Australian regional rivalries
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Australian regional rivalries refers to the rivalries between Australian cities or regions, the most prominent of them being between Melbourne and Sydney. They are usually fairly friendly.
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[edit] Melbourne - Sydney Rivalry
There has been a long standing rivalry, usually friendly yet sometimes heated, between the cities of Melbourne and Sydney, the two largest cities in Australia.
[edit] Capital city
The rivalry between the cities was the reason that neither Melbourne (the largest city at the time) nor Sydney (the oldest city) was chosen as the capital of Australia when the nation was federated in 1901. Because of this disagreement, section 125 of the Australian Constitution specified that the capital of the new Commonwealth must be north of the Murray River (placing it in New South Wales rather than Victoria) but at least 100 miles from Sydney. This city became Canberra. Melbourne operated as the capital city from 1901 until 1927, when Canberra's Parliament House was opened. Various Commonwealth governmental bodies continued to operate principally from Melbourne or Sydney after 1927. Most civil service departments were moved to Canberra in the 1950s, and the High Court of Australia was finally moved from Melbourne to Canberra in 1980.
[edit] Free Trade vs Protectionism
Rivalry and differences between the colonies was a feature of life in Pre-Federation Australia. There was a real rivalry between the most powerful colonies, New South Wales and Victoria, on trade matters. As the two largest colonies both the states believed that the new nation should follow their trade model. Victoria had a policy of protectionism with tariffs imposed on goods coming into the state from other colonies. New South Wales had an opposite policy of free trade where all goods coming that came into the state were not tariffed. This rivalry delayed the process of federation; eventually the two colonies agreed that trade between the colonies would be tariff free, but tariffs would be placed on goods from overseas (excluding the British Empire).
[edit] Football
Australian rules football (AFL) in Australia is traditionally based in Melbourne, while rugby league is played more in Sydney. While both sports have extended their popularity beyond their own state, the historic and spiritual centre of both sports has remained in Melbourne and Sydney respectively, and neither city has been quick to embrace the other city's dominant football code. This has created or fuelled the rivalry between the cities.
[edit] Comparison
Sydney Harbour with the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge has the most internationally recognisable landmarks of any Australian city. The harbour is often described as one of the best in the world. Sydney, with a population of 4.2 million, is the largest city in Australia and is also its financial capital. Melbourne, on the other hand, is the second largest city with a population of 3.7 million, and is often regarded as the arts, cultural, sporting, fashion, shopping and food capital of Australia.
Both cities have hosted an Olympic Games (Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000), while Melbourne has the bigger sporting events with the Melbourne Cup, Australian Tennis Open and Grand Prix. Melbourne has the tallest office building (Rialto Towers at 251m tall), residential tower (Eureka Tower at 297m) and hotel tower (Crown Towers at 152m), while Sydney arguably has the tallest tower overall (Sydney Tower, with its roof at 275m and an antenna reaching 309m). Melbourne's Crown Casino is much bigger than Sydney's Star City, Melbourne's National Gallery of Victoria larger than Sydney's Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Melbourne Cricket Ground larger than Sydney's Telstra Stadium. However, Sydney's skyline contains a higher number of skyscrapers overall than Melbourne, its property prices are significantly higher, and its beaches such as Bondi Beach are more popular than Melbourne's, due to the warmer climate and waves.
People in Sydney have in the past made fun of the Yarra River which is seen as being dirty, and Melbourne's climate which is seen as being both perennially overcast (although Sydney actually receives about twice as much rain), and erratic. Melbourne boasts a popular public transport system which includes an integrated and extensive train, tram and bus system which is sometimes cited as being more reliable than Sydney's CityRail.
[edit] Tasmania-mainland rivalry
Mainland Australians often use the island state Tasmania (or Tasmanians) as the butt of jokes. Many joke that people from the small island of Tasmania are inbred, or have two heads. The origins of these jokes are most likely due to the fact that Tasmania is an island state, and its (presumed) low population, when in actual fact Tasmania is much less remote than Darwin or Perth, and more populous than Darwin, Canberra, and up until the early 1900s, Perth. [1] More Tasmanian born people live in Melbourne than in Tasmania.
Mainland Australian maps used graphically and symbols frequently leave Tasmania off completely, including the original castings of Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics medals.
Tasmania is often jokingly identified as "not part of Australia" by mainlanders. Some jokingly refer to Tasmania as "overseas" in a freight or travel context, despite it being overseas only in a literal context. In return, some Tasmanians refer to "mainlanders" or the "North Island". Internationally, some people think of Tasmania and Australia as different countries. International mail destined for Tasmania being redirected to Tanzania in Africa has sometimes occurred.
[edit] Western Australia and eastern states
Western Australia is the largest state of Australia, the least densely populated, and the furthest removed from the centres of population and of federal government in the Eastern States. At the same time, it has abundant natural resources and primary industries that contribute a significant part of Australia's economy, particularly in the mining sector.
Many Western Australians consider their state to be a "forgotten" state. This grievance is based in the fact that its remoteness and relatively small population mean that many significant events are denied to Western Australians, such as concert tours and sporting events. The state also has a lower profile than the better-known parts of Australia; non-Australians are more likely to know about Sydney or Melbourne than Perth.
More seriously, Western Australians have long complained of being ignored politically and economically by other States and by the Commonwealth. On more than one occasion, secession has been proposed and even formally pursued, but to no effect. Western Australia was the last colony to agree to join the others in federation, and almost decided against joining, expecting to be overshadowed by the more populous states.
[edit] Queensland and southern states
Queensland is also distant from the main population and political centres of Southern Australia, namedly Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra. At the same time it has long contributed a significant proportion of Australia's most lucrative export commodities, such as coal, beef and sugar. The disparity between Queensland's economic contribution and political influence has long caused tension. The relationship is complicated by the migration since the 1970s of many people from the southern states, who are both welcomed for the economic benefits they bring, and occasionally disparaged as "Mexicans".
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[edit] Other regions
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[edit] Northern Tasmania and Southern Tasmania
Historically, the rivalry between Launceston in the north and Hobart in the south has been endless. Tasmania's population (just over 480,000) is distributed almost evenly between the north and the south of the state. Northern Tasmania has a slightly higher population (around 52%)[citation needed], whereas southern Tasmania has the capital, and largest, city (Hobart, with around 200,000 people).
During the reign of one premier in the late twentieth century folklore had it that the government was planning to move the administration of the state to Launceston.[citation needed]
A brewery, newspaper and television station is based at each end of the state; Boag's Brewery, The Examiner and Southern Cross Television in Launceston and the Cascade Brewery, The Mercury and WIN Television in Hobart. Both Boags and Cascade are popular beers throughout the rest of Australia. [1] [2]
Organisations which base themselves in northern Tasmania are often reported with much negativity in the Hobart media. Examples include the establishment of the Australian Maritime College in Launceston in 1978; the Spirit of Tasmania ferry terminal in Devonport on the north-west coast; or Launceston's Aurora Stadium being named as the sole host of Australian Football League games in the state.
In 1991, the Launceston-based Tasmanian State Institute of Technology became the Launceston campus of the previously Hobart-based University of Tasmania. The decision was made to locate some courses at one campus only; for example, the University's then new School of Nursing was based in Launceston.
Despite Australian rules football being hugely popular in the state, Tasmania's local competition has struggled. For much of the 20th century Tasmania had a statewide competition (the Tasmanian Football League, later known as Statewide League), but in 2000 a lack of cohesion resulted in the division of the statewide leagues into separate northern and southern leagues. The conflict also flowed on to Tasmania's bids for a team in the national competition - the inability for northern and southern representatives to compromise on a home location for such a team has been partly responsible. The Tasmanian Devils, who represent the state in the Victorian Football League, alternate their home games between Hobart and Launceston.
[edit] South Australia and Victoria
Rivalry between South Australia and Victoria over interstate and State of Origin Football and the Australian Grand Prix, which became a Formula One event in Adelaide but later moved to Melbourne. For many years, Adelaide was the only capital city outside of Melbourne to retain a working part of its original tramway. Adelaide is often described derisively by interstaters as "Melbourne's smaller cousin".
[edit] New South Wales and Queensland
Rivalry between New South Wales and Queensland in the Rugby League Rugby League State of Origin.
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