Sunshine Coast NRL dream team
Fri 04 November 2011
Anthony Brand, Bachelor of Journalism
For the past decade there has been continuous debate as to whether the Sunshine Coast could accommodate an NRL Team.
With the NRL planning to expand from 16 to 18 teams in 2013, the topic has again surfaced as the NRL offers two new football club licenses.
The current front-runners for the new licenses are the New South Wales Central Coast and South East Queensland.
The dream of the Sunshine Coast having it’s own NRL Side may be just that with Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles chief executive officer Justin Veivers stating the Sunshine Coast was a long way off having the means to support an NRL franchise.
“I think an NRL team here would be fantastic but the reality is we need to be able to raise $A15million dollars a year to run it and I just can’t see that happening anytime in the near future,” Mr Veivers said.
“The possibility of an NRL side here will come down to us putting together a decent bid which comes down to a commercial decision and to be honest, we’re a million miles away from that.”
Another option being discussed is the possibility of relocating a current NRL Team to the Coast as many Sydney NRL sides continue to post financial losses.
“I think relocation down the track will probably be the way to go as the NRL is already expanding to18 teams and I can’t imagine the competition ever going to 20,“ Mr Vievers said.
“Relocation could very well be the best way forward but we need to put together a good package for that to happen.”
South East Queensland was regarded as one of the strongest rugby league nurseries in Australia, further supporting a push for another NRL Team.
While the area certainly has the talent to field a side, Mr Veivers said the lack of support for existing regional teams remained the biggest obstacle.
“We’re a rugby league heartland here, there’s no two ways about that, but the Sunshine Coast as a community has to decide whether they want a team at that level, and, if they do, they need to start supporting local regional teams that already exist,” Mr Veivers said.
“We had Daly Cherry-Evans playing here last year in front of crowds of 600 people and he’s now going to play for Australia.
“If the community can show strong support at that level it will help strengthen the case to have an NRL Team here.”
One major avenue of funding for NRL teams was the gate takings at games, which posed the question of where the side would play.
Estimates for a proposed new stadium were upwards of $A30million for a medium sized facility, which would cater for up to 25,000 people.
Mr Veivers said Queensland Government funding was essential to the processes of building a professional football side.
“We’d need Government support to help build a stadium because at the end of the day we have nowhere to play at the moment,” Mr Veivers said.
“It would cost several million dollars to construct a ground which would have to be serviced, something I don’t think the Government would like to do.
“I know the government have helped the AFL’s Gold Coast Suns in getting up and running but there is no long term prospect of relying on the government to pay for it as you’ve got to be able to generate the money through sponsorship, tickets and the NRL Levy.”
Local Council Member for Caloundra Tim Dwyer said while the Queensland Government would need to pitch in, corporate support was more important to the ongoing success of a Sunshine Coast based NRL side.
“The Coast would love to have an NRL Side of their own and I think it would be great for the area some time down the track,” Cr Dwyer said.
“The reality is that it takes millions of dollars to fund a professional team and to do that we’d need strong corporate support from local businesses.
“At present I don’t think the area is strong enough financially to cater to the long term success of an NRL Team at this stage.”
Mr Veivers believed the coast was at least 15 years away from having the industry to support a team unless the venture received backing from a private investor.
“There are great NRL teams with a lot of history that are losing money, so the reality is that we are 15 years away from it,” Mr Veivers said.
“Unless someone like Clive Palmer says he wants to have a team here and makes a commitment to fund it, we have a long time to wait.”
Image(s) designed by Anthony Brand