As someone in the music industry, Sydney is not a rock town. It's a doofer town, full of shallow, soulless people.
The younguns want change. They populate a place for 6 months, pay $10 per beer and then leave for the next new place. The reasons clubs struggle is becsuse clubs need to be permanent. Young people hate stagnation now, not the man. They want new and flashy, not last week, let alone last century.
Clubs can't compete. No matter how well DY RSL looks like it's doing, it's just a lucky location. Diggers, Leagues and other places have had good ideas over the years. Servos, for a little club is doing well and they offer nothing other than proximity to residents.
I live really close to the Leagues and I can tell you that that is what makes it the best place in Sydney to me.