The Parramatta Eels are set to make tickets off limits to the public for their home games against the Wests Tigers and Penrith Panthers this season.
Parramatta, on the back of a period of sustained success - the club have made the semi-finals three years in a row - have recently overtaken the Broncos as the club with the highest number of members in the competition.
Now past the 30,000 mark, they lead the Storm and Broncos, and, according to official NRL figures, have 7,000 more members than any other club in Sydney, with the Rabbitohs sitting second at 25,000.
That means that, with such a large member pool, there is no longer a guarantee of public tickets being available for big games at CommBank Stadium, despite its capacity of 30,000.
According to a Daily Telegraph report, the decision to lock the public out of the games against the Tigers - on Easter Monday - and the Panthers - in Round 20 - could be made if ticket sales among members continue to build.
Easter Monday has seen large crowds attend for the past couple of years, while the Panthers, always a popular opponent, have gone to a new level in 2022 as defending premiers.
It's understood the club would only allocate a small away bay to travelling fans, while corporate hospitality would also take up a few thousand seats.
While this would be a decision as a first of its kind, membership tallies for many clubs are rising, and it could become more of a regular occurrence over the years.
Eels CEO Jim Sarantinos told the publication that there is a greater importance on membership to access key games.
“This membership milestone is significant particularly given our change in approach,” Sarantinos said.
“We’ve provided our fans with the complete flexibility to build their own membership packages, placing a greater importance on membership to access our big games including our Easter Monday game against the Tigers and western Sydney blockbuster against the Panthers."
A formal decision on public tickets is unlikely to be made until just weeks before the games.
