And He is from Qld. \:d/

Seriously Ben Barba is a fucking freak. He;s got to the point where him beating 5 defenders, running the length of the field to score or set up a try is just the norm. Watching him on TV is one thing, but watching him live is something else, just amazing.

Parramatta's disgraceful defending helped make that try look amazing. Credit to Kearney and his inablility to coach.

Did have a good :lol: at Barba brushing off Sandow's attempted shoulder charge like he wasn't even there.

Also do Parramatta know you have to defend both the right and left side of the field. I don't think Josh Morris will ever score 2 easier tries in his life.

Well he scored a couple of soft ones last week.

Did have a good :lol: at Barba brushing off Sandow's attempted shoulder charge like he wasn't even there.

Also do Parramatta know you have to defend both the right and left side of the field. I don't think Josh Morris will ever score 2 easier tries in his life.

Copley might have a suspected broken leg. I hope Kasiano is rubbed out for two weeks. But that won't happen because the judiciary are a bunch of apes. Still filthy about Te'o being suspended for two weeks.

He won't be rubbed out for 2 weeks because he shouldn't be. There was literally nothing he could do about it and it was just unfortunate that Moi Moi slipped right into it which will help Sam's case.

What I want is consistency. In the first few weeks they had a massive crackdown on swinging arms and shoulder charges and now nothing.

Just to make things clear for the vast majority of the incidents this year I don't think those guys deserved suspension.

Edited by Roar_Brisbane: 14/7/2012 06:16:06 PM

This wasn't a swinging arm though. The tackle would've been perfectly legitimate if not for the last minute slip by Moi Moi. It'd be a bit tough to suspend a player because the other player slipped and there was no chance of him being able to do anything about it.

Eels coach Stephen Kearney sacked!!!

http://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/eels-cut-kearney-loose/story-fndujljl-1226430283531

Canberra Raiders #-o

They get your hopes up, only to let you down.

Parramatta captain Nathan Hindmarsh reveals in his autobiography, Old School, a $200,000 pokie habit

Parramatta captain Nathan Hindmarsh has made the stunning admission he blew more than $200,000 because of a poker machine addiction.

The Eels warhorse details the depths of a serious gambling problem in his soon-to-be-released autobiography Old School.

“I would have maxed out my credit card at least two hundred times, with a limit of $1,000 a day,” the 32-year-old writes.

"All up, I blew a couple of hundred thousand dollars. That’s right: I had thrown away $200,000 by the time I was in my early twenties.

“It was such a waster. I think about all the things I could have done with that money: I could have owned the house I’m sitting in now, or I could have put a lot more towards a house or an investment property.

It was a hard lesson learned. I would have liked not to have done it but I couldn’t stop myself.”

Hindmarsh, who will retire at the end of this season, reveals he would blow up to $2000 a day at the height of his addiction, which he battled over a six-year period during his early 20s



He said he dabbles in the poker machines now and then - but has advice for players and fans alike if they feel gambling is taking a grip on them.

“Without getting too Oprah, there are a lot of blokes who can do it socially and walk away but if you feel you can’t control it, you are better off talking to someone,” he said.

“That’s the point of this being in the book: getting help. I was lucky that I saw someone early enough to really help me out."

“Plenty of players gamble, they do it and walk away. I keep an eye on some people, just to make sure that everything is going okay. I’m aware of how I used to be when I was younger, going out to pubs and clubs.”
http://www.foxsports.com.au/league/nrl-premiership/nathan-hindmarsh-reveals-200000-pokie-addiction-in-his-autobiography-old-school/story-fn2mcuj6-1226430310659

Titans boss Searle to resign for smaller role as embattled club tries to turn corner: report

Breaking NewsJuly 27, 2012

Titans boss Searle to resign for smaller role as embattled club tries to turn corner: report

SportBizInsider

Gold Coast Titans managing director Michael Searle is expected to resign on Friday as part of an administrative restructure of the embattled National Rugby League club.

The Courier-Mail reported Searle, a former NRL player and the driving force behind the club ‘s entry into the competition, would be replaced in the top position by iSelect marketing executive David May.

Searle is expected to retain a position at the club as director of football. Under his reign the Titans accrued debts estimated at $25 million.

A newly-implemented board will also be instituted to take the Titans forward from the financial and legal battles that have threatened the club’s survival, the paper said.

The Titans’ property arm returns to the Federal Court Friday as their legal battle with Centre of Excellence builders Reed Constructions continues.

May has 20 years’ experience in marketing, joining Titans sponsors iSelect last year as chief marketing officer after having worked for Jetstar. May has also worked with GE, Mercedes Benz, Yellow Pages, Volkswagen and HSBC bank.

http://sportbizinsider.com.au/news/category/financial-and-governance/titans-boss-searle-to-resign-for-smaller-role-as-embattled-club-tries-to-turn-corner-report/

Bombers NRL bid chief: sponsorship and TV deals make second Brisbane team a must

FeaturesJuly 24, 2012

Bombers NRL bid chief: sponsorship and TV deals make second Brisbane team a must

by Steven Russo

It has become apparent that whether or not the Australian Rugby League Commission opts to expand the number of teams in the NRL by 2015 will ultimately be determined by the impending broadcast deal.

It has been rumoured in the press that Channel 9 and Foxtel are eager to increase their viewing numbers in Queensland and, along with the Perth-based West Coast Pirates, a Queensland franchise is considered likely. There are three Queensland bids vying for contention and we have spoken previously to Central Queensland officials who believe the lack of sporting competition and the fanatical support for the code in their region makes them the right choice. A Western Corridor bid out of Ipswich declined to make time for interview; regardless they are considered a distance third in the pecking order.

Craig Davison, the founder of the Outdoor Furniture Specialists chain and a shareholder in the Brisbane Broncos, is the chief director of the Brisbane Bombers bid. He did make time to answer our questions.

Why should the Bombers be picked?

Davison says that the key strength of a second Brisbane team that its introduction would lead to a greater injection of sponsorship money into rugby league by providing potential sponsors in Brisbane opportunities that currently do not exist due to the exclusive nature of the Broncos’ sponsorship deals.

“The interesting fact here is that a lot of our sponsors have come to us and said ‘Look I want to put money into the Broncos but I’m locked out.’ Without a second team that money will go to union, soccer, AFL or other avenues. You bring that second team into Brisbane it opens up a whole series of commercial opportunities for rugby league.”

Similarly he believes that establishing a second NRL team in Brisbane will enable the ARLC to maximize the amount of money it can generate from the impending broadcast rights deal as it will expose broadcasters to the greatest number of viewers in an area that the bidding parties are reportedly eager to increase their audience numbers.

“The reports I’m getting from the TV people is that the ARLC has got to have two Brisbane teams playing so that there are two games every weekend with a Brisbane team, beamed into Brisbane,” Davison says. “It’s all about the numbers. It can’t be an external team it has to be Brisbane vs. Brisbane. At the moment, Brisbane only has 12 games a year and Sydney108 per year. That needs to be addressed.

“It is all about TV, these guys are the ones signing the billion dollar cheque; you’d like to think they’d have a little bit of a say in what goes on.”

Can Brisbane support another rugby league team and how do you plan to generate a new supporter base?

Critics of the Bombers bid have questioned the logic of placing a second team in Brisbane pointing out that the ARL introduced the South Queensland Crushers back in the 1990s and they were a financial flop that received very little fan support in a highly “pro-Broncos” town.

However, Davison claims this perception is invalid. He says Brisbane’s population growth in conjunction with dramatic changes to the rugby league landscape during the past 15 years means that it is unreasonable to use the Crushers’ demise during the mid-90s as an indicator of the future viability of a second Brisbane team.

“You cannot compare the two eras,” he says “We had one million people [living in Brisbane] back then, now we have 2.1 million,” says Davison.

“The game has matured so much, the TV rights are worth so much more meaning that the viability of another team in Brisbane is a no brainer.”

As for fostering a supporter base Davison says the Bombers have that covered also. He points out that according to rough surveys conducted recently, the Broncos have a 30 percent support base among rugby league fans in Brisbane.

“‘This means that 70 pecent of fans are attached to ‘non-Broncos’ teams,” Davison says. “So you have this group of people that simply aren’t aligned to any Brisbane based teams, only to Sydney teams. Some of these people have been in town for so long they want to grab onto something new and I think it’s fresh to have a brand new team and no associations with anyone else… I think we’ll have no problem at all in getting a supporter base”.

What is your ownership structure?

Like South Sydney, the Titans, the Storm and the Warriors the Brisbane Bombers will be a privately owned club, rather than a community owned club or a public company.

“We looked strongly into all three ownership models,” Davison says. “Out of the three we found that the best model was the private ownership model which focuses on the community and the juniors and a whole range of aspects which you’d sometimes struggle to support if you had a true community structure and all of a sudden found that you just weren’t getting enough funds coming in.

“The reality is no matter how much you talk about a community-owned business you’ve got to make money from day one and have a sustainable income to support your whole junior base program and your community program. Now, no disrespect to anyone running a community club but you’ve got to have some pretty strong ties behind you if you’re going to make it work.”

Where is the bid at with regards to recruitment?

Out of all the prospective bids the media has portrayed the Bombers to be the most active in regards to recruitment.

So far they’ve been linked to many high profile players and coaches such as Quade Cooper, David Shillington, Cooper Cronk and Mal Meninga among others.

Davison says these links are mainly media speculation but does concede that the Bombers have been in talks with a number of players and coaches.

“We’ve had so many approaches from player managers and coach managers, we’ve basically taken it all on board and said to them until we get a clear direction from the NRL as to expansion happening we can’t do much about it.

“Behind the scenes I’ve heard from a number of player managers that some players are lining their contracts up so that they finish in 2014 or if they’ve got longer term contracts negotiated get out clauses in 2014.”

Do the Bombers have a junior development program in place?

At this stage the Bombers are currently looking to develop a partnership with junior clubs in the Sunshine Coast Region.

“Sunshine Coast is a wonderful catchment,” Davison says. “We’re looking to have a partnership with the Sunshine Coast Falcons who have about 3000 to 4000 juniors.”

Should they get the licence the Bombers plan to talk to additional junior catchments in and around Brisbane, however, Davison says the Bombers are unlikely to form any additional allegiances until they’re guaranteed entry into the competition.

What corporate support do you have?

The Bombers already have a fair degree of corporate support with companies like Jeep, Austereo (b105), Bundaberg Distilling and Canterbury of New Zealand jumping on board. However, like many of the competing bids, Davison says while they have had discussions with a number of high profile companies, many of these companies are not willing to officially support the Bombers until the ARLC confirms expansion and guarantees the Bombers entry into the competition.

“A couple of large companies have said they are not interested in getting on board with us until we get nominated… but as soon as this happens they’ll be on board,” Davison says.

Anyone looking to learn more about the Brisbane Bombers can head to their website at: www.brisbanebombers.com.au

http://sportbizinsider.com.au/news/category/financial-and-governance/bombers-nrl-expansion-bid-boss-says-sponsorship-and-tv-deals-make-second-brisbane-team-a-must/

He'll get the ass soon enough. Just like he did at the Roosters and the Sharks. He brought a little bit of passion to the blues and now he is the messiah. Did someone forget to mention he has only won 2 out of his last 6 origin games. Hopefully they keep him out of the press conferences, I couldn't bare this muppet having another sook.

He'll get the ass soon enough. Just like he did at the Roosters and the Sharks. He brought a little bit of passion to the blues and now he is the messiah. Did someone forget to mention he has only won 2 out of his last 6 origin games. Hopefully they keep him out of the press conferences, I couldn't bare this muppet having another sook.

What's the alternative? Stick with no-hoper Kearney??

Would of gotten rid of Kearney a year ago. I'm not to sure which NRL coaches which are off contract this year. They should of made a bigger play for McGuire and Des last year. I probably would of gone after Mick Potter he did a good job at the Catalans Dragons and St Helens. I'm fairly certain he wanted to come home for next season to coach. The thing about Ricky is he does a good job to get a team competitive and then they turn into a rabble the following year. They just lose the passion and start playing woeful football.

:-s He did take the Roosters to 3 straight GF's

And the only decent year he had at the Sharks was the second one.