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  1. #31

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    I hope our new name is The Accountants.

    At home games we can cook books.
    I love Aiden Sezer so much I made his profile pic my avatar.

  2. #32
    Administrator DIEHARD's Avatar
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    He is one talented bloke!
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  3. #33
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    West Coast Pirates face stormy seas

    The bidding war for a Perth-based team in an expanded National Rugby League competition has turned dirty with the two rivals embroiled in a battle of words.

    Claims of a conflict of interest, an attempt to turn a WA Rugby League board member, questions on franchise funding and the true motives behind the bids surfaced as the WARL launched the West Coast Pirates as the new face of the sport they hope will take them into the national competition.

    _The West Australian _can reveal that four weeks ago a secret meeting was held between WARL chief executive John Sackson and board chairman Richard Campbell and rival syndicate members Tony Sage, who owns Perth Glory, and former Balmain Tigers legend Benny Elias.

    The meeting, organised by Elias, was said to be amicable but no decisions were taken.

    But it is understood that within an hour of the meeting at a Leederville restaurant the Sage-Elias syndicate had contacted a WARL board member and tried to recruit him.

    Sage said the WARL would not be able to match the $110 million, 10-year deal he was offering, would need Australian Rugby League help and would fund the bid from money from grassroots rugby.

    He also claimed the WARL was boasting it had already won the licence.

    Sackson dismissed Sage's claims as "outrageous".

    "I question their genuine passion, intentions and objectives as to why they want to get involved in rugby league in this State," he said.

    "They say they can contribute $100 million to their bid. That's fantastic if that's actually true and accurate and it's real. Some people embellish figures a hell of a lot.

    "You can talk about vast sums of money being spent but if it's in the wrong hands and without the appropriate governance and financial management and the right passionate people committed for the long term to the code of rugby league ? well, good luck to them if that's the path they are going to go down.

    "Our bid will not be funded by the ARL and no grassroots money will be involved.

    "To say that the WARL have been running around town telling everyone we've already got the licence is misleading, untrue and certainly misguiding. We are not that arrogant. We are realists."

    Sackson said Sage had turned the WARL down two years ago when asked if he would become a sponsor of its bid.

    "That is still the case to this day. He has not invested in any shape or form in rugby league in WA," Sackson said.

    David Hobbs, the WARL's bid director, said $100 million over 10 years fell well short of what would be needed to run an NRL franchise.

    Sage said Sackson sparked the war of words by making remarks about Elias in a TV interview.

    "Sackson said Benny had no experience. It's outrageous. I'm annoyed but Benny's fuming," Sage said.

    Elias said that because a portion of Sackson's salary was paid by the ARL he had a conflict of interests.

    "It is very dubious, it is the ARL bidding for a franchise in the NRL," Elias said.

    He also said it was "absolutely not true" that he, Sage, or any other investors involved in their bid had called the WARL board member.

    "It is very dubious, it is the ARL bidding for a franchise in the NRL." " Rival bidder *Ben Elias *

    http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest
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  4. #34
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    SG Ball jersey for 2013.

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  5. #35
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    Western Australia a candidate for new NRL club

    WESTERN Australia has renewed hope it can win an NRL franchise in the "medium term'' after the league yesterday announced it would review its stance on expansion at the end of the 2014 season.

    Australian Rugby League chairman John Grant said yesterday during a visit to Perth it was ``highly unlikely'' the NRL would not become an 18-team competition and asked WA fans to be patient.

    ``It is highly unlikely that given the growth aspirations we've got for the game in the next five years, that we won't have a sufficient base and momentum to create new NRL clubs,'' he said.

    ``We have to go through the right process to do that. This is not a five-year, ten-year decision, this is a 20, 30, 40-year decision. It has got to be right.

    ``We are playing a long-term game here. What I would say to the supporters of rugby league here and the people that got behind the proposal that did come forward, is it is a long-term play. We want you to stay involved and let's

    just see where the next step takes us.

    ``You didn't lose.

    ``Now it is an opportunity for WA to put the facts in front of me to make us more aware of the WA situation and will continue to work on that together.''

    Grant confirmed the NRL was looking at playing three games in Perth next season.

    It is believed two of those will be twilight games on Sundays, allowing the games to be televised live back to the eastern States on Sunday nights.

    South Sydney is locked in, possibly against the Warriors in early July in the middle of the State-of-Origin series when the momentum around the code is at fever pitch.

    Penrith is also believed to be keen on a clash with reigning champion Melbourne Storm and there is speculation surrounding the Canberra Raiders playing a game.

    The Panthers will meet with WARL officials and NRL director commercial and marketing Paul Kind on November 8.

    ``We'll bring three NRL fixtures here this year,'' Grant said.

    ``Clearly WA is on our agenda and probably more so than it has been in the past in terms of that degree of involvement.

    ``We hope that will allow the fan base to remain polarised around NRL. We acknowledge the difficulties that the uncertainty around expansion has created.''

    WA's hopes of an NRL team in the short term were crushed when the NRL completed negotiations with the Nine Network and Foxtel on a new TV rights package. Nine boss David Gyngell said there was no appetite for more games.

    The ARLC announced on Monday expansion was off the menu when it unveiled a five-year strategic plan on Monday, launching a new logo and funding of $200 million for grassroots development.

    But Grant said yesterday a new WA franchise could be admitted to the competition in the medium term.

    ``If we came out of the back of a review in 2014 and we determined that there was a case for expansion and we identified where expansion should be then I think you would want to move pretty quickly,'' he said.

    ``And it seems to me to be an opportunity to start to parallel some discussions if you had a sense of where the outcome is going to be rather than try and make it sequential.''

    He denied the NRL was giving other codes such as Super 15 and the AFL a ``free kick'' by delaying a decision on expansion.

    Grant used the comparison that the AFL had to spent $10 on every potential fan in the NRL heartland of western sydney whereas the NRL only had to spend $1 on each fan to keep them.

    ``It is different strategies for different outcomes and it depends on your bank account balance. That helps. We haven't got a bank account balance quite as strong as AFL at the moment,'' he said.

    ``But over time we expect that will be the case.

    ``You need to make sure that every dollar you spend you spend wisely.''

    Grant conceded the WA time zone was appealing.

    ``There are advantages to schedule games so they can be watched live consecutively. That goes all the way from
    New Zealand across to Perth so as we contemplate the criteria by which we make decisions that certainly has to play into it,'' he said.

    West Australian Rugby League chairman Richard Campbell said the NRL had given his organisation a ``road map and some vision of where we want to be'' and was confident that sponsors would stay on board.

    ``Over the next two years I see ourselves as having a real chance of not only growing the code here but also going further into that development process for an NRL franchise,'' he said.

    WARL chief executive John Sackson conceded it was a ``tough gig'' to keep WA rugby league fans on course.

    ``Certainly it is challenging. We are looking at a further delay after expectations had been set, and stakeholders' appetites had been wet,'' he said.

    ``But we have faith in our stakeholders, we have faith in our sponsors, we believe there is a real loyalty to us. They can see where the game is going now.

    ``At least now what John and the commission have identified is we have a real destination now. We have a real target to aim for and to plan towards and that is post-season 2014.

    ``If we can speed up the process then fantastic. That is really up to us to be aggressive.''

    Grant conceded the NRL had allowed speculation over expansion go on for too long, giving WA fans false hope that a local team was imminent.

    ``We let the process run. I don't think we put enough boundaries around it, and I don't think we gave enough clarity,'' he said.

    http://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/
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  6. #36
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    Very happy to see John Grant go around and look like a leader of a National game.

    Hope he visits all the other states and territories very soon.
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  7. #37
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    WA Pirates vow to fight on for NRL side

    The West Coast Pirates have vowed to make their bid for a Perth-based NRL side "irresistible" when the ARL Commission (ARLC) puts expansion back on the agenda in 2014.

    The seven organisations bidding for a NRL side - including groups from Brisbane, Ipswich, Perth and the NSW central coast - were dealt a huge blow on Monday when the ARLC effectively ruled out expansion until at least 2017.

    The Pirates are hot favourites to be granted a NRL licence when the league eventually decides to expand, with Western Australia's time zone playing into the bid team's favour.

    The Western Australian Rugby League (WARL) have been working since 2007 to get a Perth-based NRL side up and running.

    WARL chief executive John Sackson admitted the latest delay in expansion had been a big blow, but said it wouldn't deter the Pirates from coming back stronger when the issue was re-opened at the end of the 2014 season.

    "I can't deny the outcome is very disappointing for us, because we were led to believe that expansion was probably likely," Sackson said on Thursday.

    "One of the most frustrating things over recent times has been the uncertainly and the misleading speculation.

    "But at least now ... we have a real destination, a real target to aim for and to plan towards, and that is post-season 2014.

    "We want to build a team that has strong foundations and a club that's going to be here for an eternity, not one that will crash and burn.

    "We hope at some point the bid is going to become irresistible.

    "We know the Commission and the NRL ultimately want to become a national competition.

    "To do that, they've got to come to Perth. So it's up to us to keep strengthening the foundations of the game here."

    ARLC chairman John Grant confirmed Perth would host three NRL fixtures in 2013, with South Sydney a confirmed starter for one of the matches.

    And Grant hinted Perth was well placed to have a NRL side once expansion was given the green light, especially with the $95 million redevelopment of nib Stadium underway.

    "Clearly, WA is on our agenda, probably more so that it has in the past," Grant said after meeting the WARL's hierarchy in Perth.

    "It's difficult not to look out this window and see the brand new stands going up around a rectangular field.

    "That certainly greases the rails in a lot of ways. Well done to the WA government and the WARL's part in making this happen. That's a key part of this whole matrix."

    Grant said it was just a matter of time before the league expanded.

    "It's highly unlikely - given the growth aspirations we've got for the game in the next five years - that we won't have sufficient base and momentum to create new NRL clubs," Grant said.

    WA TODAY
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  8. #38
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  9. #39
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    Ryan backs Perth NRL team

    Former Kangaroo forward Andrew Ryan believes Australia has enough talent coming through junior ranks to sustain an expanded National Rugby League competition.

    Ryan, a NSW State of Origin representative who had nine seasons with Canterbury, also said an expanded competition could help stop the player drain to the English Super League.

    Ryan, now an NRL ambassador after hanging up his boots in 2011, is in Perth as part of the sport's community carnival and "tackle bullying" program and to promote the two NRL games at nib Stadium this year. The Bulldogs clash with Melbourne on Saturday, March 29 and South Sydney tackle the Warriors in June.

    NRL boss Dave Smith has said expanding the 16-team competition is on the agenda for the end of this season however it is unlikely to take place until the current broadcasting deal runs out in three years.

    Ryan, who with three other ambassadors, former players Ben Ross, Matt Cooper and Scott Prince, will take the NRL program to 5000 Perth schoolchildren this week, said the city would be an ideal place for its own expansion side.

    "In my opinion, if they are looking to expand the competition it would be great to have a team playing out of here," Ryan said.

    "There is a big supporter base and the live TV spot is obviously a feature. I think it would work very well. Often people speak about how many teams are in Sydney but I'm not sure what the locals would be like here with a relocated team.

    "I'd like to see a team based here with a new supporter base. If we can cater for it then why not do it. Player strength is the other question I guess.

    "In the last few years the Queensland Cup competition and the NSW competitions have certainly gone up a peg."

    Ryan said bringing the high-profile match against the Storm to Perth had been embraced by Bulldogs players.

    "They realise how important it is to rugby league over here and they are willing to take games away from their home venues," he said.

    "It's a great thing for everyone involved to have a competition game over here.

    "The more games we can see here the better."

    news.yahoo.com
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  10. #40
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    Red turned ref likes Perth's NRL chances

    Former Western Reds half-back Matt Rodwell admits he was one of those annoying players who queried every decision.

    These days he sees things very differently as an NRL video referee.

    Rodwell, in his second season as an official, was in the video booth for Saturday night's clash between South Sydney and the New Zealand Warriors at nib Stadium where he had to decide on a couple of close calls.

    "I was one of those half-backs who was continually in the referees' ear questioning decisions," Rodwell said.

    "I understand the frustrations and emotions of players on the field, but having mixed with referees, now understand the pressures and how they handle them."

    Rodwell was last at the ground 17 years ago as part of a Perth Reds side that scored a 34-6 Super League victory over Canterbury.

    "I remember that day, Julian (O'Neill) scored four tries and there was a great crowd considering the facilities weren't great back then," Rodwell said.

    Rodwell, who played through the Super League war and the Reds' demise, believes Perth deserves a new NRL side.

    "Perth is ready for it. They can handle it, there is still a vibe," he said. "The one thing that annoys me and gets me really fired up is when people suggest that the Reds was a failure. It wasn't.

    "We had good home crowds despite playing at the WACA which was not a great ground to watch rugby league and whilst our success was mixed, we had a strong core following and that would have grown had we continued.

    "All the players loved the place and were disappointed that we had to go. We had a pretty good first year, the next couple of years were a bit dry, but it was a very volatile, tumultuous time in the game.

    "We never got off the ground initially in '96, we went into Super League, there were injunctions and there was the turmoil behind the scenes.

    "Anything that could have gone wrong did go wrong."

    The Rabbitohs showed their fighting qualities on Saturday night, coming from behind to win 34-18 in front of a record 20,267 people - the biggest crowd since the venue was made rectangular.

    WA Rugby League chief executive John Sackson said it was a boost for the game in Perth.

    "That is a reward for the hard work and investment by the WARL, the Rabbitohs and all involved," he said.

    https://au.news.yahoo.com
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  11. #41
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    i really hope we can see former Reds players embrace the new club. I'd love that.
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  12. #42
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    So basically the NRL has taken over the WARL.

    My theory is that the NRL are keeping things on the down low on purpose, as to not create an arms race between bids and waste a hell of a lot of people's money.

    I'm sure they want West Coast in the competition.

    After the circus that is a few clubs owned by mini dictators, I believe the NRL has had a gutful and want to follow the Suns and GWS model of central ownership.
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  13. #43
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    I just ordered a Pirates jersey.

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    Remember the argument I put up to try and call the GC side Pirates.
    Quote Originally Posted by Titus View Post
    When I am unable to respect and accept the decisions that are being made that directly affect my team, then I must take a backwards step.

  15. #45
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    Quote Originally Posted by Coaster View Post
    Remember the argument I put up to try and call the GC side Pirates.
    LOL not specifically. But I know it's gonna be good.
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