ARL cant be that stupid

[Rex]

...
The difference between communism and superleage is just as you say, communism is good in theory.
...

Gold!

 

[Rex]

I go away thinking this thread will die its natural death, and you guys keep giving it fresh energy.  Great stuff.

 

[Rex]

Do you get rid of profitable and popular teams like Manly just to keep a team in Adelaide, in order to sell Pay TV???  Happy for teams to die but to force teams to merge and fold was never on. Game was healthy in 95 and I reckon if Mr Murdoch had his time over again he wouldn't have bothered.

Yeah, CW.  If you could cut the number of Sydney teams to say four, without disaffecting the fans, and expanded to include major cities, regional centres and capitals, then that may appear ideal if your goal was to expand the game.  We all understand that concept. 

But what hope of ever doing that successfully without a master plan, and what hope when done in a hostile takeover of the sport? Where was the plan to get fans on-side? 

We all know Gallop is a News Ltd stooge. And that he was the key lawyer used by News Ltd to poach players from the ARL. So the Gallop/News Ltd plan is to sell free-to-air TV in Melbourne and Victorian cities to show after midnight????  That is a master plan for expansion?

If they were serious about expanding the game, then they would do much better selling the free to air rights in say Victoria (better still Australia-wide) for $1 to the ABC on condition they show the football in prime viewing timeslots.  Real sports fanatics would rather watch sport on the ABC than a current affairs program on channel Nine.

Less income in the short-term with the prospect of massive increases in TV viewing public, greater sponsorship of teams, etc.

 

[TokyoEagle]

1 Murdoch tried to take over the game. ( for his pay TV station )
2 It didn't work
3 Big court case ( effectively Murdoch loses but gets given control of 1/2 the game as compensation for his outlay)
4 NRL continues with Murdoch controlling the future of HIS teams ( sells of the unprofitable ones after a short time)
5 NRL is a seperate entity with 2 opposing sides running the show (Don't know how many decent corporations are run under these conditions nowadays).

Why would he ever be expected to contribute to the game again? He is only an owner by default and did not get what he wanted.

What profit do you think the Broncos make?
Would he offload the Storm if he could?

 

[DSM5]

Goodnight.