AFL overtaking NRL in QLD

[Walshawk]

As someone that has grown up in Queensland, spent 11 years away in WA and VIC I can emphasize enough how much the GA** AFL attitude is changing. It was really big when I was young in 80s/90s, started receding in the early 2000s, by the time I got back to Brisbane in 2011 it was different. The early 2010s were impacted by the performance of the lions but I think the supporters are far more rusted on these days than back in the early 2000s. I only got exposed to the sport in the mid 90s via my best mate's dad being a Geelong supporter and took us along to a couple of games at the Gabba. I wear my lions gear and/or hat around Brisbane and I usually get nothing but positive comments on the Lions. Especially this last six months where every person contrasts the Lions with the train wreck that has been the Broncos. I travel around QLD extensively for work, my experience is that anti AFL attitude exists west of Ipswich/Downs (and old part of Ipswich, new suburbs very receptive to AFL), Rocky, Townsville and Central Highlands, Logan/Caboolture. In Cairns, Gold Coast, SE Brisbane AFL is already bigger.

AFL is not bigger than AFL in Cairns. Not even close. Port Douglas yes.

 

[RedV3x]

AFL is not bigger than AFL in Cairns. .

It is obvious that AFL is growing strongly in population centres, especially new population centres and tourist centres.
Logically and realistically it'll take more time for the traditional orientated hinterland to catch on
and places without sufficient juniors to supply multiple sports simultaneously.

 

[Professor Knowall]

AFL is not bigger than AFL in Cairns. Not even close. Port Douglas yes.

Actually, in term of participation, Australian Football is most definitely "bigger" than RL in Cairns - with more clubs and even more so in participants. The Cairns AFL is a thriving, very strong league now. RL is still stronger out in the old sugar-mill rural towns like Mossman and Tully and up in the Tableland, but not so in the Cairns metro area.

 

[Bjo187]

As someone that has grown up in Queensland, spent 11 years away in WA and VIC I can emphasize enough how much the GA** AFL attitude is changing. It was really big when I was young in 80s/90s, started receding in the early 2000s, by the time I got back to Brisbane in 2011 it was different. The early 2010s were impacted by the performance of the lions but I think the supporters are far more rusted on these days than back in the early 2000s. I only got exposed to the sport in the mid 90s via my best mate's dad being a Geelong supporter and took us along to a couple of games at the Gabba. I wear my lions gear and/or hat around Brisbane and I usually get nothing but positive comments on the Lions. Especially this last six months where every person contrasts the Lions with the train wreck that has been the Broncos. I travel around QLD extensively for work, my experience is that anti AFL attitude exists west of Ipswich/Downs (and old part of Ipswich, new suburbs very receptive to AFL), Rocky, Townsville and Central Highlands, Logan/Caboolture. In Cairns, Gold Coast, SE Brisbane AFL is already bigger.

I honestly feel like when the afl cracks through this weird indoctrinated jealousy/fear/hatred in the northern states and the game is second nature up there, it will explode.

It's also the reason the media particularly out of Sydney won't allow it, because they know deep down it's a great product and will boom if they don't continue to ostracize it as much as possible.

I've always said the bullying of kids that want to like footy is the main thing holding the game back up there, if that culture can be changed over time via the generational approach the afl have taken and the lessening influencing of traditional media (like news corp) brainwashing the masses, then i can actually see it becoming the equal biggest sport in QLD in a few decades time. Sydney will be harder, although it's already very popular in the wealthier areas.

Friends and I often discuss how much the world has changed in only 15 years, the internet has basically fast tracked culturally change ten fold from pre internet days, if you don't believe it, go watch a tv show from about 2005 to 2010.

 

[PhatBoy]

I can't speak for QLD but the attitude of Sydneysiders to Melbourne is weird. In general, they view Melbourne as quaint and are generally apathetic towards Melbourne.

But you mention AFL and it's genuine vitriol. Other posters aren't kidding when they say Sydney hates, because that's the word Sydneysiders use themselves, they hate the AFL. It's the same sort of beligerence they display towards Melbourne Storm. Anybody but the Storm for the NRL premiers they say, even though any neutral in AFL land would go for the underdogs against the reigning three time premiers.

But even then, the fastest growing sport among girls and women in Sydney is AFL. So maybe in the long term, women playing AFL will convert their sons and nephews to the sport. I expect that effect to happen even quicker in QLD with the amount of Victorians moving there.

You seriously think most rusted on league fans think that’s because the Storm are from Melbourne?

1. The Salary Cap scandal. When you systematically cheat, and it is proven, and you stand in front of the rest of the football world and try to say ‘we don’t think we’ve done anything wrong’ people don’t like it. You’ll find a lot of people didn’t like it when it happened but actually liked a lot of things about the Storm before that. I personally loved watching them as a footy side. But on the back of what had already happened at the Dogs, it pissed people off. You will also find that the Dogs were despised in the same era, and copped the ‘rapists’ tag for a long time afterwards and were hated by anyone that wasn’t a dogs fan.

2. They have, and seemingly always will, under Bellamy, pioneered any means possible of exploiting rules on the field. Chicken wing tackles, grapple tackles etc. They started getting wrestling into the mainstream of the sport and were among the first to bring wrestling coaches into their staff in 2003. Many, many fans hate this and I’m one of them. I don’t care about the game being fast or slow or whatever but I hate it being ‘ugly.’ Players piling in and twisting ball carriers to try and deliberately put them in awkward positions and make it harder for them to play the ball while your teammates get onside. I was brought up watching a game where you slowed the opposition down by putting them on their backside with classic tackling technique. There are a huge percentage of fans who dislike them for these wrestling moves coming into the game.

3. Their central figures in their history have often been hard to like. Cameron Smith is an off field cleanskin but he was very very good at pushing the limits on the field and people don’t miss that stuff. Billy Slater was the same. It was part of what made them incredible players but it didn’t enhance their likability. Ironically some of the players they’ve had since who maybe haven’t been as clean off the field like Munster and Brandon Smith, have been a bit more likable.

People hate the Broncos. It’s not to do with geography it’s to do with things like money, success, and the feeling that there is a willingness for the NRL to favour rich teams over poor teams.

I would argue that the Roosters get as much hate as just about anyone.

Manly still get the ‘anyone but manly’ treatment a lot of the time.

When Melbourne won the comp over St George in 1999, no one batted an eyelid in anger with any sort of ‘oh no not the Victorians.’

It was fantastic.

But a lot has happened since and it’s not related to where Melbourne are from

 

[PhatBoy]

And what's this got to do with the thread?

Was I talking to you? I replied to a comment talking about how despised the Storm are in the NRL states, specifically NSW.

Which would imply that they are despised because they aren’t from one. It has nothing to do with where they are from.

 

[William Lamb]

You seriously think most rusted on league fans think that’s because the Storm are from Melbourne?

1. The Salary Cap scandal. When you systematically cheat, and it is proven, and you stand in front of the rest of the football world and try to say ‘we don’t think we’ve done anything wrong’ people don’t like it. You’ll find a lot of people didn’t like it when it happened but actually liked a lot of things about the Storm before that. I personally loved watching them as a footy side. But on the back of what had already happened at the Dogs, it pissed people off. You will also find that the Dogs were despised in the same era, and copped the ‘rapists’ tag for a long time afterwards and were hated by anyone that wasn’t a dogs fan.

2. They have, and seemingly always will, under Bellamy, pioneered any means possible of exploiting rules on the field. Chicken wing tackles, grapple tackles etc. They started getting wrestling into the mainstream of the sport and were among the first to bring wrestling coaches into their staff in 2003. Many, many fans hate this and I’m one of them. I don’t care about the game being fast or slow or whatever but I hate it being ‘ugly.’ Players piling in and twisting ball carriers to try and deliberately put them in awkward positions and make it harder for them to play the ball while your teammates get onside. I was brought up watching a game where you slowed the opposition down by putting them on their backside with classic tackling technique. There are a huge percentage of fans who dislike them for these wrestling moves coming into the game.

3. Their central figures in their history have often been hard to like. Cameron Smith is an off field cleanskin but he was very very good at pushing the limits on the field and people don’t miss that stuff. Billy Slater was the same. It was part of what made them incredible players but it didn’t enhance their likability. Ironically some of the players they’ve had since who maybe haven’t been as clean off the field like Munster and Brandon Smith, have been a bit more likable.

People hate the Broncos. It’s not to do with geography it’s to do with things like money, success, and the feeling that there is a willingness for the NRL to favour rich teams over poor teams.

I would argue that the Roosters get as much hate as just about anyone.

Manly still get the ‘anyone but manly’ treatment a lot of the time.

When Melbourne won the comp over St George in 1999, no one batted an eyelid in anger with any sort of ‘oh no not the Victorians.’

It was fantastic.

But a lot has happened since and it’s not related to where Melbourne are from

As someone who barely follows NRL that happened so long ago that I'd honestly forgotten about it. FWIW I don't think NSW hates Storm or the AFL necessarily because it comes from Melbourne in particular but because it threatens Sydney's sporting identity. If the AFL was based in Adelaide or Perth I'd think you would still get the same reaction to the AFL.

But to put it into perspective, there's more disdain towards AFL than Storm. Anecdotally most of the comments come from young men who don't see the AFL as manly as NRL.

I just mentioned Storm because I think it was bemusing as a Melbournian (Melbournite? Melbourner?) Otherwise Sydney doesn't care about Melbourne at all.

 

[PhatBoy]

As someone who barely follows NRL that happened so long ago that I'd honestly forgotten about it. FWIW I don't think NSW hates Storm or the AFL necessarily because it comes from Melbourne in particular but because it threatens Sydney's sporting identity. If the AFL was based in Adelaide or Perth I'd think you would still get the same reaction to the AFL.

But to put it into perspective, there's more disdain towards AFL than Storm. Anecdotally most of the comments come from young men who don't see the AFL as manly as NRL. I just mentioned Storm because I think it was bemusing as a Melbournian (Melbournite? Melbourner?)

Oh there’s still a demographic who see afl as less manly, no doubt there. Probably an older one mostly. There will always be in any supporter base of any code, a group who think another code is less ‘something’ than the one they follow but the majority who feel that way is getting less in number and its general age is getting older.

But yes the storm themselves have no level of geographic or ‘outsider’ dislike it’s based almost entirely on how they play and a couple of other factors

 

[Walshawk]

Actually, in term of participation, Australian Football is most definitely "bigger" than RL in Cairns - with more clubs and even more so in participants. The Cairns AFL is a thriving, very strong league now. RL is still stronger out in the old sugar-mill rural towns like Mossman and Tully and up in the Tableland, but not so in the Cairns metro area.

Actually the numbers are ever close. There are equal or more RL teams in most junior age groups, but more kids in an AFL team. But participation isn’t everything. Are soccer and basketball the biggest sports in Australia?

I was in a pub in Cairns recently on a Sat arvo. A few tourists, but lost of locals there as well. Hawks were playing GWS. Two TVs had that on. Not one other person glanced at either screen the two hours I was there. There was 10 - 15 people watching the NRL across numerous screens. I have a friend from Melbourne there in a community based job, with school aged kids and across his various workplaces and the kids school in Cairns over the past 10 years, he is in no doubt that RL is clearly more popular than AFL. So he moved to Port Douglas, which due to so many southern living there, is the opposite.

 

[RedV3x]

Actually the numbers are ever close.

The numbers were close when the ABS did real statistics.
IMO they are only more favouarable to AFL now.

But participation isn’t everything.

It is when it's qualified. The older the age group then the more important it becomes.

I was in a pub in Cairns recently on a Sat arvo.

Every time I walk into an establishment with television screens on I take notice of who's watching what.
Apart from special events nobody is watching those screens because people going out don't want to be distracted by sports and those people who are fanatical about sports usually do it at homes/friends places.

In fact I'd say it's the follower of minor sports that have to seek solace in the company of a pub.