Off the Wall

When Rusty Crowe and Peter Holmes a Court rode into Rabbitohs boardroom on their cash and kudos laden steeds, supporters, not only of South Sydney but of a healthy NRL, felt hope soar in their hearts. Now, a year on, with the Rabbitohs sitting on one from ten starts and losses of $4 million, the South Sydney saviours themselves are looking a little battle-worn.

But it's only one club's story of woe. There are other clubs in similarly dire financial positions, and it may be about to get worse.

As part of its push into Western Sydney the AFL has been doing its homework on the problems facing the NRL and its Sydney clubs. It has not taken long for the AFL to work out that the extraordinarily generous deal the owners of Sydney