townsville

[jemo27]

after listening to the guy from townsvile on SEN, i was wondering if people think townsville is a good idea for a new team

[Jungle]

what did he say

who was he

[jemo27]

what did he say

who was he

i can't remember his name but it was just before 6pm on the 90th minute and he sounded like he had done alot of research and had talked to alot of people

[MDL]

I think Townsville is a good idea....they already have the Stadium...growing population....& in a good geographical/climate position to attract Asian investors/players etc.

[kezman]

anything would be better than new zealand, even if they beat queensland roar.

[irish]

well this had been done to death we will just have to wait and see

[Dashgar]

Voted Townsville but Gold Coast would be good as well.

[MVFC_Lad]

townsville seems to get good crowds to the rugby so why not give them a go, just wish ttownsville and cairns were closer, they could have a massive joint club.

[atlas]

Yes a good idea to have a team in Townsville because of stadium, population etc. but also remember there was that pre-season tournament held there and they have good crowds for tournament where there was no team from Townsville involved.

As for other teams Gold Coast would be good but more in the long term (5-10 years time).

[atlas]

townsville seems to get good crowds to the rugby so why not give them a go, just wish ttownsville and cairns were closer, they could have a massive joint club.

Football has a good participation level in Queensland and there is no reason why in the long term why their can't also be in a team in Cairns as well, put again Townsville would be a better option in the short term.

[Socceroo_06]

He basically said there were a few intersted business investers locally and from asia(China) to help finance the consotium. He aslo said there was an EPL side that was interested in becoming an investor too.

It sounded like a good prospect but probably not going to happen until 08/09 season.

[Attica]

yes to townsville, been said a million times!

[staffa93]

at least having an a-league team in townsville will give me something to do when im there

[andrew1116]

Whats with all the polls jemo?

[Bacardi 8]

Yer sounds like a good idea..Yes to Townsville

[MVFC_Lad]

i dunno tthat ppl in cairns would go 3-4 hours for a a-league match...

[Lajka]

There would be mass murder if the townsville team were called 'north queensland'! Cairns and townsville have a fierce rivalry; plus in future you want to be able to leave the door open for a Cairns team.

But if there was a team up here nomatter where, it would have large crowds i am confident. It's the most popular participation sport in queensland i'm pretty sure and they have many local reps in the matildas and former socceroos from what i've heard.

[Lajka]

i dunno tthat ppl in cairns would go 3-4 hours for a a-league match...

They would

[Ascoli Calcio]

Townsville Rednecks without doubt.

Seems a viable option anyway...

[dav1878]

i reckon they'd get similar crowds to the mariners.
ie. under 10k

[Popos]

It'd be too hot and their stadium doesn't have any shade.

Townsville that is.

[andrew1116]

Yer sounds like a good idea..Yes to Townsville

What are you doing in this thread Bacardi?

[Eddie]

Any statistics on crowd figures when Townsville previously hosted football games?

[jim]

like the league they would probably want to have a name like Nth Queensland to include the wider region, rather than just Townsville.

[Lajka]

Ermm . . . as a North Queenslander I know about the rivalry but I also know about the regional identity -- there has long been a separatist movement in NQ and when it comes to sport NQ gets behind the Cowboys as it used to get behind the Marlins.

And yes, Cairns football people would drive that distance for a game. They do it for the Rugby League.

Where abouts are you from?

[amnesiac]

Population Townsville - 160,000 (http://www.apr.com.au/uploads/townsville_commercial_snapshot_oct_06.pdf)
Population Cairns - 124,000 (http://www.cairns.qld.gov.au/tourism/population.htm)
Population Central Coast - 316,000 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Coast,_New_South_Wales)

I would support a North Queensland side but looking at those numbers you would have to think that the team would need to be "North Queensland" and not Townsville or Cairns on its own. Perhaps a way of maximises crowds would be to split home games between cities. You would get your diehard fans making the trip up to Cairns or down to Townsville as well as maximising attendances in each city because they'd only get a game in their own city once a month.

Are there suitable football facilities in both areas? Will both cities get behind a united side?

Central Coast has provided phenominal support for the size of their area, however if you base a side solely as Cairns or Townsville then you effectively expose yourself to a market half the size of the Central Coast market which could be diasterous for attendances.

We all want more sides in the comp but what if they only pull average crowds of 5,000? People will be calling for them to be axed. It is more important that we create a strong league than having a large league. Any new teams must be able to support an A-League side long-term.

[Lajka]

I'm from Innisfail! Up here, our local league includes Innisfail, Mareeba, Atherton, Mossman. So you have all the Tablelands, Innisfail and Tully and then North of Post Douglas. They had pre-season games in Ingham, Townsville and Ayr/Home Hill and from memory they all drew pretty decent crowds (will try to hunt for some figures).

The other thing about up here is because there has never been much to do, kids are heavily into sports and the arts so i'm sure there would be a lot of support if a club were to be created in future.

[Victory2006]

jemo27, the mv.net poll-pest.

[Daydream]

I used to live in Cairns AND Townsville and could DEFINITELY see this as a viable option......AND if they did get it happneing, they'd have some interesting "North end/FAR North end" rivalry going on amongst their supporters.

And agree with other posts, (junior) sports are HUGE up there, I remember going to a kids tough footy thing, had massive turnouts.

When I was at Uni in Cairns it was nothing to drive to Townsville once a week. I don't think distance is seen in the same way up there than it is down here, if you're going places, you gotta drive a distance, it's a normal thing to do, and the Townsville Cairns trek is a well worn path.

[Ascoli Calcio]

I remember Stevie Corica saying he's an Innisfail boy, maybe the club's first signing if it comes into fruition in the next two seasons?

[TheDutchman]

Townsville and Cairns both get great crowds for basketball. I remember years ago Townsville were selling out games even when they were towards the bottom most seasons. They even expanded the stadium because of it.

North Queensland Cowboys have one of the best crowd averages in Rugby League, up with Newcastle and Brisbane. I'd be more than confident in them averaging over 10,000. I'd really think they would match Adelaide to be honest. Townsville's stadium has been recently upgraded. Holds about 26,000. And there is an older stand down the wing that will most likely be replaced in a few years. So they have decent facilities.

With the Gold Coast, I'd wait to see how well there new rugby league team go crowd wise before creating an A-League side there.

I'm all for a Wollongong side, and eventually Canberra. I don't care if there are a few New South Wales area teams. If they have the population and stadiums, why not let them in. It would be a lot easier for all the travelling support in this corner of the country.

[dav1878]

I remember Stevie Corica saying he's an Innisfail boy, maybe the club's first signing if it comes into fruition in the next two seasons?

Steve Corica looks like he's 46 years old.

[Nedstaaa]

Steve Corica looks like he's 46 years old.
And still put one past your keeper...and the Central Coast keeper to score the winner in the first ever A-League grand final

[jemo27]

Azzbullz United here is a thread on an a-league team up north

[Ozespri]

Why is the Sunshine Coast never considered as an option? It's virgin territory with a large junior structure and no other locally competing professional teams. It's similar to successful Central Coast experiment with a Population of over 250k and "Forecasts suggest the Sunshine Coast population will swell to 435,000 in the next 15 years".

[Azzballz United]

Azzbullz United here is a thread on an a-league team up north


I see. I reckon Gold Coast would be a better option, personally. GC has a much bigger and more diversified pop. I like the potental for both areas.

[Azzballz United]

Why is the Sunshine Coast never considered as an option? It's virgin territory with a large junior structure and no other locally competing professional teams. It's similar to successful Central Coast experiment with a Population of over 250k and "Forecasts suggest the Sunshine Coast population will swell to 435,000 in the next 15 years".


Sounds good. Looks Queensland might have a fair few clubs in the future. Canberra has gotta get a side, whats a national comp without the capital, and i say woolongong should be the last NSW city (apart from another sydney club, eventually) to get a club. But not before, Canberra, Tazzie, GC, and Nth Queensland (townsville and/or cairns)

[Azzballz United]

Who knows anything about toowoomba? Apparently pretty big, maybe team in the future?

[azza]

Who knows anything about toowoomba? Apparently pretty big, maybe team in the future?

where on earth is toowoomba?

[Azzballz United]

where on earth is toowoomba?


Something like 100 ks west of brissy, biggest inland city in the country

[Ozespri]

Azz, What's the population of Toowoomba? (too lazy to Google!)

[Azzballz United]

I think about 200, 000, but i'm not really sure.

[Ozespri]

No - decided to do the google after all. Only 90k - think my Sunshine Coast proposal stacks up better!

[Azzballz United]

No - decided to do the google after all. Only 90k - think my Sunshine Coast proposal stacks up better!


Fark, i thought it was much bigger than that. I'm all for SC too.

[Allsopp. FC]

Fuck yeah definatly, they need atleast 2 new teams for next season if the A-League is going to be a success.

I say Townsville, and maybe Tassie, but would they draw enough crowds?

[Eddie]

Townsville and Wollongong are the most likely.

[Azzballz United]

Townsville and Wollongong are the most likely.


Canberra