South Sydney are doing a good job to try and push the game and their brand into new markets.
With last years game against the Leeds Rhinos in the United States already under their belts, the Rabbitohs are now going to play one of their regular season games in Perth in Western Australia.
It shows the club is willing to do the work needed to spread the game, but where is the follow up by the games administration?
Perth will undoubtably be the the next expansion club in the NRL after the power that be finaly realized that the nationalisation of the game was a must. However not a single NRL match has been played in Perth since 2005.
Surely if you want to spread your supporter base and prepare a market for an expansion club you would look to get a few teams to play one home game in Perth and get fans in the city use to going and seeing top class Rugby League on a regular basis.
Perth has has a strong Rugby League scene for many years and the city has produced a number of NRL players in its own right. The Perth Reds competed in the ARL in 1995 but switched to Super League soon after and took part in the Super League competition in 1997.
When the two competitions come back together, Perth was axed very quickly by News Ltd and many of its players formed the basis of the first Melbourne Storm lineup.
Meanwhile, back at Souths, the club must have loved the news that the Roosters are going to stop fielding junior sides. It basically means South Sydney are the only option for young players to look to further their careers.
You can also bet that South Sydney would be very reluctant to take on players signed up to the Sydney Roosters.
South are looking to expand their brand into new areas but I think the club should do more to cement itself in inner Sydney as well.
Right now I think there is a big hole in marketing the game to inner city bussiness types, workers in Sydney who have a lot of disposable income and who have shown in the past they are open to heading to a game after work.
Souths should be looking to get its foot in the door in Sydneys corperate environment, not just for sponsorships, but to get new fans on board.
Things such as give aways, free tickets, organising corperate touch football days for companies to take on one another and mingle….the clubs need to makes itself the team of the Sydney big wigs.
In a competitive environment like Sydney, Souths have a gift in that I think everyone wants them to turn the corner and become successful. If Souths made the Grand Final it would sell out in minutes, people want the club to get there.
Because of this people are more willing to support the club now, as it starts to build towards something special.
Souths are in a great position right now, but they need to keep pushing hard. Its great they are looking to new markets, but so much can still be done in Sydney, and they shouldn’t forget that.
