NRL boss Dave Smith ruffled a few feathers before last season when he declared Queensland the heartland of rugby league.

Eighteen months on from his controversial comments, it appears he may have been right. For the first time in the game's history, an all-Queensland affair will take centre stage on rugby league's night of nights, raising the question over the Sunshine State's claim as the new epicentre of the sport.

They've reclaimed the State of Origin shield, now the premiership is guaranteed to be heading north of the border for the first time since 2006 in what will be just the second non-Sydney grand final (Brisbane v Melbourne in 2006). The Australian captain, Cameron Smith, hails from Queensland.

The five best players in the game all bleed Maroon. Even New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney now calls Brisbane home.

The greatest coach of all time? Queenslander.

The best rugby league stadium in the world? Queenslander.

The next immortal? Queenslander.

The biggest crowds? Queenslander.

The next NRL team? Well, that might just have to be Queenslander, too.

On the back of the success of the North Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos, there is an insatiable appetite for rugby league in Queensland.

The Brisbane Bombers bid as well as the Ipswich bid are among the leading candidates in the expansion plans NRL head of game strategy and development, Shane Richardson, is looking into.

If the crowds and television ratings from this year's NRL finals series are any indication, a fourth team in Queensland could do wonders for the sport, despite the struggles of the Gold Coast Titans both on and off the field. The four finals matches played in Sydney this year attracted crowds of 20,521 (Roosters v Storm at Allianz), 33,854 (Bulldogs v Dragons at ANZ), 27,031 (Rabbitohs v Sharks at Allianz) and 35,711 (Roosters v Bulldogs at Allianz).

Game of Maroons: Queensland have won eight of the last nine State of Origin series. Photo: Chris Hyde

Given three of the four matches involved two Sydney teams, those crowd figures were somewhat underwhelming.

However, the Queensland derby between the Cowboys and Broncos in week one of the finals at Suncorp Stadium saw a sell out crowd of 50,388. The Cowboys' home final against the Sharks in week two was also sold out with a crowd of 21,683 at 1300SMILES Stadium.

Both preliminary finals were also sold out, with the Broncos attracting 51,826 for their victory against the Roosters, while Melbourne also showed the strong support they have developed with a capacity crowd of 29,315 against the Cowboys at AAMI Park on Saturday night.

While crowd attendance in Sydney continues to disappoint, the game is growing in leaps and bounds in other regions.

Game II of this year's State of Origin series set a new record with 91,513 piling into the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground, while almost 90,000 people turned out over two days at this year's NRL Auckland Nines tournament.

Still, Queensland want it all.

They've made inquiries about hosting the Nines, which would be a guaranteed sell-out over two days. They want another NRL team, which would boost the game's broadcast rights deal by millions.

Now they want the grand final in their backyard.

Queensland's growing influence on the game has resulted in a huge push to play a NRL grand final in Brisbane, with Australian Rugby League Commission chairman John Grant - a Queenslander himself - admitting it was a strong possibility to take the decider away from Sydney beyond 2019. You might be able to deny them of content, but there's no denying their influence on the game.