**A few theories (well, hypotheses, but most people use "theory" to mean the same thing) about New Zealand Warriors supporters. I'd be interested to hear what NRL fans think.**
I've been looking at NRL crowd attendance, particularly when the Warriors are away, and it's got me thinking about who actually supports the Warriors and why.
I've come up with four theories, and I'm interested to see whether people's experiences support them or prove me completely wrong.
**1. Most Warriors supporters have a New Zealand connection.**
I suspect most Warriors supporters are either New Zealand-born or the children of New Zealanders who have maintained strong connections to their homeland. Their parents have raised them to be proud of their Kiwi heritage, and supporting New Zealand's only NRL club is part of that.
**2. Australian-born Warriors supporters without New Zealand connections are relatively rare.**
I'm not suggesting they don't exist. I'm sure they do. But I suspect someone born and raised in Australia, with no family, cultural, or personal connection to New Zealand, is far less likely to support the Warriors than someone with those connections.
**3. New Zealanders who support other NRL clubs may have followed those teams before the Warriors existed.**
My theory is that many born-and-bred New Zealanders who support an Australian NRL club developed that loyalty during the old NSWRL competition, before the Auckland Warriors joined in 1995.
Of course, younger supporters might have inherited that loyalty from their parents.
**4. Children of Kiwi expats might adopt their local Australian NRL team first.**
This one particularly interests me.
Imagine a New Zealand family living in Campbelltown. Their children grow up playing junior rugby league for a club affiliated with the Wests Tigers. They wear their junior club's emblem alongside the Tigers logo, watch Tigers players visit their schools, and grow up surrounded by Tigers supporters.
I suspect those children might become Wests Tigers supporters first, with the Warriors becoming their second team, even if their parents still support the Warriors.
**So, here's what I'd like to know.**
If you're a Warriors supporter, where were you born, where do you live, and what made you support them?
If you're a New Zealander who supports another NRL club, which one, and how did you end up supporting them?
If you're an Australian-born Warriors supporter with absolutely no New Zealand connections, I'm especially interested in hearing from you.
I'm not trying to prove that any of these theories are correct. I'm genuinely interested in whether NRL supporters' experiences match what I suspect.
It might also help explain why the Warriors attract particularly strong away crowds at some Australian grounds but not others.