This draw highlights the fact that it doesn't matter if we have control of the draw when we agree to shit time slots in the TV deal. No matter what you do we still have to deal with Thursday night games and Friday 6pm games. This year the draw has done a little better in terms of getting big matches in good timeslots and I expect an improvement but the reality is we're still hamstrung by shitty timeslots.
Having said that the draw still leaves a lot to be desired. Putting big matches like sharks/dragons, roosters/rabbits and cowboys/broncos on a Thursdays night is a big f**k you to fans. Certain teams have been totally screwed over like the cowboys and knights.
Basically this is what I want to see improved in the future (I'm well aware some things can't change till the next TV deal).
-Big derby games should be given priority of timeslots. Preferably on Sunday arvos (except in the case of say the cowboys if they request a Saturday or Friday). Something like roosters v rabbits could lose as much as 20K from the crowd due to being on a Thursday.
-More even spread of FTA. Don't give me this bullshit about some teams rating more. They rate more because they're shown more. NRL fans are basically groomed to only watch certain teams. We need to go back to how things used to be, Friday should be match of the round not who's facing the bulldogs or broncos (and the select other few).
-SOO needs to be standalone and f**k off bye rounds. Hopefully this year it's a massive success and the NRL finally does what it should have done a decade ago.
-Remove Thursday games and Friday 6pm games. I don't care if it adds more to the TV deal, there are other factors to consider. The loss of TV money is offset by a huge increase in crowds, merchandise sales and various other factors. It also leads to less shitty crowds which are slowly driving fans away from the game on TV and at the ground.
I feel like writing more but it's pointless because nothing we say will impact anything and it's clear the NRL has made up its mind.
I'll say this, it wasn't just crowds that went backwards last season. Despite us bending over backwards for the TV networks ratings also dropped. There is only so much you can cater for TV and f**k over fans before people just tune out.
My opinion is that a lot of the changes we're suggesting to prove crowds will also improve TV ratings. Big crowds, a happy fan base and general positivity around the game lead to better TV ratings.
Thus goes across all codes, the big hyped matches with huge crowds tend to also rate really highly. It creates a great atmosphere and hype around the game.
Watching a match in an empty stadium turns fans away at the ground and at home and if we keep going down this path things will get worse.
will happen in Adelaide on June 29.
