South Sydney Rabbitohs create history

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11337508

On the 5th of October 2014, the South Sydney Rabbitohs created history by beating the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs 30-6. The match was a real arm wrestle right up to late in the second half until the Rabbitohs ran away with it in front of a record crowd of over 83000 fans at ANZ stadium.

This is the first time in 43 years that the Rabbitohs have won an NRL title. Many people including those who are not their fans would agree that they definitely deserve to have won a title, having played consistently good Rugby League all season and having reached two preliminary finals in the two previous years.

The strange fact of a long time club going 43 years without winning a title isn't a common thing and is unlikely to happen again, especially with this club. Sam Burgess who played with a broken cheek bone almost the entire match said after the match, "this ones for you south's fans, you've waited a long time".

In terms of Marketing the record crowd at ANZ stadium since the 2000 Sydney Olympics will have positive spin off's for the game of Rugby League. In a year of dwindling crowds, a drop in television ratings and the occasional player bringing the game into disrepute, a strong finish to the season such as this is ideal. What a great opportunity the NRL have now to promote the game as a spectacle worth watching following this special event. South Sydney will bring in more fans buying merchandise and season tickets. This in turn means more inland revenue for the game and club which is of vital importance for not just the Rabbitohs but also in re-establishing some of the fans that statistics suggested have been lost these last couple of years. It is more likely now that the team will have more demands for companies wanting to sponsor them and promote their product via this team whilst some of the marquee players potentially being asked to personally endorse products in certain campaigns.

Something like this is always a grand opportunity to attract fans. In my opinion both the NRL and South Sydney Rabbitohs should make the most of the current massive fan base and increased consumer demand.

From a management perspective it will be of paramount benefit in regards to recruitment. What a wonderful opportunity to be able to sign on some of the NRL star players. Players will see a team and some will think, "hey it'd be good to be able to play for a club like that". The human resources will now need to make sure they keep the Rabbitohs team a genuine workforce and title contender in the years ahead and achieving something that hasn't been done in over 20 years. A team winning 2 NRL titles back to back.

This analysis talks of the marketing and management positives coming from the Rabbitohs winning the NRL grand final.