NRL clubs funded by "family misery"

[Beaussie]

Gotta say I'm with the government on this one. Why does the NRL and its clubs have to rely so heavily on pokie profits.

Here's an idea for David Gallop and the NRL clubs, how about you work harder on promoting memberships and fans actually attending your games rather than whinging and whining about pokie machine reforms that are planned to address problem gambling.

NRL tackled on pokies profits
EXCLUSIVE by Joe Hildebrand
From:The Daily Telegraph
July 05, 201112:00AM

THE federal government and NRL attacked each other head-on yesterday over the use of poker-machine profits to boost rugby league clubs.

Families Minister Jenny Macklin accused NRL clubs of being funded by "family misery" and "pokie addicts" and called on parents to refuse to tolerate it any longer.

The government has been forced to introduce a mandatory pre-commitment cap for poker-machine players, or independent Andrew Wilkie will pull his support and the minority government will collapse.

The move has been met with fierce opposition by clubs and pubs and the NRL has now joined the campaign to block the move, warning it will hurt teams funded by clubs.

NRL chief executive David Gallop compared it yesterday with the Melbourne Cup being subject to pre-commitment bets or caps on drinking.

Ms Macklin fired back, saying footy teams were being funded by problem gambling and it must stop immediately.

"No parent would support having another family's misery pay for their footy team," she told The Daily Telegraph. "We don't stand at the sidelines and watch our kids tackle high. And we shouldn't stand by and let pokie addicts pay for NRL clubs. That's not fair play."

Ms Macklin has formally written to Mr Gallop saying the government is "disappointed" by the move.

Mr Gallop said the move could cause real damage to football, and there was no solid evidence it would stop problem gambling.

"Our leagues clubs were set up to support our game and our clubs are genuinely concerned at the ramifications of these changes both for NRL and junior rugby league clubs," he said.

"Kids get to play our game because of the subsidies provided by leagues clubs.

"The comments reflect that this is a highly political issue for the government but that should not stop people looking at the potential damage this may cause and that there's real doubt about whether the changes will work."

Anti-pokies campaigners Nick Xenophon and Tim Costello accused the NRL of "perpetuating lies" by supporting a campaign against gambling caps.

They accused the NRL of "shocking" behaviour.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/s ... 6087545664

[TLPG]

You know, this has been a long time coming - because Sydney RL clubs have relied on the pokies for a long time. There's a reason why the Leagues Club of each team - even back before mergers (I'm thinking of Balmain, Wests, St George and Illawarra) - are proverbial community hubs. It's become a part of the structure so to speak. It should be pointed out that clubs in the SANFL also rely on the pokies. In fact they saved North Adelaide - in spite of Xenophon who was in the SA Parliament at the time.

Don't get me wrong - it's about time caps were slapped on the pokies, and I agree with you, Beau. They should get people to the games, and I've always said that was a weakness for the NRL.

[rick-james]

Maybe this will force clubs to think of a better way, actually get off their backsides.

[Beaussie]

Hmm, a new low for the NRL indeed.

NRL kicks own goal to back clubs' propaganda on pokie reform
Nick Xenophon and Tim Costello
From:The Daily Telegraph
July 06, 201112:00AM

THE new advertising campaign by the NRL opposing poker machine reform is something of a low for the code, and considering the organisation has been riddled with serious match-fixing allegations in recent times, that's saying something.

The NRL said in its joint media release with anti-reform campaigners, Clubs Australia, that poker machine reform was a "slap in the face of clubs, its members and the millions of people who love the game of rugby league".

Now, forgive us if we're wrong, but we thought rugby league was a sport played on a field, where teams compete to score tries, not about playing poker machines designed to let people spend hundreds, in some cases, hundreds of thousands2 of dollars, they can't afford to lose.

This year $12 billion will be lost on the pokies, and 40 per cent of that will come from problem gamblers alone.

For the NRL to oppose reforms that will protect problem gamblers, that will help people keep their jobs, their homes, their families, even their lives, is staggering.

The Productivity Commission found there are almost 100,000 problem gamblers in Australia, with another 200,000 at significant risk of becoming problem gamblers.

But, according to NRL CEO David Gallop, that's a very small percentage of people.

Using his theory, we also shouldn't be concerned about alcoholics or illicit drug users.

The NRL's advertising campaign is based on deception and, like Clubs Australia's recent "It's UnAustralian" campaign, is nothing more than scare tactics.

Pre-commitment technology will allow players to set monetary limits so they can't spend more than they can afford to lose.

It will not stop people from playing recreationally.

It will not require players to register for a licence to, as the Clubs put it, have a punt.

It will not cost the $3 billion Clubs Australia claims.

The Independent Gambling Authority of South Australia has given evidence that it will cost just $1000 per machine to install pre-commitment technology. Furthermore, clubs will have the option to modify machines to be low-intensity, which requires a simple software change to the machine and can be done by a technician. On low-intensity machines, players will be able to lose an average $150 per hour, which is still a lot of money, but at least is significantly less than the average $1500 per hour that can currently be lost.

The NRL says clubs play an important role in attracting kids to the game. That's why it's shocking that a sporting code would be opposed to reforms that will protect kids from going hungry because of their parents' gambling addiction.

And are they really saying that the future of rugby is dependent on gambling addiction? The face of the NRL's ad campaign, Steve Mortimer, says "Rugby league is the greatest game of all".

If that's the case, perhaps the NRL should focus on cleaning up the sport instead of perpetuating the spin of Clubs Australia.

Nick Xenophon is an independent senator for South Australia elected on a no pokies platform

Tim Costello is a Baptist minister, anti-gambling campaigner and CEO of World Vision

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/o ... 6088330128

[TLPG]

Oh it's on now! That will throw Gallop so far onto the back foot he'll fall over!

[Beaussie]

Gallop has been pathetic in this debate. Seriously, he is putting family misery and pokie addiction aside in the hope it ensures NRL clubs survive. Fair dinkum NRL, stop preying on those less well off and learn to develop other income streams other than pokies. A good start would be encouraging and getting your so called fans to actually attend games and buy memberships.

[Raiderdave]

Gallop has been pathetic in this debate. Seriously, he is putting family misery and pokie addiction aside in the hope it ensures NRL clubs survive. Fair dinkum NRL, stop preying on those less well off and learn to develop other income streams other than pokies. A good start would be encouraging and getting your so called fans to actually attend games and buy memberships.

this is a potential problem far beyond NRL clubs & the small amount of money they actually take from poker machine revenue

Gamblers will gamble regardless of this new legislation
they won't be stopped by a limit on pokies
a limit needs to be brought in for all forms of gambling not just pokies
horse racing & dog racing also all forms of online betting , & lets see if their reaction is any different to the Clubs association

a problem gambler will get his fix it doesn't matter where its from.

by picking on this one form of gambling .. they are singling out one state ( NSW) that has a lot of people employed in the clubs industry
& these clubs provide 1.2 Billion dollars of funding to the community that will be lost
from funding for junior sports clubs .. ( all sports including AFL ) & all other social non for profit clubs to subsidising meals for pensioners & their weekly bingo games

Clubs will have to lay off staff & cut the funding to their local community
& they have to do this so that 1.2% of the regular pokie users can be limited to what they can spend
thats right ... 60,000 chronic gamblers out of 5 Million who won't stop using the money they can't afford to lose anyway

the lunatic fringe or over zealous indepedants .... they are one & the same want to throw the baby out with the bath water with this knee jerk reaction that is doomed to fail & kill off community projects & thousands of jobs with it

the Fed Govt coffers will also of course go down with lost taxes on pokie revenue , so where will the Govt make up this short fall ?
with higher taxes on all of us of course .. where else

we all lose on this one
find some other way to get these problem gamblers under control
but to punish the vast majority for the problems of the vast minority is a floored path to tread & the NRL .. & all of us , should not stand idely by & allow it to happen.

[TLPG]

The only losers at this point are the NRL because they won't look up other options. They will have to.

And everyone should pay taxes just to clear that point up.

[Raiderdave]

The only losers at this point are the NRL because they won't look up other options. They will have to.

And everyone should pay taxes just to clear that point up.

they shouldn't have to ... 98.8% of pokermachine users are responsible people who have no problem & don't need to be nannied by the Govt
the net affect of these reforms for the 1.2% who do need help... will be zero
the net affect on thousands of people ... not just NRL clubs , who rely on employment through the clubs industry .. & funding into the community & the trickle on effect this will have ...will be devastating

its fine to tell NRL football clubs they need to diversify their income streams , they're doing that now

but the clubs industry & community attached to it is a lot more then the Football club that runs out on a weekend
& who's speaking up for these thousands of people ... the NRL , & good on em too.

I hope this ranga slag is enjoying her time in office
this coupeld with the Carbon Tax will see her thrown out of office so comprehensively at the next election , the cow won't know what hit her.

[TLPG]

If it's truly a community hub, they can diversify and survive.

An industry that relies on poker machine revenue is an industry doomed to fail.

I'll leave that there because this is swinging away from a football argument.

[Beaussie]

Good article from Peter Fitzsimons in today's SMH. Really can't see how the NRL can justify the anti-pokie reform stance they have taken.

Let's get real about pokie reform, fellas
Peter FitzSimons
July 16, 2011 .

What a lot of nonsense was served up by the NRL and various media commentators this week over the proposed pokie-machine reforms. I suppose the NRL with all its member pokie palaces can be half-excused as it is a business whose very raison d'etre is to make more money. When one of those revenue streams is threatened, even when that stream is a wretched one, all too frequently composed of families' rent and grocery money - I repeat, 40 per cent of the $14 billion a year lost by Australians, comes from problem gamblers - then it is to be half-expected that the NRL will furiously shake its fist at those trying to limit the damage. But the media commentators? What is their excuse? Many of them have seen up close the devastation caused by people regularly losing far more money than they can afford - the families torn apart, the people thrown out on the street, the lives completely ruined - so why not do the right thing and back a reform that is actually trying to do something about it? It is not limiting people's freedom. It is saying to the punters: "Listen, Sport. In your calm, sober moments, work out how much you can afford to lose, and we will ensure you stick to it." This is sensible and decent - not the end of the world, or rugby league as we know it. In the meantime, bravo Nick Xenophon and Andrew Wilkie, the two politicians who are driving the reform.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/the-fitz-fi ... z1SE0A1Va9

[TLPG]

=D> =D> =D>

I salute Peter Fitzsimmons - a rugby man as well!