CEO Steven Johnson | Founded 2010 | |
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Colours Gold
Green
White | ||
The Western Corridor NRL bid was launched on 14 August 2010 in an attempt to represent Brisbane's growing Western Corridor in an expanded National Rugby League competition. The bid is headquartered in Ipswich, Queensland and is closely associated with the Ipswich Jets.
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The bid promotes the benefits of having a third South-East Queensland club to boost television ratings, attendances and promote the code in a "heartland" area.
History and bid region
Rugby league football has been played in Brisbane and Ipswich for over a century and is currently represented in the Queensland Cup by the Ipswich Jets.
In 2009, before the bid was launched, Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale invited then NRL CEO David Gallop to tour the region. Gallop stressed the importance of establishing an NRL side in the "Ipswich-Logan corridor" and was famously quoted as saying the NRL should expand "where the fish are biting".
The club's heartland region will encompass Ipswich, Logan and Toowoomba. Sydney Roosters CEO Brian Canavan was hired in December 2010 as a consultant to assist in developing the club's feasibility study and business plan.
Club identity
The bid team has proposed that the name of the team be Jagera, the Indigenous Australian name for the area that the bid encompasses.
Headquarters and stadium
It is envisioned that the club will base itself out of Springfield, this location was selected as it is geographically roughly halfway between Ipswich and Logan and is serviced by the Springfield railway line.
The club will initially use the existing training facilities at Brothers Ipswich RLFC in Ipswich while the permanent state-funded training and administration facilities are built in Springfield.
South East Queensland's largest stadium is Lang Park and is home to NRL club the Brisbane Broncos. The bid has proposed that it initially play out of Lang Park while it waits for a permanent stadium to be built in the Ripley Valley or in Ipswich itself.
Community
The club will be based on the not-for-profit, community-owned model of the Green Bay Packers in the NFL
The bid has also planned the development of feeder teams in the Queensland Cup, such as reviving the Toowoomba Clydesdales, in order to provide direct pathways for players to progress into the NRL team.
In 2012 University of Queensland partnered with the bid in an effort to further provide more educational pathways for youth in the region and to also further target Indigenous youth.
Bid support
During the 2010 Annual CEO conference the Western Corridor bid and the West Coast Pirates bid were seen as preferable expansion locations.
The bid is also supported by Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale and the City of Ipswich. It is also backed by Brothers Ipswich, despite the launch of a Brothers Confraternity NRL bid.
Many rugby league personalities, such as Johnathan Thurston have also publicly supported the bid.
Players
Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith has been touted as a possible initial club captain.