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Humphreys' proposal for a longer season may have legs: officials

taste2taste

Juniors
Messages
2,495
32 weeks..Wow! 26 weeks is already waaay too long, i get bored in round 10 and my interest doesnt pick up until the finals race in round 22.

We need an 18 week season.
With a short season every game matters, all games will be played with a play off intensity. Halve the season = doulbe standard.

With fans only having 9 home games a season staduims would be full and TV ratings would be through the roof.


I love league but 32 weeks of low quality games and blow outs isnt appealing at all.
 

Ronnie Dobbs

Coach
Messages
17,441
This is some of the stupidest sh*t I've ever heard. The fact officials agree with it just confirms that ths game is run by idiots. This will never get up as the players simply won't cop it.

Does it surprise anyone that the moron who floated this idea is the moron who recently gave Tim Sheens a contract extension?
 

westie

Bench
Messages
3,936
Every time I hear something from this guy I become more and more sure he shouldn't be anywhere near a football office.
 

Jason Maher

Immortal
Messages
35,991
Sounds like a good idea to me. European football copes with long seasons (Manchester United played 56 games in 38 weeks, could have potenially been 62 if they hadn't buggered up the FA Cup and Champions League), so adjusting for the fact League is a more physical sport, I'm sure our top players could cope with a potential 38 games (30 rounds + 4 finals + 3 Origins + Anzac Test) in 36 weeks. If the money was right I doubt a single one of them would complain. The trick is finding enough money to make the players stop whinging. And you'd potentially have to find more money to allow larger squads and the resting of players throughout the season, the method the big teams in Europe use to cope with their gruelling schedules.

From a fan perspective, could we cope with a system where coaches deliberately rest players? Would interest and crowds wane for a part of the season as a result? I'm an absolute tragic and would watch 26 coackroaches crawling around if someone told me it was a game of league, but what would happen with the average fan and the casual observer?
 

Brutus

Referee
Messages
26,354
I don't want to see the NRL season extended.

I'd prefer another comp whether it be mid-week or pre-season. Bring back three-test series against the Kiwis after Origin ffs.

Plus we will be extending the season to 18 teams in 2013 so if we want every team playing eachother twice by then - 36 rounds??? I doubt it.
 

stuke

Bench
Messages
3,727
the majority of AFL teams have supported the NAB Preseason competition and they are able to sell this to the networks. why can't the NRL do the same? obviously it is up to the clubs, coaches and players to support it and give it the value it needs to raise revenue. play the games in regional areas, use it as a way to experiment with new rules etc. they could have extended squads, unlimited interchange and play it in quarters to combat the heat.

the vital ingredient is the support of the players - if they want more money they need to do something more for it.
 

Slackboy72

Coach
Messages
12,114
32 weeks?
Am I missing something here?
If you played everyone else twice that would make the season 30 weeks.
Or are we adding two weeks for split rounds or what?
 

fourplay

Juniors
Messages
2,237
I think more games would just thin out the crowds and interest. A 32 week competition would drag on way too long.

Adding more games isn't the solution. If the NRL were smarter they would increase the interest in the 26 rounds we already have. Adding more games is just more of the same and it seems like only someone who can't be bothered figuring out how to increase the interest in the 26 rounds we already have would say to extend it.
 
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bluey

Bench
Messages
2,858
More a fan of a 20 team comp playing each other once on a for and away basis each year.
If they had to go to 32 weeks it would burn out players considering you have a four nations ,test, world cups, on top of this being a contact sport it would be to much.But say if you had a criteria for how many games a player can play for their clubs say 28 just a thought.
 

typicalfan

Coach
Messages
15,488
If we increase the season to include times when trials are normally played then it shouldn't matter too much. Wouldn't mind split rounds during the origin period and put a test series on during the year to slow the season down.


The benefit of a longer season is longer exposure without major rivals like the AFL or Rugby Union. Not that Union is a major rival but this would be good to get people watching.
 

joshreading

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
1,720
What if instead of extending the regular season we established a different competition leading up to the NRL season.

In a similar vein to challenge cup, Clubs from multiple teirs could enter provided they come up with entry cash etc. It would give a bit of break to what could become monotony. It would also allow some teams to rest stars that could become burnt by such long seasons.

Players could also be farmed off to other teams or voluntarily 'loaned' to "challenger" style clubs. For instance the WA Reds could try and enter and try to gain the WA players back for Six weeks as could other key areas such as CC, Wellington, PNG etc. They would come to an arrangement as to pay with the players NRL Club in a similar vein to Super 14 and local Club Rugby.

You could even trial changes - it could be 11 aside (or player reduction periods such as cutting from 13 to 11 in the last 10 minutes of halves :), a certain amount of imports or under 20's.
 

Brutus

Referee
Messages
26,354
The NRL shouldn't be the be-all.

I'd love to see another comp of sorts put together and I don't mind the idea raised above by joshreading. Package it well and there's bound to be more TV money for the game.

Humphreys' idea is for people who really don't like thinking much.
 
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Springs

First Grade
Messages
5,682
really? how many hours a day do you think they spend training?

Well I train pre-season January-March for just 4-5 hours a week and I play for a Group 20 reserve grade team! And that's hard enough in 40 degree heat.

NRL players would train just about every day for 1-2 sessions a day. 40+ degree heat, players are unfit (some of them), grueling fitness sessions, three-day camps, weight sessions etc. I would say the pre-season is tougher than regular season, and far tougher than sitting in an air-conditioned office for a few hours a day.

On the proposal however it is ludicrous. Yeah I get frustrated by player 'burnout' as they call it but 32 weeks plus Origin, finals and Internationals is silly. I for one don't want this sport to turn out like English soccer, and I know our players don't get paid anywhere near the amount of money EPL players are. Also English players don't have to contend with scorching days and humid nights like we do. It also stifles expansion as we will have to add two more weeks for eah team. And then when we have 20 teams our players will be playing full year-round.
 

The Observer

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
1,742
Humphrey's proposal for a 30 round regular season would severely affect player welfare and all representative competitions. Hopefully, when the new broadcast deals are negotiated, representative and international matches could bring a lot more revenue into the game, which could be filtered back to the clubs. Another alternative is, depending on a larger TV deal, for a new Independent Commission to compensate each club more significantly, as the English Rugby Union do with its Premiership clubs.

What if instead of extending the regular season we established a different competition leading up to the NRL season.

There is the potential to create a second competition. Instead of the current 24 round NRL, perhaps the NRL can run two separate competitions for clubs:
1) NRL - 16 regular round games, 1 bye, 3 weeks of finals. In regular rounds, each clubs plays the 15 others once, and play one club a second time. All players play all club games. If the competition expands to 18, clubs move to 3 conferences of 6 clubs, use a structure like the upcoming Super 15, still play 16 regular round games.

2) An NRL Cup. A club plays another 8 clubs a second time. Semi finals and final only. Test players don't play when Origin and tests are on, Origin players don't play when Origin is on.
So for this Cup, you'd have 1 round around the ANZAC Test, 6 rounds during Origin (2 either side of each game), 2 rounds towards the end of the NRL club rounds.

The advantage of a second competition around rep fixtures is that after a Test/Origin game, players would not have to back up immediately for their club.
 

Talanexor

Juniors
Messages
1,798
I'd prefer to shorten the regular season and either add more teams or play more internationals.

Most sports make the lions share of their cash from international games. Expanding the game to more countries and raising the standard of play of weaker nations should be the main goal.

Playing more internationals gives elite players a chance to earn more cash without breaking the bank.

A preseason comp just isn't feasible because it's too hot.

What if we played lower-grade footy during the week, instead of on the weekend? Sell that to the free-to-air HD channels - it's rate better than snooker and netball, and would give exposure to AFL-dominated areas, albeit of a lower standard. But we could also introduce a Perth, Adelaide and second NZ team in lower grades, and they would receive TV coverage without having to clash with the main weekend NRL games.
 

Firey_Dragon

Coach
Messages
12,099
really? how many hours a day do you think they spend training?

I would say they train harder in the pre-season than regular season, without a doubt. Pre-season is all about fitness, regular season is working on ball skills and keeping fit. Anyone who thinks pre-season is easy doesn't have a clue.
 
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