[FONT=Verdana, Helvetica, Arial]I think rugby league is entering into arguably the most vital stage of its existence in Australia. If things are done right, with the Independent Commission in place and the game earning the revenues that the market suggests it should, and these funds delivered efficiently back into the NRL clubs and the development of the game, then I see it as a golden period for the code. If not, and again we play second fiddle to an AFL broadcast deal that is impressive in its size, then I think the code will be condemned to the position of second tier sport to the AFL juggernaut.
Scheduling, in my opinion, is the second most important issue facing the code, after the broadcast rights deal. And the two issues are closely related.
A proposition:
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- [FONT=Verdana, Helvetica, Arial]I have a concern with the loss of 16 NRL games a year (and one home game per club per year) with Gus's schedule and the impact that this will have on the broadcast rights. I know there is considerable aggregated commercial value of any deal.....but you cant beat content. Good content at that! So my competition structure looks like this; 24 rounds (12 home and away with extra games decided by requests eg local derbies), 3 stand alone Origin weekends, 4 weekends of finals, 1 All Star weekend on the same weekend of the first trial games of the year, 1 week of further trials including headline trial games (Charity Shield, Foundation Cup etc) and one weekend of rest. 34 weekends in total. [/FONT]
- [FONT=Verdana, Helvetica, Arial]I think Sunday is probably the best night for Origin for many reasons (size of TV audience, preparation time of players) but also accept that the ability to have a festival of football in the host city is a great thing also. I would name Origin teams on the Monday two weeks before the game with still a club game to play as this builds anticipation without detracting from the fact that the best are still playing the coming weekend for their club. (NB. There will be some great trivia questions about players selected for Origin who were unable to play because of injury etc). I love the idea of representative matches for the NYC. To add more content, I would take it a step further and have NSW Country v NSW City v Qld City and Qld Country in a round robin to determine the best development area.
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Obviously the next broadcast deal is going to be vital to the growth of the game. I really see the league in a very strong position. Nine are being well beaten by Seven at the moment and they cannot afford to lose something like the league with its guaranteed audience....can you imagine scheduling 30 weeks of Ben Elton: Live from Planet Earth!! Seven, and Kerry Stokes will well remember the deathbed bid placed by Kerry Packer that saw them have to pay top dollar for the AFL in 2005. Wouldnt he like to do the same to Nine....and if Nine withdraw then Seven have the money to pay and they will trounce Nine and Ten forever and a day with the two dominant football codes in the country.[/FONT]