December 3, 1995: The Adelaide Aces
The sad story of Peter Morgan - familiar to anyone who has tried to turn a passion into a business opportunity.
Two Tribes is intended as the sequel to Mike Colman’s peerless 1996 classic, Super League: The Inside Story.
In this indispensable tome, there’s a great story about Peter Morgan, the Canterbury fan from Sydney’s North Shore who moved to Adelaide and got a job with News Limited’s Advertiser.
Morgan took his passion for rugby league with him. He and Kevin Felgate, the former Illawarra player who I’ve had a fair bit to do with over the years, convinced the New South Wales Rugby League to bring St George v Balmain to Adelaide Oval on June 28, 1991 (see video below).
In 1993, Morgan came up with the name Adelaide Aces - in a nod to the city’s casino which he thought might come on board as major sponsor - and registered the name.
He continued to write stories about the possibility of an Adelaide team - winning support in State parliament - and those efforts led to Super League jumping on board in 1995. The government granted land to the new team and Adelaide had delegates at the Los Angeles conference we’ve been posting about here the last few days.
The Adelaide Aces were go!
Morgan thought he might land a job at the new club, finally be a decision-maker and not just a reporter-of-decisions. He owned the name after all and he could not have worked any harder to bring the Greatest Game Of All to the City Of Churches.
I’ll let Mike Colman take up the story…
“Peter arrived at work to find Advertiser general manager John Sanders waiting at his desk. For years Morgan had waited for this moment. He knew the name Aces was firmly entrenched in the minds of the public and the Super League hierarchy. He knew they wanted it.
“But if Morgan was expecting a cordial discussion about the team and his part in its future, he was disappointed. If he expected an offer of tens of thousands of dollars to relinquish the name, he was doubly disappointed. The bidding started at $500 and didn’t rise a great deal higher. ‘I wasn’t out to make a high profit and walk away. I’d always wanted the game to come to South Australia and I wanted to be part of it when it did. I’d been involved with league in Adelaide from day one. I felt I knew what was needed to get the team up and running. Super League were appointing media people at all the other franchises. That was what I wanted’.
“Eventually Morgan signed over the name ‘Adelaide Aces’ for an amount which barely covered his costs. More important to him was the vague understanding he’d be considered for the media job. It was a job he never got. A marketing company employed to oversee the team’s rushed entry into Super League employed former television journalist Ric Keegan on a four-month contract to handle media liaison.”
And on this day 25 years ago, in-the-know Sun-Herald reporter Alex Mitchell reported that the team in Rupert Murdoch’s home town was happening. After what the Super League delegates saw at their Los Angeles symposium, they decided “Rams” was a better name. Peter’s disappointment that day at work had been for nought.
Mitchell reported each of the other Super League clubs would have to give up players for the new franchise. He also claimed St George had agreed to jump camps but then change their minds when News Limited insisted they merge or relocate.
Peter Morgan? Just another hard-working dreamer kicked to the curb by the game - and by big business.
AILING BRONCOS FIND SOME RELIEF IN INJURY CRISIS
Sydney Morning Herald, September 6 1995
By STEVE MASCORD
BRISBANE last night emerged from what appeared to be an injury crisis with the news that stricken second-rower Peter Ryan may play against Sydney Bulldogs on Sunday despite a painful rib injury.
Coach Wayne Bennett included captain Allan Langer (quadriceps), centre Darren Smith (concussion), lock Terry Matterson (hamstring), reserve forward Andrew Gee (knee), wingers Willie Carne (jarred ankle) and Michael Hancock (corked thigh).
But only Langer and Matterson - and perhaps Gee - are thought to be in real danger of missing the match after training last night Ryan was not named in the team but club spokesman Bill Walker said he was a slim chance of playing.
"If he was to play, I suppose it would provide some backup for Matterson, if he was out," Walker said.
Bennett has dismissed speculation that former Test centre Chris Johns may come back from a broken arm.
Sydney Bulldogs named Test utility Jason Smith on the bench after he passed a fitness test last night, while centre Glenn Hughes will have intense physiotherapy all week to overcome a hip problem.
While less than match fit, Smith could provide the Bulldogs with some late-game guile in the sudden-death encounter.
"If he gets through the week OK, well use him," Bulldogs general manager Garry Hughes said.Matthew Ryan is Hughes's expected replacement.
Cronulla welcomed back goal-kicking winger Mat Rogers for the Saturday encounter with Newcastle, costing Western Samoan Brian Laumatia his place in the Sharks' side.
In Newcastle, centre Brett Grogan retained his spot with Nathan Barnes still unavailable.
In other news, Sydney Bulldogs prop Darren Britt is required to attend tonight's hearing into a biting charge against St George forward Gorden Tallis.
Britt complained to referee Eddie Ward during last Saturday's elimination final at Sydney Football Stadium, but Garry Hughes last night revealed he had tried to withdraw the complaint after the match.
"We spoke to the referee, the touch judges and other officials about withdrawing it but received no answer," he said. "We did attempt to withdraw it."
An ARL spokesman yesterday confirmed all players who lodge biting complaints must give evidence.
Late last night Manly fullback Matthew Ridge was named New Zealand captain when the Kiwis announced their side for the World Cup.
Ridge won the job ahead of long-standing skipper Gary Freeman.
In an even bigger shock, Western Suburbs journeyman Mark Horo's international career is set to resume after almost a decade on the outer.
New Zealand named only 24 players - one fewer than allowed under tournament rules -with Auckland lock Logan Edwards a surprise omission.
Cronulla winger Richard Barnett and Auckland half Stacey Jones are poised to make their debuts.
Coach Frank Endacott said Leeds five-eighth Tony Kemp was in line for lock replacement for Cronulla's Tawera Nikau, who has quit Test football.
Canberra's John Lomax is vice-captain, with all the players bar Kemp, Wigan's Henry Paul and Featherstone's Brendan Tuuta Australasian-based.
RESOURCES
Random feature I did for Flight Centre
I’ve never understood why Adelaide is not even considered as a potential home for an NRL franchise in the future. The NRL needs to go back there, it’s our 5th biggest city.