Are you sick of the Sydney-centric coverage of the great game of rugby league? Are you tired of having to pretend that “foundation clubs” or a “derby” played in front of 15 people or St George’s 11-in-a-row of “national” titles in a ten team comp of all white players in one city have any meaning to you at all? Why are we expected to pander to people who simply do not get Origin? The commentators won’t even leave the studio!
If you answered yes to any of the above, this newsletter is for you.
Queensland now has four NRL clubs, including three with NRLW licences. We have glorious competitions for men, women and juniors that span our wide state and includes a team from Papua New Guinea, which Queensland tried to annex in 1883. Far from being mired in nostalgia, rugby league districts around the state obliterated their heritage to build something bigger and better where only the fittest can survive. Our 2020 State of Origin side was the worst team ever and still won, just like they did in 1995 and in 1960 and in 1925.
We deserve coverage of rugby league that reflects our place in the game.
This is not a place for mindless cheerleading or uncritical blather. It is a place to recognise that Queensland rugby league has its own culture and history and a substantial enough place in the sport to merit dedicated coverage without New South Wales inserting itself in the way.
About the author
Hello. You may remember me from:
Proving the superiority of the short drop out and taking the two while down eight
Pointing out that Brodie Croft still sucks and England will lose because of it
Pythago NRL has run its course and so I have moved on to something that is both closer to my heart and more focussed. The Maroon Observer operates according to this list of theses. Welcome aboard.
Schedule
During the season, you will likely receive two emails a week:
The general Queensland and rugby league newsletter, The Maroon Observer, runs every Wednesday during the season where you will get an alternative reading of the news.
The newsletter dedicated to the Brisbane Broncos, Pony Picayune, publishes at the end of each month.
The newsletter dedicated to the North Queensland Cowboys, Bovine Bulletin, gets sent mid-month.
Stats Drop will go when I feel like it, around the others.
Support
If you particularly enjoy The Maroon Observer and associated newsletters, you can support me on Ko-Fi (if you don’t like Substack or don’t want to pay an ongoing subscription) or you can upgrade to a paid subscription to get full access to the Pony Picayune, Bovine Bulletin and Stats Drop, including access to the metric dashboards and The Dataset™, and the privilege of leading comments.
