingly tough Gold Coast market.

■ Will underwrite the club's 4.5 million dollar debt

■ 3 million dollars allocated to buy-out shareholders.

 

[SweetLeftFoot]

Basically, they want us up there because they need an existing list, prefarably a decent one.

They learned from the Bears debacle that cobbling together a team of over the hill, were never good enoughs and chaps with pressing non-football related reasons to leave Melbourne was a disaster.

We made a PF this season missing our full forward and have a good young list. Chuck a couple of priority picks at us, and first dibs on uncontracted players for a few years, and there'll be an absolute powerhouse for GC types to jump onto.

But it won't be North, it'll be the GC Kangaroos, and it will have bugger all connection to Melbourne.

 

[dlanod]

Out of curiousity, how many of our current list hail from the Gold Coast? Especially those off our rookie list.

 

[LuckyLuke]

This is the package the AFL has offered to Roos. Its a doozy.

Interesting that they can be guaranteed between seven and eight home-and-away games in Melbourne, yet the Lions can't.

 

[Pedro the Lion]

Interesting article in the Australian today...

Titans object to Gold Coast turf war
Print Dan Koch | November 02, 2007

GOLD COAST TITANS managing director Michael Searle has slammed the AFL's approach to having a team placed on the Gold Coast by 2010, saying it reeked of arrogance and showed little regard for the local community.

Having overseen the Titans' stunning debut season, which saw the new club record the second-best home crowd average and merchandise sales in the NRL, Searle said his club had little to fear from AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou's announcement on Wednesday that either the Kangaroos or a newly created 17th team would have a permanent home on the Gold Coast within two years.

Already contracted to play seven games at Carrara Stadium over the next two seasons, the Kangaroos have been given just 30 days to agree to a proposal from the AFL to relocate to the tourist strip by 2010.

However, Searle said such an uncompromising, sledgehammer style was unlikely to win over fans on the Gold Coast who he claimed were already cynical about the AFL's motives for having a team in the region.

"What the AFL clearly doesn't understand is the Titans' entrance into the NRL wasn't simply a spur of the moment idea we had one day.

"It was the culmination of seven years of community-driven support to have an NRL team based here," Searle said.

"The people here can see straight through this. They see this as a strategic reaction by the AFL to counter the success of the Titans.

"They saw the Kangaroos playing games here this year as an attempt by the AFL to run interference on our first season and they will treat this latest announcement with the same cynicism."

Searle said it was insulting for the AFL to think it could simply place a team on the Gold Coast and expect fans to follow.

"You have to do much more to win over the Gold Coast market than simply getting a team and slapping a Gold Coast badge on them," Searle, who grew up in the area, said.

"You need to engage the local community otherwise it will simply collapse, as we have seen happen here many times before.

"What the AFL is trying to do reeks of arrogance."

Searle said the arrival of a second AFL team in southeast Queensland would not cost the Titans a single cent in revenue or corporate support but predicted it would cut into the market share of the Brisbane Lions.

Lions coach Leigh Matthews has been an outspoken critic of the AFL's attempts to move a second team into Queensland, adamant the region simply could not financially support a second team.

However, with the AFL having made its position clear, Lions chief executive Michael Bowers said the club was now preparing to meet any invader head-on. "The AFL's decision gives us some clarity and an unequivocal timeline to work within, so now we say 'bring it on'," Bowers said.

"We have until 2010 to shore up our patch and we will be working extremely hard as an organisation to do just that.

"When the new team does arrive we will get straight into it, competing both on and off the field and hopefully we can make life very difficult for them.

"I don't think anyone is under any illusion that it won't be a big challenge.

"But, from our perspective, there are certainly plenty of positives about having another team based here in Queensland.

"First and foremost there will be an extra team here which will help create a local rivalry as well as increase the overall coverage of the game. You will also have more people living and breathing AFL footy and that has a positive flow-on effect."

 

[lionbear]

Interesting article. I hope the Kangaroos stay in Melbourne but I think you will find the AFL have put more then 12 months thought into this. The AFL is investing alot of money into making it work (With stadium development). Will it work or not I don't know but if the NRL didn't think other codes weren't going to head up there that is not thinking the situation through.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Out of curiousity, how many of our current list hail from the Gold Coast? Especially those off our rookie list.

Surprisingly few actually.

Seniors:

Daniel Merrett (Surfers Paradise FC, Southport FC)
Wayde Mills (Southport FC) - technically is from NSW though.


Rookies

Haydn Kiel (Southport FC)
Joel Tippett (Southport FC)

 

[POBT]

They learned from the Bears debacle that cobbling together a team of over the hill, were never good enoughs and chaps with pressing non-football related reasons to leave Melbourne was a disaster.

While I agree, there are going to be a couple of differences between a new Gold Coast side and when the Bears started up:
* The AFL is clearly willing to spend/lose a lot of money whereas the VFL were not
* In a national competition, the notion of playing interstate is not as foreign * There is no disconnection for the players' main source of income, as there was when footy was barely semi-professional
* As professionals, players can be more easily swayed to relocate if the price is right
* Although it does not always seem like this, the AFL is now the predominant force in footy politics and has a far greater control of the clubs


Not saying that it would work, but creating a competitive team from scratch will be a whole lot easier than it was in the lead up to the 1987 season.

 

[lionbear]

With the Carrara stadium being done up for AFl a question I have is.

When the Gabba development was done was there an Agreement that a second Queensland AFL club would play out of the Gabba if there was one?

If yes what will the Gabba trust think of the happenings of the last week?

 

[Hollow Knight]

With the Carrara stadium being done up for AFl a question I have is.

When the Gabba development was done was there an Agreement that a second Queensland AFL club would play out of the Gabba if there was one?

If yes what will the Gabba trust think of the happenings of the last week?

I think I recall somehting about all Queensland finals are to be played at the Gabba.

Could be wrong though.

 

[lionbear]

I think I recall somehting about all Queensland finals are to be played at the Gabba.

Could be wrong though.

I am pretty sure there is something in place for the Gabba if a 2nd Queensland club was to come along. Imagine if a Gold Coast club in 2010 qualifies for it's 1st home final and discovers it has to play at the Gabba.

 

[Hollow Knight]

I am pretty sure there is something in place for the Gabba if a 2nd Queensland club was to come along. Imagine if a Gold Coast club in 2010 qualifies for it's 1st home final and discovers it has to play at the Gabba.

Imagine if a non-Victorian team qualifies for a home preliminary final and has to play at the MCG. Could cost them a flag.

Not that this could ever happen.

 

[dlanod]

Surprisingly few actually.

Seniors:

Daniel Merrett (Surfers Paradise FC, Southport FC)
Wayde Mills (Southport FC) - technically is from NSW though.


Rookies

Haydn Kiel (Southport FC)
Joel Tippett (Southport FC)

Thanks. Merrett was the one I was thinking of, that was making me wonder if there was more. I guess this makes me slightly less concerned about the Kangaroos potentially establishing a Gold Coast "zone" selection(s).

 

[lionbear]

Imagine if a non-Victorian team qualifies for a home preliminary final and has to play at the MCG. Could cost them a flag.

Not that this could ever happen.

I was going to say something similar but bit my tung

 

[MickZu]

This thread is proof that a lot of Brissy supporters have become spoiled by our success of the past. Not to be selfish I'm all for an AFL club on the Gold Coast and we have no right denying them an opportunity. I hear lots of future predictions of Armageddons if the Gold Coast goes ahead, like it's set in stone!

Fact is we have no idea of what the future will hold or bring and what influences will come along to change it. So ppl stop crapping on like you already know the outcome.............

A real Lions rivalry would probably do AFL in Qld a world of good.

Go the GOLD COAST WHOEVERS!!

 

[Hollow Knight]

This thread is proof that a lot of Brissy supporters have become spoiled by our success of the past. Not to be selfish I'm all for an AFL club on the Gold Coast and we have no right denying them an opportunity. I hear lots of future predictions of Armageddons if the Gold Coast goes ahead, like it's set in stone!

Fact is we have no idea of what the future will hold or bring and what influences will come along to change it. So ppl stop crapping on like you already know the outcome.............

A real Lions rivalry would probably do AFL in Qld a world of good.

Go the GOLD COAST WHOEVERS!!

Wow, so everyone else's opinion is classed as "crapping on like you already know the outcome"

But then you go on to make your own claims about what will happen.

Bravo!

 

[Cousin Jed]

This thread is proof that a lot of Brissy supporters have become spoiled by our success of the past. Not to be selfish I'm all for an AFL club on the Gold Coast and we have no right denying them an opportunity. I hear lots of future predictions of Armageddons if the Gold Coast goes ahead, like it's set in stone!

Fact is we have no idea of what the future will hold or bring and what influences will come along to change it. So ppl stop crapping on like you already know the outcome.............

A real Lions rivalry would probably do AFL in Qld a world of good.

Go the GOLD COAST WHOEVERS!!

I have no doubt that a team on the Gold Coast will cost millions and millions and millions. There is no hope of it being successful in the short to medium term IMHO.

None.

Which begs the question, why the hurry?

As for the bolded part, I think a few Kangaroos supporters might take exception to that comment.

 

[Vidman]

With the Carrara stadium being done up for AFl a question I have is.

When the Gabba development was done was there an Agreement that a second Queensland AFL club would play out of the Gabba if there was one?

If yes what will the Gabba trust think of the happenings of the last week?

I think it's till 2015. Although the reality would be that they'd have to renegotiate. The gabba couldn't lose it's only decent tennant and main source of income.

I remember when Broncos were trying to leave ANZ for Suncorp they were 'officialy' tied into a lease but they got out of it as Jim Soorly wasnt going to the one to hold them to it.