Where Teams Go to Die.

G'day Tragics,

Sun, bikinis, nightclubs, meter maids, theme parks and Warrick Capper are some of the things that spring to mind when we think of the Gold Coast. 

One of the things that isn't so well know is the fact the the Goldy is fast becoming Australia's biggest graveyard for national sporting teams.  The Coast is a revolving door for a string of glamour organisations that have have rolled into town with all guns blazing, then crashed and burned in a very short period.

The Rollers, the Seagulls, the Bears, the Cougars, GC United and the Chargers are teams just off the top of my head that have been and quickly gone on the Coast.  The Titans and  Blaze are currently on thin ice and the Indy/V8's race has done it's absolute best over the years to crash and burn.

Why do these teams fail in an environment that loves its sport and an has everything a successful team needs to succeed?  In my humble opinion there are a number of factors that have contributed to making my home region a national laughing stock in sporting circles.  Here are a couple:

1.  Fickle fans
Gold Coasters are cool, laid back people, that love anything shiny and new.  They get wrapped up in the excitement and flock to new enterprises, one-offs and have been know to attend the opening of someones fly.  On the downside if a team starts losing, or doesn't begin winning (Suns I'm looking at you), Gold Coast fans will drop off and find the next big thing. 

Sports teams shouldn't be offended.  It's the same with nightclubs, restaurants and fashion.  Gold Coasters will love it, do it and then ditch it.  They need be convinced to hang around for the long haul.

2. Shocking Management
The carnage of the Gold Coast's sporting landscape is massively due to the arrogance and flamboyance of some of the management teams.  Clive Palmer and Michael Searle are two recent examples.  One a big man desperate to show how big he really is and the other wanting to be bigger than he really is.  Both claimed to be passionate about their respective organisations, both have rode them into the ground.  Palmer has robbed the Coast of ever getting a chance in the A-League again and Searle will have done the same for league if the Titans crumble under the weight of massive debt.

Palmer is a miner - not a sports administrator.  GC United was a toy and his lack of touch with the game, fans and the sport itself, eventually extinguished a promising enterprise.  He figured cash alone would buy success, but his style and arrogance scared the fans off and effectively destroyed soccer in the region.  I don't think big Clive gave a rats arse.....shame.

Searle on the other hand started off strong.  The Titans were the envy of the league.  They built a sensational brand in their early years.  On field they displayed heart and grit and their wonderful Stadium brought in the fans.  A passionate Searle had done well, but wanted to grow too fast too soon.  He wanted to be the big man on campus, without taking any classes.  He threw around cash the club didn't have.  The place was a Ferrari on the outside but was running on a Daewo engine.

Once the on-field grit started to fade, the crowds thinned and gloss on the shiny Titan's helmet had worn off.  Only a miracle will save the Titans and I hope they get one.  Time will tell.

These only a couple of botched efforts in a sorry roll call of disasters.  How can so many teams in the one area be so mis-managed?  For sports lovers like myself it is a tragedy.  Up until recently we had the Suns, Blaze, United and the Titans all on our door step.  Admittedly, I didn't go every week, but to have so many options on the Coast was a sports lovers dream.  It may be partly my fault....nah.

Golden ticket
The nutty professor of soccer, Miron Bleiberg came up with an idea for a Gold Coast sports lovers pass.  A golden ticket that would give purchasers the choice to attend one of the four major sports codes for a pre-selected amount of games.  I thought it was genius.  Perfect for a place that can't make its mind up, ideal for people that want to go to sport sometimes, a winner for those new to sport and wanting to try before they buy.   The media tore Bleiberg to shreds, critics said he was nuts, but at least he could see the rot setting in and was trying to come up with an answer.

Too many sit on their hands and fail to see the urgency in a problem - Not the mighty Bleiberg!

My ingredients to a successful team on the coast (or anywhere really) is as follows:

1. Engage a new audience early. (marketing, advertising, public interaction)
2. Start ticket prices off sensibly low. (a full stadium of $10 paying fans creates more buzz than an empty stadium of $50 paying fans - no shit!)
3. Be strong on junior development.
4. Get players that aren't tossers.
5. Grow the club gradually.
6. Make the fans the number 1 priority.
7. Win!

The Gold Coast Suns are the great white hope for long term success and currently have ticked all the boxes, but one.  Point number 7 is the hardest of all to obtain, but once they do start winning the club will explode and hopefully become the benchmark for any future teams that are lucky enough to get a sniff on the Coast in the future.

As I said earlier, the Gold Coast is a sporting graveyard.  The Commonwealth Games could be our chance to gain some street cred.  The bumbling we've seen so far by the games committee has me quaking in my duds.  I just have a fear in my guts, that the Games will be embarrassing....so negative...so GC.....so Tragic.

Tweets or Twits?

G'day Tragics,

Few would argue that social networking has changed the world forever.  For the better or worse is the grey area that many ponder.  Gone are the days when wiping your bum was a private matter.....it now is an activity that needs to be shared with ones friends, followers or disciples.

The world of sport has embraced social networking, with athletes, coaches, team owners and media using facebook, twitter, fango etc to give a behind the scenes insight into a world of sport that was previously out of bounds to us mere mortals.

Granted some of the glimpses behind the scenes have given sport another dimension, but on the negative it has also highlighted the fact that some sports stars are air-headed ratbags that are lucky enough to be paid squillions for the god-given talent they posses.

Gary Ablett Jr is a huge fan of facebook and twitter and appears to use it in a way that promotes his brand, keeps his nose clean and gives his fans a sneak peak into his private world.  Ablett runs competitions, answers questions, posts photos and recently provided a phone number, so fans could ring him for an hour and have a chat.

By putting himself out there, Ablett avoids the rabid journalists that drove his famous father into hiding during his career.  Recently Ablett was criticised for sharing his feelings on Fremantle tagger, Ryan Crowley's tactics on twitter.  Comments that added spice to a possibly dull contest between the Suns and the Dockers.  Marketing maestro Kevin Sheedy would have loved Ablett's work.

For a negative example of twitter trouble we can look no further than darling of the pool, Stephanie Rice.  Who could forget he very unlady-like tweet of "Suck on that faggots" following a Wallabies victory over the springboks.  Is that what girls speak like these days?....Goodness gracious!

So many athletes feel the need to shoot off at the mouth on facebook or twitter and some are beginning to act as if there opinion ranks up there with Gillard's or Obama's.  Social networking is transforming sports personalities into stars and not in a good way.

How sick do we get of movie stars meeting the President about orphans in Siberia or similar.  These people's egos have been pumped up to the point where they believe their own publicity and forget where they come from.

American athletes jumped off the humble train years ago and unfortunately Aussies are chasing them down.  Fame is fast becoming number one -  above loyalty, teamwork, hard work and the love of their sport that gifted them their popularity.

At the time of writing this, I am an active facebook and twitter user, for how long I don't know.  I am highly concerned with sport and society in general heading toward a catastrophic narcissism driven implosion.

Social networking does have a place in society and sport, but it needs to be used for good not stupidity.  I wonder how long it will be before organisations start training athletes in Facebook etiquette?  #hopefullysoon........Tragic!