History of The Gold Coast Titans - History of The Titans' Bid

History of The Titans' Bid

In 2003 Michael Searle and Paul Broughton began pushing for the reinstatement of a Gold Coast Team in the National Rugby League in 2006. In the second quarter of 2004 the Gold Coast Consortium, as they had become known, announced their team name and jersey at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre during an episode of Channel 9's The Footy Show. The team was to be known as the Gold Coast Dolphins and their colours would be white, jade and orange. The Dolphins moniker was very popular, however the Redcliffe Dolphins, which is the Queensland Cup's most successful team, threatened legal action if the Dolphin's name was used in the Gold Coast team.

In mid-2004 the NRL announced that after viewing submissions from the Gold Coast Dolphins, the Central Coast Bears and the Wellington Orcas (Killer Whales) bids, there would not be a 16th team in the 2006 NRL Competition. The major hurdles for the Gold Coast team, which was by far the favourite to get the nod if the 16th license was granted, was the use of the Dolphins name, and that their homeground, Carrara Stadium, was an oval and only seated 16,000.