Crazy to suggest this stuff. When the League was struggling it was the Taipans and Gong that were solid. Brisbane come and go, Sydney come and go South Dragons the same many others unable to sustain a team or success. Brisbane with much bigger budget bottom the last two seasons, Sydney struggled big time recently. Every league in the world have teams that struggle for wins. No one is suggesting Carlton footy club should pack up shop. Cairns still getting great crowds ( bigger than Brisbane ) and will probably post a profit again.

Taipans 19/20?

They'll be around... But how many of their current squad will they bring back?

Never use STRONG in the same sentence as the Hawks or the Taipns please.

It all really depends on getting bums on seats, and being in a decent financial position. Townsville failed because they were nada on those fronts. Someone up in FNQ probably has a better idea of what the crowd numbers are like, but the impression I get is that they are the very least in a better position than Illawarra. It wouldn't have hurt if they could pull out a few more wins for sure, but I don’t think it’s been a total disaster. I’d hate to lose them.

YES the league needs them

Someone up in FNQ probably has a better idea of what the crowd numbers are like, but the impression I get is that they are the very least in a better position than Illawarra

Granted that was the traditional NYE game, but still, compared to some other teams, and considering Cairns population, they are punching above their weight. Obviously if the much talked-about luxury tax were truly in effect, I think Cairns would be sitting pretty.

Newcastle, townsville, Albury/wodonga and canberra all have bigger populations and no NBL teams. Cairns deserves credit but itd be nice if they were more competitive this season.

The crowds may well drop off from now on due to the Taipans poor form and the upcoming schedule being less fan friendly than it has been so far, however the crowds have been very good so far particularly considering the Taipans form and I don't agree the atmosphere has been pretty poor.

There was a smaller crowd than usual at the NYE game and no doubt some people didn't come because the Taipans aren't winning however the weather leading into the game and the council cancelling a lot of the events that normally take place after the game played it's part also.

to be fair the council cancelled all the events in town as they were expecting storms from the tropical low. they did well to get 4.5k under those circumstances.

Yes Cairns is important to the NBL and should continue to exist so long as they are financially self sustaining.

Beecroft has publicly said that they can put together a competitive team even in the soft cap era and the NBL won't leave them behind.

I believe in Mark Beecroft.

One of the things NBL has been consistently criticised for is instability. Various folks have pointed to it as a reason why league sponsorship and free-to-air television coverage have been historically hard to get. The key aspect of that instability has been the regular turnover of teams. At the present point in time, losing a team only 3 seasons into the new ownership model would make it look like the league is as unstable as ever.

So is the question really (when) could you afford to lose Cairns without scaring investors (people who own or might buy NBL licences), sponsors and telecasters?

Surely there needs to be at least a couple more teams in the league and then a process of licence transfer to a new team before you'd consider losing any of the existing teams? A licence transfer process might make it look more like a managed process rather than a continuing problem with the business model?

If cairns played every second monday or tuesday at home it could be a good barometer for mid week games. Hawks n taipans should exist as shit crowds at these games are irrelevant experimentally.

"If cairns played every second monday or tuesday at home it could be a good barometer for mid week games. Hawks n taipans should exist as shit crowds at these games are irrelevant experimentally."

But is the Cairns market a good barometer for the rest of the leagu's markets.

I’ve only been to Cairns twice, but I believe that the economy is dominated by tourism. Maybe the slower nights up there would work well with getting tourists and hospitality workers there. Maybe not. But the capital cities and Wollongong would have different dynamics on those nights. This Cairns Mon/Tues experiment might give some insight into Hobart fixturing if they ever get in.

What I have seen in Cairns is that it’s a car park trying to drive north on the main Hwy from 4:30 pm on, full of rental cars and tourist buses. It might be easier to stick around for the game and drive home later.

For players, Cairns could be an ideal next star destination for young guys wanting to go to a party college without the college, or some other deal whereby draft picks are stashed. NBL season is low season for tourism in FNQ, so accommodation for imports should be able to be sourced relatively inexpensively or gratis through a sponsor. Ditto cars. There are some really nice apartment resorts in Palm Cove, Prt Douglas etc that would be very attractive to a young Import.

yes and no. taipans remains attractive as a quality affordable night out within 10 mins walk of the city centre. options are limited in the wet in cairns and it fills that gap perfectly. they're not at any risk if they can string together some home wins every season and keep up with the community work they do.

imports usually end up at Cairns one apartment conplex, it's 5 mins from the training centre, secure, and has a gym on site. you don't want your imports driving an hour to training every day in a monsoon.

also think the Nbl are happy for cairns to be in the league if they can be self sustaining and relatively competitive. if they ever start needing major bailouts because the crowds disappear they're fucked but that's the same for nearly any team that's not Melbourne or Sydney.