Why is there a melbourne team?

Question

Everyone knows Victorians don't do anything apart from eat sleep and watch AFL. They have the best rugby league team in the comp and can't pull a crowd or any media interest simply because no one is interested. Their players are all imports and the NRL thinks that by keeping the Storm where it is then interest will eventuate like it did with Sydney and the Swans, well it just ain't gonna happen, if Swans go c**p then no one will watch AFL in n.s.w anymore, but Victorians are different, Melbourne can win the next 10 grand finals and still they won't be interested, victorians hate anything that isn't afl, they don't support rugby league and never will, why don't they just move the Storm somewhere where there is a point in having a team in that city like the central coast

Answer 1

Mate I don't like Melbourne either, but they need to be in the comp.  Appart from the example of Sydney in the AFL (they went c**p for 15 years before anyone took notice) the NRL needs to establish a national comp as soon as possible.  

  Appart from Melbourne we should immediately place teams in Perth and South Australia, get better pay TV rights and sponsorship that go with the perception of a truly national comp, and negotiate a free TV deal that forces the broadcaster to show games in the "AFL" states in prime time.

  The Storm already have 15,000 or so hardcore fans, and you have to think 20 years in the future, or 50 years in the future.  If the Storm last in Melbourne for 50 years, they are gonna be ok

Answer 2

You know what, to somewhat degree I agree with your statement. I am from Sunshine Coast, QLD but I have seen the Storm play before (When they played at Brisbane Suncorp Stadium) and man they flogged our assses! But you are right, everyone is caught up in AFL. I don't actually like AFL, I think it's c**p. Hope people realise that! Lol

Answer 3

It’s about business before its about sport..

Today the thinking is along the lines of.

< If you sit back and do nothing your business will not survive.You have to expand. >

Thats how they see it.

The AFL is also in other states while the NRL included a place for the NZ team.

The problem for all sports is that Australia is big in size yet there is simply not enough fans for all.  

The NRLs other problem is ego. They simply wont accept that they may be doing it wrong.

Someone needs to work out why Melbourne people for some reason are more inclined to go to see an event.  I think the key to this is working out why that is so and not just for football.  Sydney people seem to be more a stay at home lot for many things.

Maybe the AFL have more reasonable ticket cost.  

As the grounds for NRL are not currently full or even close to full I wonder why they don’t have a two level entrance fee.

A normal fee and a discount fee for   "members"   of local junior clubs.

That could be followed by a even bigger discount for   "players"   from Junior/local clubs. (including all codes)  

This would encourage fans to join local junior clubs and help to support the local game and it could get fans into games at a reasonable cost.

Love them or hate them you have to agree that currently the AFL are doing agood job at selling their product.

Answer 4

I hate the Melbourne Storm with a passion....but they have been a success story....remember the Adelaide Rams and the Western Reds? they failed.....i think the NRL has did the right thing by introducing a Victorian team...although id prefer to see another NSW team....possibly containing bush footy players...imagine that...the best players from the Parkes Spacemen , Nyngan Tigers , Cobar Roosters etc....trying to match it with the big guns.

Answer 5

The thing is, it isn't really a Melbourne team. Just because you transpose 25 players plus support staff, all from New South Wales and Queensland, into Victoria doesn't make them a 'local' team. This was tried up on the Central Coast with the Northern Eagles and we know how that turned out. Victorians aren't embracing the team or the code. All the exercise is doing is keeping a few thousand ex-pat New South Welshmen and Queenslanders happy. And the 'Storm' is a stupid nick-name, right up there with the Queensland Roar and Perth Glory. What were they thinking!

Answer 6

Give it time, First 10 years for the swans weren't so pretty. Plus they play at an absolute horrible ground, once they build their new stadium they'll get double what they are getting atm.

I wouldn't say Victorians "hate" Rugby League seeing as they sell out State of Origin whenever we take it there.

EDIT:

@ the guy below me,

The NRL does give out discounts to junior players. Any registered player under the age of 18 get free admission to any games bar the Final series. Its all comes down to that most kids in Sydney these days would rather play the game, watch it on tv or go to the beach. There's just too much things to do in Sydney...too much for it's own good.

Answer 7

Why are there Queensland teams.

Answer 8

I am a Victorian and have been a member  of Melbourne Storm for the past 8 year.i attend all home games and travel whenever possible.I may be in the minority in Victoria but over the last few years i have seen more and more AFL supporters turning up to our games(still in there footy gear)

The supporter numbers are steadily going up every year.

Could it be that we are successfully on the field that you Mexicans resent Melbourne having a team and it is nothing to do with the amount of supporters we have.

Storm supporters are passionate and i would rather have 2,000 true supporters than 10000 hangers on who are only interested because of our success

Storm are in Melbourne to stay so get over it.

GO STORM

Answer 9

to show the rest of australia what a real league team looks like

Answer 10

simple, cos its a place and it wants to have a team ... so it does.

Answer 11

Victorians are useless at sport, but seem obsessed with winning. They made a game they could play (why they have three goals and are allowed to drop the ball) and they made it so stupid that no other states would be interested, so only they could win. But now that other states play AFL, the Victorians can't win.

So when Victoria notices that their AFL teams can't win anymore, they'll want to support a team that does (the Storm)

Answer 12

well there must be a lot of closet nrl supporters in victoria then cause if the storm didn't have a fan base there the club would be finished by now but they are still there.

Answer 13

I think you need to look at the game rather the logistics, fans have embraced AFL in NSW and QLD, remember the Swan haven't always flown so high and the Lions have over 25,000 members and have struggled over the past few years!, AFL devotees find NRL slow and boring, don't get me wrong I anman unashamed Storm fan and go rain hail or shine every week, but you are correct the vast majority of AFL fans and I include SA, WA don't give a toss about the NRL, the Storm get a lot of press in Melb, but the game is always going to play a minor role in the Victorian landscape, in fact the Melbourne Victory pull 3 times the crowds the storm do, Another factor is Olympic Park, it is a disgrace, we are spoilt in Melb with the MCG Telstra Dome and Rod Laver when the new stadium is built I am sure you will see a rise in crowd numbers, whenever the Storm play at the dome they pull big numbers Rd 1 v Warriors 20,000+. Slater, Inglis Falou could walk down Bourke St naked and nobody would notice!!