Qld Premier Rugby 2024

[D'Lite Full]

How FieldTurf took Easts Rugby Union Football Club to the next level - FieldTurf Australia

How FieldTurf took Easts Rugby Union Football Club to the next level Nested away in Sydney’s Eastern suburb of Woollahra is the Easts Rugby Union Football Club. More than 120 years old, the club was home to men’s and women’s rugby in the region. […]

www.fieldturf.com.au

It would look amazing at Toowong.

 

[Wilson]

Not sure how informed your views are but if the most successful rugby club in the UK have adopted it, there must be some merit in considering.

Saracens unveil artificial pitch they hope will transform rugby union

Saracens have publicly displayed the new, controversial artificial pitch that could herald a new era for the sport – an era without mud

www.theguardian.com

Fake turf for Woollahra Oval - Turfmate

An unprecedented demand for sporting grounds from all girls’ schools and a desperate lack of available land in the eastern suburbs is what led council to the $3 million decision to fake turf Woollahra Oval. In the past, the Rose Bay oval was regularly closed to allow it to dry out after wet...

turfmate.com.au

Players aren't exactly happy with those pitches though:

Debate rages on future of 4G pitches in elite rugby union after Willis injury

On same weekend Scarlets players complain bitterly about blisters and burns they suffer playing on Glasgow’s plastic pitch

www.mirror.co.uk

'The cuts are brutal. It's crazy. You have boys getting skin grafts'

Exeter Chiefs winger Jack Nowell has added his voice to the growing list of players that have voiced their concern around 4G pitches.

www.rugbypass.com

It's one thing to run them at a professional level, it's a whole different question when you have players at a community level exposed to those sorts of issues week in week out.

There's a stronger argument for hybrid pitches which don't have as many issues, but they're more expensive to install and maintain. Not sure how many are currently in place but the Stormers were set to put one in this year, which should be a bit more relevant to our conditions than English examples:

Stormers' home ground to get new hybrid pitch: '50% grass, 50% synthetic' | Sport

A new synthetic pitch is on the cards for the Stormers' new permanent home, Cape Town Stadium.

www.news24.com

 

[SouthernX]

No Astro turf pls… my fantasy football team (NFL) is littered with players who have suffered season ending injuries on this toxic surface.

Rugby is meant to played on grass or in mud.

 

[LevitatingSocks]

There is merit to using artificial surfaces at the organizational level because they're theoretically cheaper to maintain if done right and provide a more uniform surface that doesn't degrade with constant use. Colts, Juniors, Grades and outside teams could flog the fields all day for months with no issue.

From a player perspective I still believe natural grass is better. That's my own anecdotal experience, and also that of friends that have played D1 college football in the US. I think that's a good proxy because D1 football facilities are some of the best maintained out there due to the massive budgets American Universities allocate and it's a level of competitive sport with similar demands and athletic ability. But even then, rugby involves less protective equipment and more time spend on the ground which offers more exposure to the downsides of artificial turf.

Non-anecdotally here's a decent systematic review from the American Journal of Sports Medicine that suggests a higher lower body injury rate on both old style and newer artificial turf compared to natural grass.

LINK: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35593739/

 

[Spamnoodle]

QUT had an affiliation with Norths for about ten years in the early 2000s, going as far as being renamed Norths-QUT.

And going back before that when it was QIT and primarily the teachers training college. Then known as Teachers Norths.

 

[eldiablo]

Why can't we hang onto our coaches? Word is Chris Latham heading back to the MLR in January to link up with the Seattle Seawolves.

I feel like Latho is averaging coaching 1.5 different clubs each season. He seems to have been around the block a bit in a short time.

 

[Bulldog]

Wasn’t Latho involved with Norths colts at the start of last season?

 

[CreepyJoe]

Wasn’t Latho involved with Norths colts at the start of last season?

No. I think that was 4 or 5 years ago.

 

[Bulldog]

With the changes in the coaches boxes have we heard any player movement at this stage?

 

[SouthernX]

With the changes in the coaches boxes have we heard any player movement at this stage?

Had a look at the sevens teams recently and didn’t notice any offseason defectors

What was noticeable is what happened to Sunnybank? 10 years ago they would of been a powerhouse of club rugby 7s program..: they didn’t even have a team in the qpr sevens circuit…. I really hope they have a big preseason and have a killer 2024 campaign

 

[Putmeoncoach]

Had a look at the sevens teams recently and didn’t notice any offseason defectors

What was noticeable is what happened to Sunnybank? 10 years ago they would of been a powerhouse of club rugby 7s program..: they didn’t even have a team in the qpr sevens circuit…. I really hope they have a big preseason and have a killer 2024 campaign

Fall from grace. They didn’t offer much last year in the 7s either.

 

[Bulldog]

I think the problem with Sunnybank is that when they were a powerhouse 15-20 years back it was done with paying and having a large number of Reds on their books and a lot of transient players who should be running the club now but they have gone from the club. Sadly I think things will get worse before they get better for Sunnybank.

 

[Southsidepie]

Agreed. This is the issue with throwing money at players. I agree that all club help players financially but those that bring in the "transient" or "transactional" players really suffer down the track. It happens in a lot of sports. Look at struggling NRL teams that pay overs for ordinary players and end up getting very little out of them and they disappear. Teams like Sunnybank pay guys that are barely up to a Premier Grade standard often out of a panicked sense that they will go somewhere else. When you are clear and confident in your culture, you don't have those concerns. I really do hope that Sunnybank and Norths find their way back.

I think the best way to do it is try to develop players and assist with money to help keep them. Create a culture strong enough to aid in this. Brothers have built this over the past number of years and are seeing the benefits of it. Look at how involved guys like Harry Wilson, Ryan Smith and even the Tongan Thor. They really buy into the club.

 

[The Engine Room]

Agreed. This is the issue with throwing money at players. I agree that all club help players financially but those that bring in the "transient" or "transactional" players really suffer down the track. It happens in a lot of sports. Look at struggling NRL teams that pay overs for ordinary players and end up getting very little out of them and they disappear. Teams like Sunnybank pay guys that are barely up to a Premier Grade standard often out of a panicked sense that they will go somewhere else. When you are clear and confident in your culture, you don't have those concerns. I really do hope that Sunnybank and Norths find their way back.

I think the best way to do it is try to develop players and assist with money to help keep them. Create a culture strong enough to aid in this. Brothers have built this over the past number of years and are seeing the benefits of it. Look at how involved guys like Harry Wilson, Ryan Smith and even the Tongan Thor. They really buy into the club.

Is it time to get real about the Norths' and Sunnybank's performance issues over the last number of years? Should serious consideration be given to moving them into the Barber Cup (1st grade) , Normanby Cup (2nd grade) and Wyatt (3rd grade) in 2024 ?? Both clubs struggle to field 4th grade at any time but perhaps could have two teams in Wyatt. Colts is a different beast. Not sure what the solution is there; perhaps staying in QPR? IMO I think being competitive will help keep blokes playing and the road trips to teams like Caboolture etc would help build friendships, culture etc.

 

[PhilClinton]

Giving up Sunnybank from QPR would really expose that whole area as a league stronghold. I'm not sure QRU would necessarily want that, even if current results haven't been great.

 

[SouthernX]

QPR not giving up any teams. Matter of fact I think expansion is on cards before subtraction.

Whether that’s a new club being promoted to Brisbane ranks or something with centralisation (Melbourne rebels A) etc

Norths and Sunnybank should see better results in premiers grade this season. The reds have sent some new recruits (front row = premium position) to the dragons den and eagles nest.

Also wonder if we finally see the qpr players salary cap points system implemented in 2024… that could have some rep players on the move??

 

[PhilClinton]

Also wonder if we finally see the qpr players salary cap points system implemented in 2024… that could have some rep players on the move??

Yes good point - there are a couple of guys here who are pretty plugged into their club admin. Does anyone have mail if that salary cap is actually going to happen?

With the distribution of the Reds new recruits, I figured it might be on the cards.

 

[LevitatingSocks]

Is it time to get real about the Norths' and Sunnybank's performance issues over the last number of years? Should serious consideration be given to moving them into the Barber Cup (1st grade) , Normanby Cup (2nd grade) and Wyatt (3rd grade) in 2024 ?? Both clubs struggle to field 4th grade at any time but perhaps could have two teams in Wyatt. Colts is a different beast. Not sure what the solution is there; perhaps staying in QPR? IMO I think being competitive will help keep blokes playing and the road trips to teams like Caboolture etc would help build friendships, culture etc.

The higher end suburban teams are much better than people give them credit for being. That Brisbane Irish 1st grade team from this past season was scary and could probably steal a win against a strong QPR 2nd grade team on a good day and would compare well against any QPR 3rd grade team.

But putting Norths or Sunnybank 2nd grade into the Normanby Cup or 3rd grade into the Wyatt Cup would be bad for competitive balance. They would be playing teams that struggle for numbers or even the occasional QPR 6th grade team composed of old guys, people new to rugby, and some 5th grade guys getting a warm up game on Friday night before the 5th grade game Saturday morning.

 

[PhilClinton]

@LevitatingSocks even those stronger subbies teams are just as likely to be shit the following year and drop in standard.

Good subbies teams are usually made up of semi-retired 1st graders, young blokes who just want to play with their mates and some genuine lower grade standard players just looking for a local game. I’ve noticed that balance shifts a lot more frequently in subbies than it does in QPR clubs with established grades pathways.

 

[LevitatingSocks]

@PhilClinton Agreed, wouldn't be unheard of for an older group of guys that have played together for a while to quit entirely off the back of a good year.

Regarding the overall point, players aren't stupid and tend to vote with their feet. If you can't attract or retain enough players of needed quality then there is probably a deeper cultural or structural reason why that can't be solved with a quick fix. My immediate first perception of Norths as a lower grades player new to the area was scrolling the QPR instagram, seeing the deluge of one-sided results, and thinking "buddy why would I show up every saturday to get shelled in front of a crowd when I have no prior affiliation?". I'm sure they have an abundance of great guys over at the club but that's demoralizing and no fun. Apologies if that comes across as more harsh or judgemental than I intended.

The calculus is probably different if you're a Prems player that can be swayed with exposure, pay, or playing time that might lead to a pro contract.