FAITHFUL: Retired premiership wining captain Keiron Lander pictured at Suncorp Stadium, where Mayor Paul Pisasale wants to see an Ipswich national team in action soon.

FAITHFUL: Retired premiership wining captain Keiron Lander pictured at Suncorp Stadium, where Mayor Paul Pisasale wants to see an Ipswich national team in action soon. Rob Williams

TEAM first. Stadium... a long second.

That is the order of business if Ipswich is to ever have a rugby league/football stadium to accommodate an NRL or A-League side in future, says Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale.

Cr Pisasale spoke recently on The Daily Football Show about the possibility of an A-League side in the western corridor and whether there were plans to build a stadium.

The QT has covered this subject in recent years but the fact remains that if the Western Corridor NRL side or a western Brisbane A-League franchise becomes a reality they will play out of Suncorp Stadium initially.

Cr Pisasale told the QT there are simply no funds in the coffers for a stadium.

Long term planning has a stadium slated for Ripley towards the end of next decade and the council owns land in Springfield that could be turned into an elite training facility and boutique stadium holding up to 15000 people.

That was in the works when the Brisbane Lions were considering a move of their training base to Ipswich.

"The money is not there in the council budget for a stadium so it will have to be done privately or with state and federal funding," Cr Pisasale told the QT.

"But Suncorp Stadium is not used to its full potential and we have the rail line to it, and that is where an NRL side would play.

"You don't have to build a $200 million stadium.

"Down the track, we could then create a stadium here by building up North Ipswich Reserve to hold 15000 and we do have some business modelling at Springfield.

"Soccer, AFL and league are all sniffing around and looking at Ipswich to base a side and whoever acts first is going to get the return on investment.

"At the moment the people in charge at the elite level are not taking the lead and letting the community know what they are doing.

"How long is the NRL going to take to make up their mind? The Ipswich community works its guts out to support league and create the environment for juniors. But there is no communication from the top. We need some direction.

"You can't sell the product to the business sector unless you know what the product is.

"But if they create the team, the sponsors and fans will come."

A plethora of top flight companies are now based in Ipswich and corporate support for an elite team would also come primarily from big brands looking for national exposure.

The NRL is yet to make a decision on expansion but the Western Corridor NRL bid remains a front-runner should the game grow.

"But unfortunately it seems to me that communities come second, behind the advertising dollar and broadcast rights deals," Cr Pisasale said.

"I am sure the NRL plans to create a team in Western Australia for that reason, but whether it works is another matter.

"But it is the fans who are important. Everyone knows we are rugby league mad out here. Yamanto has the biggest Broncos membership base in the nation.

"Creating an NRL or A-League team in the western corridor would also be good for the juniors. How many players are falling through the cracks because they don't have those pathway opportunities?"

Cr Pisasale said he was a fan of A-League boss David Gallop, who had his eye on Ipswich as a location for an NRL side when he was the game's CEO.

Gallop has since flagged the Ipswich and western corridor as a location for an A-League side, to replicate the extraordinary success of the Western Sydney Wanderers.

"Gallop gets it," Cr Pisasale said.

"He was the one who gave me the idea and the belief that we could have an NRL team here.

"He said, and I will never forget it, 'you've got to go where the fish are biting'. I remember the day he said it.

"It doesn't get any simpler than that, and the fish are biting all over Ipswich and the western corridor.

"It is one of the fastest growing areas in Australia, a job generator, and we are recognised all around the world now. It is a no-brainer. We deserve a team. Just give us one."