NRL attendances : Wed Feb 11, 2009 4:57 pm
In a previous topic Dally Messenger suggested the average attendance for the Rhinos for 2008 only bettered one side in the NRL.
I was puzzled at this claim so I thought it worth investigation to see if his claims stacked up.
Here are the average attendances for all the NRL clubs for 2008:
Brisbane Broncos 33,426
Gold Coast Titans 21,618
Newcastle Knights 18,750
N Q Cowboys 18,102
West Tigers 16,386
Canterbury Bulldogs 15,352
South Sydney 14,644
Roosters 13,970
Manley 13,694
Parramatta 13,528
Cronulla 12,965
St George 12,596
Melbourne 12,474
Canberra 11,913
Warriors 11,440
Penrith 10,899
The Rhinos average for 2008 was 17,042 which would place them 5th on the NRL list?
It is interesting to note the average attendances in Sydney were nearly 7% on the previous season.
The people at Penrith should be upset - let's face it there isn't anything else to do out there!!
Perhaps more of a concern is the average attendance for the Sydney ARL team the Swans who have an average of 31,901 – obviously there is only one ARL team in Sydney. Compare the attendances for the ARL teams in Melbourne compared to the NRL teams in Sydney and the majority of the ARL outnumber their NRL counterparts 2 to 1.
No wonder the authorities are looking at ways to improve the current turgid nature of the NRL.
Of the 12 highest attendances 10 were at Brisbane!!