Australian A-League: MORE CLUBS! Napier added 10/23

[Section30]

Sad to see this end, one of my favorite threads in a long time. Well done!

[mcrosby]

Thanks for watching everyone! Please go show some love on my Behance page. 

[Nedland]

This thread is brilliant. Would love for you to have a crack at the Australian Football League. Love your work mate!

[mcrosby]

I'm still dealing with some "writer's block" on some other projects that has me coming back to old projects to try to get the ink flowing again. So if you enjoyed this series you're in luck. I started with a couple of updates to previous brands: 

 

Central Coast Mariners: I moved away from the ship's wheel I had originally used and went back to the wave of the current logo with a pelican twist. 

 

Newcastle United Jets: A roundel and some motion added to the wings. 

 

And then I moved on to some new clubs with the idea of 3 leagues of 16 teams each. I haven't completed them all, but I'm well on the way. 

 

Dandenong Eleven: Team 11 missed out on the last few rounds of expansion, but why not bring back the working draft name for the full brand when Dandenong eventually gets a club? The 11 is formed from railroad spikes, as the stadium is planned for the railyard. 

 

Hellas South Melbourne: South Melbourne is one of the more popular lower league clubs in Australia, here's an even heavier lean into their Greek origins. 

 

International FC Melbourne: Staying in Melbourne and with another sister club for the city to compete with Melbourne City. I love the Inter Miami brand, and what's to stop them from another long process of getting a sweet deal from a struggling league. Instead of herons we get cockatoos and the maltese cross from the Queensland flag. 

 

Red Bull Sydney: Another sister club, this time in Sydney. I've updated the RB logo with more angular bulls and simpler outlines. 

 

Albury & Wodonga Albion: The league was getting pretty heavy on Sydney and Melbourne clubs, so here's a rare inland club. A nice AW monogram with a river forming the crossbar of the A. 

 

Rovers FC: While we're going inland, let's go REALLY inland. Alice Springs gets visits from various Australian leagues, but no pros call it home. What better way to represent the Rovers than a bushplane? 

 

Port Adelaide FC: Back to the coast with Port. The 6 inch gun found in the mud of Port Adelaide that helped confirmed the existence of the somewhat mythical torpedo station rests upon a PA monogram. 

 

Waikato FC: The first of the new Kiwi clubs is located in Hamilton, who's other pro clubs feature some version of the kotiate, a maori weapon. A stylized W is within the kotiate. 

 

Gaels of the South: The Gaels of Dunedin lean into their Gaelic roots with a harp featuring a silver fern accent. 

 

Tauranga FC: Located on the Bay of Plenty and known for their kiwifruit farms, what better than a kiwi roundel? 

 

To round out the rest of the new 16 clubs: 

• Penrith
• Toowoomba
• Tweed Heads
• Rockhampton
• Lower Hutt
• Napier-Hastings

 

I've got a few ideas for these clubs, but nothing concrete. I'm not 100% stuck on these either, so if you've got name ideas or other locations please let me know! Here's what the map looks like. Pink dots show where the remaining clubs are planned for.

[LogoMark]

Wow, what a phenomenal series! Love the 11/spikes on Dandenong

[DukeofChutney]

Fantastic series.

 

Loving the Inter Melbourne play on the Inter Miami look. And the kiwi roundel is just superb.

[FlyingLamprey]

Looking good!  Big fan of the new looks, especially the new pelican for Mariners and Dunedin's Gaels.  For ideas, a quick and easy one is that Penrith has their NRL team, the Panthers - maybe Sporting Club Panthers?  It's also on the Cumberland Plain, so maybe there's a name somewhere there.  For Rockhampton, I know a little more.  It was the centerpiece to multiple gold rushes (in Canoona and Mount Morgan), have history with the Archer brothers (Scottish farmer brothers that were some of the first Europeans to explore central Queensland), and is nowadays one of the big agricultural centers of the north (mainly in cattle, they have seven bull statues around the city called the Big Bulls).  The area also has multiple references to Capricorn since the tropic passes just south of the city, so that could be a fun mascot idea.  Maybe a rampant bull and goat/serow surrounding a shield?  You could honestly go a million routes with them, even more if you included other nearby cities - Mackay produces a third of Australia's sugar, and Gladstone is a gateway to the barrier reef.

[mcrosby]

27 minutes ago, FlyingLamprey said:

Looking good!  Big fan of the new looks, especially the new pelican for Mariners and Dunedin's Gaels.  For ideas, a quick and easy one is that Penrith has their NRL team, the Panthers - maybe Sporting Club Panthers?  It's also on the Cumberland Plain, so maybe there's a name somewhere there.  For Rockhampton, I know a little more.  It was the centerpiece to multiple gold rushes (in Canoona and Mount Morgan), have history with the Archer brothers (Scottish farmer brothers that were some of the first Europeans to explore central Queensland), and is nowadays one of the big agricultural centers of the north (mainly in cattle, they have seven bull statues around the city called the Big Bulls).  The area also has multiple references to Capricorn since the tropic passes just south of the city, so that could be a fun mascot idea.  Maybe a rampant bull and goat/serow surrounding a shield?  You could honestly go a million routes with them, even more if you included other nearby cities - Mackay produces a third of Australia's sugar, and Gladstone is a gateway to the barrier reef.

 

I've been leaning towards Rockhampton Rats or something similar in reference to the Rats of Tobruk. There's a memorial in Rockhampton. 

[FlyingLamprey]

1 hour ago, mcrosby said:

 

I've been leaning towards Rockhampton Rats or something similar in reference to the Rats of Tobruk. There's a memorial in Rockhampton. 

 

That could definitely work too - there's a large ADF presence around the city, notably at Shoalwater Bay where there's a training ground/dugong habitat.

[sportsfan7]

Rats of Rockhampton FC?

[Brian in Boston]

Mark, I was a fan of this concept series when you first dipped your toe in the waters of Tran-Tasman professional soccer. I'm no less enthused after the unveiling of these new club identities. The Gaels of the South crest is the particular standout amongst this batch of designs, with the silver fern tucked in the harp being a truly inspired touch. Other favorites include Dandedong Eleven (love the rail spikes as the 11), Inter Melbourne (even better than the Inter Miami badge that influenced it), Port Adelaide FC (effective design rendered simply), and Hellas South Melbourne (a great tip of the hat to South Melbourne FC's founding as South Melbourne Hellas). I even love your decision to incorporate a pelican in the Mariners' crest, as the daily pelican feeding at The Entrance is a staple Central Coast tourist attraction.

As for identity suggestions for your clubs in the other proposed markets:

Lower Hutt
Aurora FC (Named for the first settler ship to arrive in what is now Wellington Harbour, a vessel which put immigrants ashore at the site of the Lower Hutt suburb of Petone.)   
Hutt City FC
Hutt Valley FC

Mackay
Mackay Pioneer 1865
Pioneer 1865 (Both names commemorate John Spiller planting the district's very first lot of sugarcane at his Pioneer Plantation on June 1, 1865. The act marked the birth of what would become the Mackay Region's long history with sugar cultivation, milling, and refining.)  

Napier-Hastings
Hawke Bay Admirals
Hawke's Bay Athletic
Hawke's Bay Cities FC
Heretaunga FC (The cities of Napier and Hastings are both located on the Heretaunga Plains.)
Napier-Hastings United 

Penrith
Blue Mountains Rangers
Nepean Athletic
Penrith Depot FC (The first structure built by the colonial government in the area that would become Penrith was apparently a military depot.)

Rockhampton
Archers AFC (Memorializes Charles and William Archer, the brothers who first explored, settled, and named the Rockhampton area.)
Archers Athletic
Mount Archer FC (Named for Mount Archer/Mount Archer Nat'l Park/the Archer Brothers. Maybe a glossy black cockatoo or powerful owl in the crest.)  
Rockhampton Miners FC (Recognizes the nearby Mount Morgan Mine, which produced gold, silver, and copper ore over a period of 99 years.) 
Rockhampton Rush FC (A nod to the Caroona and Mount Morgan gold rushes, the latter the more substantial of the two.)

* NOTE: The Rockhampton Rats of Tobruk Memorial is but one of many throughout Australia. I tracked down evidence of a national memorial in Canberra, plus another seven in Queensland.. including at least three in Brisbane alone. 

Toowoomba
Darling Downs FC (Toowoomba is the most populous city and commercial center of the region dubbed the Darling Downs.)
Garden City FC (Toowoomba - which has hosted Australia's largest annual floral event, the "Carnival of Flowers", since 1949 - is known as "The Garden City".)

Tweed Heads
Cedars of Tweed FC (Forests of Great Red Cedar once blanketed the entire region, the harvesting of which attracted initial settlers.)
Tweed-Coolangatta Union
Tweed Shire FC
Twin Cities United



 

[mcrosby]

1 hour ago, Brian in Boston said:

Mark, I was a fan of this concept series when you first dipped your toe in the waters of Tran-Tasman professional soccer. I'm no less enthused after the unveiling of these new club identities. The Gaels of the South crest is the particular standout amongst this batch of designs, with the silver fern tucked in the harp being a truly inspired touch. Other favorites include Dandedong Eleven (love the rail spikes as the 11), Inter Melbourne (even better than the Inter Miami badge that influenced it), Port Adelaide FC (effective design rendered simply), and Hellas South Melbourne (a great tip of the hat to South Melbourne FC's founding as South Melbourne Hellas). I even love your decision to incorporate a pelican in the Mariners' crest, as the daily pelican feeding at The Entrance is a staple Central Coast tourist attraction.

As for identity suggestions for your clubs in the other proposed markets:
...

 

I appreciate the compliments and the name suggestions. Keep em coming, or if there are other locales you feel deserve a team more I'm open! You've got some great name suggestions now I just need to figure out what they look like. 

 

Also, are you from Australia (in Boston) or do you just have an extensive knowledge of it? 

[Brian in Boston]

5 hours ago, mcrosby said:

I appreciate the compliments and the name suggestions. Keep em coming, or if there are other locales you feel deserve a team more I'm open! You've got some great name suggestions now I just need to figure out what they look like. 

 

Also, are you from Australia (in Boston) or do you just have an extensive knowledge of it? 

Of the six additional markets you were looking to expand to, I don't know that there would be a great deal of upside to placing a club in Tweed Heads. The city is only 15 to 20 miles from the heart of Gold Coast Curl FC territory and just 41 miles removed from your Brisbane-based teams. Frankly, I'd have to believe that whatever soccer supporters exist amongst the 91,000 folks living in the Tweed Shire Local Government Area, there are more than enough existing clubs to serve them.

If it were me, I'd swap out a Tweed Heads city/Tweed Shire LGA-based club for a team in Mackay city / Mackay Region LGA. It would give you a third team in North Queensland along with Cairns FC and Townsville Nomads FC, but there'd be ample breathing room between their territories (Cairns to Townsville is a 216-mile drive, while Townsville to Mackay is another  240 miles).

For your other three Australian-based expansion markets, I'd go with Penrith (13,295 / 196,066 pop.), Toowoomba (136,861 / 167,657 pop.), and Rockhampton (78,592 / 81,067). Though a Penrith-based club would be sharing eastern New South Wales with seven other teams (including the Central Coast Mariners and Wollongong Wolves), they'd be doing so in a metropolitan area that is home to 5.3 million people. Likewise, while a Toowoomba side would be just 56 miles from Ipswich Pride FC and 70-some-odd miles from the Brisbane-based clubs, they'd be doing business in a Brisbane metro area with a population that can be conservatively pegged at 2.5 to 3 million people. As for a Rockhampton-based team, it would be operating 330 miles from the Sunshine Coast Fire FC and 210 miles from a Mackay-based side.

I've had the opportunity to work on projects in Australia several times. Additionally, I had a close friend and colleague who lived their for close to four years. So, I've traveled to Australia eight times and spent extended stays in the country on five of those trips. I'd always been intrigued by Australia, so I've been truly blessed to not only have visited the country, but really afforded the chance to experience it. 

[mcrosby]

39 minutes ago, Brian in Boston said:

If it were me, I'd swap out a Tweed Heads city/Tweed Shire LGA-based club for a team in Mackay city / Mackay Region LGA. It would give you a third team in North Queensland along with Cairns FC and Townsville Nomads FC, but there'd be ample breathing room between their territories (Cairns to Townsville is a 216-mile drive, while Townsville to Mackay is another  240 miles).

 

I had gone with Mackay but wasn't sure if doing Mackay and Rockhampton was viable. What would you name a Mackay club, maybe something to do with Sugar? 

[mcrosby]

Team 43: Napier Rising FC

 

Napier/Hawke's Bay was devastated by an earthquake in 1931, leading to nearly complete reconstruction of the city in art deco style. I've gone with a simple art deco palm frond motif and a name to reflect the resilience of the area. If I end up doing kits for these clubs I think we'd definitely see Napier sporting a 3 striped sash. I'll leave it up to y'all to say which you prefer: 

[Brian in Boston]

14 hours ago, mcrosby said:

What would you name a Mackay club, maybe something to do with Sugar? 

 

Mackay Pioneer 1865 or Pioneer 1865 would commemorate John Spiller planting the district's very first lot of sugarcane at his Pioneer Plantation on June 1, 1865. The act marked the birth of what would become the Mackay Region's long history with sugar cultivation, milling, and refining.    

[NoE38_Concepts]

Love Napier's design! I personally prefer the top version.

[Brian in Boston]

1 hour ago, mcrosby said:

Wow! Both of these are sharp. Either one will bump its way into my 'Top Ten' of your A-League Series.  I'm having a very difficult time determining which I like better.

[AusGiant]

On 10/21/2020 at 2:10 PM, mcrosby said:

International FC Melbourne: Staying in Melbourne and with another sister club for the city to compete with Melbourne City. I love the Inter Miami brand, and what's to stop them from another long process of getting a sweet deal from a struggling league. Instead of herons we get cockatoos and the maltese cross from the Queensland flag. 

 

These are all marvellous. I love the use of the pelican for Central Coast, it's such an underused mascot in Australian sport. 

 

One issue however is the use of the Maltese cross for International Melbourne. Melbourne is in the state of Victoria, not Queensland. 

We (Victorians) would more so identify with the Crown.

[mcrosby]

1 hour ago, AusGiant said:

One issue however is the use of the Maltese cross for International Melbourne. Melbourne is in the state of Victoria, not Queensland. 

We (Victorians) would more so identify with the Crown.

 

Duh, I'm not sure how I made that mistake.