Refs threaten strike Round 1

[firechild]

I liken this to paying politicians well. Joe public constantly bags them and every poor decision is under the microscope. However, if you want good ones, you have to pay for it. In the case of pollies, the best people earn more working in the private sector. In the case of refs, the good ones coming through the ranks will weigh the salary up against the demands, i.e, the scrutiny, the hours (talking when, not how many) and other factors. The NRL needs this balance to be in favour of the best refs wanting to follow the right pathways.

 

[Danish]

I hope these morons do strike, leading to the first couple rounds being reffed by a new crop.

Then they’ll realise how utterly replaceable they are.

Reffing rugby league ain’t rocket science. There are hundreds of people reffing every weekend that could do the job the lucky few gifted into the NRL ranks get paid a motza to do.

Seriously, when people watch lower grades does anyone ever think “my god these officials are terrible compared to the pros”?? Doesn’t happen. Because as a general rule most refs are bloody tremendous. The quality doesn’t drop off like it does with players.

If the NRL has any balls and brains at all, they’ll use this idiotic threat to overhaul the entire refereeing ranks.....


..... so obviously we’ll see the Sutton bros given 20 year contracts at $500k/year shortly

 

[Perth Red]

Was just watching perth Reds v castleford in 1997 in world club challenge. I can’t believe how much quicker and more open the game was twenty years ago. You’d think you were watching a different game (n fact today’s game looks like Union did back then compared to the pace and amount t ball in play in league in the 90’s). Maybe paying refs more will miraculously see the game go back to what I grew up loving,

 

[nick87]

I’d want to be paid top money too

Bunch of guys who get given a new f**king manual every year, sometimes week to f**king week, where interpretations change based on the whims of some influencial coaches and commentators, every fan and coach blames them for their own ineptitude, they get death threats, and every sort of media be it television, radio, paper and social absolutely f**king shit can them for getting calls wrong in the moment after they’ve viewed them 100 times on slow mo to determine the right call, and they don’t get so much as a f**king thank you when they deal with all this and still get an overwhelming majority of the calls right

You want to know why the referees are a bit shit? It’s because they can’t possibly be anything else in the current climate

Pay ‘em what they want. It’s still less than what I’d want to do the job

 

[siv]

Before RLPA get greedy again they need to consider the implications they are having on other people

- referees want more money too
- grassroots need more money
- non Australian international players beleive should earn the same or more than a SOO game
- coaches and support staff

And of course a lot of others now think they should get a few $ too

 

[Springs09]

I hope these morons do strike, leading to the first couple rounds being reffed by a new crop.

Then they’ll realise how utterly replaceable they are.

Reffing rugby league ain’t rocket science. There are hundreds of people reffing every weekend that could do the job the lucky few gifted into the NRL ranks get paid a motza to do.

Seriously, when people watch lower grades does anyone ever think “my god these officials are terrible compared to the pros”?? Doesn’t happen. Because as a general rule most refs are bloody tremendous. The quality doesn’t drop off like it does with players.

If the NRL has any balls and brains at all, they’ll use this idiotic threat to overhaul the entire refereeing ranks.....


..... so obviously we’ll see the Sutton bros given 20 year contracts at $500k/year shortly

Pfft you mustn't watch much other footy other than NRL. Referee abuse is widespread at all levels.

Any refs that would somehow replace the NRL refs for Round 1 would be bashed from pillar to post by braindead morons everywhere just like how the current refs are.

And like I said before, the NRL is reffed differently compared to lower levels, if the NRL refs strike there aren't any refs that actually know how to ref the NRL. There's that much bullshit involved that any new ref just thrown in would be completely overwhelmed.

 

[Captain Apollo]

Probably because there is absolutely no fitness required to be an nfl ref, they ref into their 60s.

Want to bet? If you think anyone unfit can referee then you have rocks in your head. A referee covers more territory during a game than anyone. They have to be up with every play the ball and are constantly on the go. You need the endurance of a middle distance runner, and I've seen the cardio work NRL match officials do - it is punishing. Also you will be hard pressed to find an on field match official who is over the age of 45, let alone 50.

I’d much rather the money be spent on giving refs in the lower grades and juniors a pay rise than topping up the accounts of the f**kers at the top.

What does a ref in the NSWRL make? f**king nothing. Reffing a junior game? Even less. And those f**kers are getting assaulted and abused after games.

The NRL should have no full time referees. They should instead inject money into the NSWRL and QRL lower grade ref squads with blanket payrises across the board, and simply allow those squads to assign their best local refs to handle the NRL games in their areas on a given weekend - with a nice match payment to go with it.

Increasing the incentive to become a lower grade and junior ref is where we need to focus. Not in lining the pockets of the nepotistic elite f**kwits at the top

You would need a lot of money to do that. I refereed in juniors for 4 years and the amount of money you'd need to lift a junior referee's pay packet to anything meaningful level would cost a lot more than giving the pay rise to the NRL match officials. At junior levels, the Referees Associations charge the clubs for providing match officials, and those clubs pay the fees to the referees association who at season's end then pay the referees. How much is charged depends on the grade of the match with the high the grade requiring more money (e.g. in my last year in 1996, a Referee earned $50 per A-Grade game, $40 for A-Reserve Grade, $30 for C-Grade going all the way down to $15 for U7-U10s).

 

[Springs09]

Want to bet? If you think anyone unfit can referee then you have rocks in your head. A referee covers more territory during a game than anyone. They have to be up with every play the ball and are constantly on the go. You need the endurance of a middle distance runner, and I've seen the cardio work NRL match officials do - it is punishing. Also you will be har pressed to fijn an on field match official whpo is over the age of 45, let alone 50.



You would need a lot of money to do that. I refereed in juniors for 4 years and the amount of money you'd need to lift a junior referee's pay packet to anything meaningful level would cost a lot more than giving the pay rise to the NRL match officials. At junior levels, the Referees Associations charge the clubs for providing match officials, and those clubs pay the fees to the referees association who at season's end then pay the referees. How much is charged depends on the grade of the match with the high the grade requiring more money (e.g. in my last year in 1996, a Referee earned $50 per A-Grade game, $40 for A-Reserve Grade, $30 for C-Grade going all the way down to $15 for U7-U10s).

In my area this year it was $80 for U16s, $90 for U18s, $140 for Firsts I believe. TJ $45 for firsts, $25 for U16s/18s. Juniors it was $25 for U14s and less the younger they went.

Also the first post you replied to was talking about NFL refs, not NRL.

 

[some11]

derp

 

[siv]

Waiting till the end of a season to pay regerees is poor

As is the process auto deducting association fees for the following season. Before asking the referees if they want to referee the following year

 

[_Johnsy]

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/nr...f=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_sport_nrl


They want 300 grand a year. f**k. Me. Dead.

The likes of Klein are lucky to have a f**king job at all. They don't make tackles, they don't score points, they don't train strenuously every week. They literally run back and forth up the field and handball 90% of their decisions to the Bunker.

If we want top quality officiating well we should pay accordingly.

Cam 3 contracts Smith & JT have no issue sucking every cent they can out of the game. Why should the officials be treated any differently wanting to be paid well?, no refs = no game.

I'd love to see you get out and keep up with the refs during a NRL match. They don't train strenuously every week? I'd imagine each ref would have pretty bloody good cardiovascular fitness.

 

[thorson1987]

lmao

Go to any lower grades comp and tell the refs who officiate those matches that.

He is talking about NFL refs mate.

 

[Danish]

Pfft you mustn't watch much other footy other than NRL. Referee abuse is widespread at all levels.

Any refs that would somehow replace the NRL refs for Round 1 would be bashed from pillar to post by braindead morons everywhere just like how the current refs are.

And like I said before, the NRL is reffed differently compared to lower levels, if the NRL refs strike there aren't any refs that actually know how to ref the NRL. There's that much bullshit involved that any new ref just thrown in would be completely overwhelmed.

I said nothing about whether mugs would keep abusing officials.

My point is the objective level of officiating in the lower grades - the % of decisions they get right - is on par with NRL referees. NRL refs aren’t better at officiating the rules of our game compared to any number of blokes slogging it out for bugger all holding the whistle in the lower grades.

NRL players get paid elite money because amateur players can’t do what they do. This does not apply to NRL refs.

I’d much rather take the $300K salaries being demanded for the dozen or so in the NRL ranks - so over $3 million total - being taken and used to pay 100+ refs around the country $30K per year, with big match payment bonuses when a ref gets chosen to ref an NRL game in their area.

You’d save a packet on travel costs for one, not to mention however many hundreds of thousands we are wasting paying Archer and Sutton.

 

[The Rosco]

Step 1. Count the bad decisions a ref makes. Take into account obstructed view, the speed at which it happened, etc.
Step 2. Count the poor decisions your team makes. Include dropped balls, missed tackles, passes behind, passes forward, missed goals, bombed tries, wrong pass options, wrong run options, kicks dead, kicks out on the full, penalties, etc, etc, etc, etc. Divide this number by 13.
Step 3. Come to the realisation that the ref in fact makes way, way less mistakes than your players. And all this time you've been screaming like a savage at the wrong fkwit on the field.
Step 4. Stand in front of the mirror and take a good, hard look at yourself.
Pay them what they are worth, no question.

 

[SBD82]

And like I said before, the NRL is reffed differently compared to lower levels, if the NRL refs strike there aren't any refs that actually know how to ref the NRL. There's that much bullshit involved that any new ref just thrown in would be completely overwhelmed.

What would they need to learn? The player's names? f**k it. They can go back to calling numbers.

Obviously I'm joking and there is more to what you're saying, but I'm curious what you think would be the big issue? I'd be happy to see games reffed like local leagues. Some things would be missed but that would be a minor sacrifice to make if the game was allowed to flow again.

 

[T-Boon]

My point is the objective level of officiating in the lower grades - the % of decisions they get right - is on par with NRL referees. NRL refs aren’t better at officiating the rules of our game compared to any number of blokes slogging it out for bugger all holding the whistle in the lower grades.

It just seems that way because the decisions at lower levels aren't scrutinised by 5 different camera angles, 5 different replays, 4 commentators all with nothing else to do except talk about how bad the refereeing is and a coach who needs an excuse because he lost again.

What you are saying is the same as people who say refereeing is worse now than it was 20 years ago. No it isn't, go look at the old film of grand finals and stuff in the 80s. It is unbelievable how much the refereeing has improved whilst at the same time the complaining has increased exponentially.

The other problem is the referees have become the most important person on the field because they flip the field whereas players use to do that by playing risky football (like chip kicking etc).

They should get paid more.

 

[Springs09]

What would they need to learn? The player's names? f**k it. They can go back to calling numbers.

Obviously I'm joking and there is more to what you're saying, but I'm curious what you think would be the big issue? I'd be happy to see games reffed like local leagues. Some things would be missed but that would be a minor sacrifice to make if the game was allowed to flow again.

The two-ref system, the bunker, match-day coaching and all the different interpretations of the rules and KPIs that the NRL and the refs use to make the game as entertaining as possible. When they say 'NRL ref strike' it doesn't just mean the 15 or so guys who go out every week, it would be every ref contracted to the NRL, including those in development squads. It's not just 'let's just chuck in lower grade refs' - if these lower grade refs weren't contracted to the NRL they'd just be amateurs with no idea how to ref the NRL as it would be effectively reffing a different game.

I agree, I'd much rather see the NRL reffed like the rest of rugby league. But we also need the NRL played like the rest of rugby league - no more deliberate cheating tactics from clubs. They tried to crack down on that early in the year and all we heard was whinging.

I said nothing about whether mugs would keep abusing officials.

My point is the objective level of officiating in the lower grades - the % of decisions they get right - is on par with NRL referees. NRL refs aren’t better at officiating the rules of our game compared to any number of blokes slogging it out for bugger all holding the whistle in the lower grades.

NRL players get paid elite money because amateur players can’t do what they do. This does not apply to NRL refs.

I’d much rather take the $300K salaries being demanded for the dozen or so in the NRL ranks - so over $3 million total - being taken and used to pay 100+ refs around the country $30K per year, with big match payment bonuses when a ref gets chosen to ref an NRL game in their area.

You’d save a packet on travel costs for one, not to mention however many hundreds of thousands we are wasting paying Archer and Sutton.

I disagree, the NRL refs make a lot more right decisions in a much faster game than we do here in local leagues. As one of the blokes slogging it out for bugger all to help my local game I know there are plenty of horrid decisions made in the amateur game that you would never see in NRL - apart from some of the rubbish the bunker comes up with. NRL refs also constantly have every decision scrutinised by video. If you had that in local games the refs would be shown to get a decision wrong every minute - someone offside or a knock on in the ruck that you didn't see because you have to keep an eye on 5 different things at once. The NRL refs are definitely better at officiating the rules - the problems at NRL level comes from the interpretations and so on from higher up, not the refs themselves.

I also disagree on the NRL players v amateur players thing. There are a ton of big, stupid NRL players who would be not much more than overweight slobs at amateur level, the difference being they were scouted at 14 when they could just run through everyone and from then on were kept on NRL level conditioning. Not surprisingly this kind of approach to juniors has led to our lack of quality halves.

I'm fine with NRL refs earning that much, they cop constant abuse and are hated around the country (something which I'm surprised the NRL hasn't tried to do more on) and also need to prepare for life after retirement the same as players do. If money is to be taken from refereeing ranks it should be from the bunker - what a waste of money that was. These $30k or $50k player match payments for rep games are much more expendable than ref payments and should be used to recruit more refs around the country along with helping out the game in general, including better payments and compensation for minimum wage players.

Just as an aside - in my local area we'd often have about 12 refs for 20 games over a weekend, these 12 refs would also have to TJ in these games meaning 4 or 5 games for one ref. I can safely say there isn't anywhere where a referee is struggling to get a game. The situation is dire and will continue to deteriorate if the attitude towards referees continues the way it is.

 

[Rhino_NQ]

What is the local leagues reffing policy on evening up penalty counts?

 

[Captain Apollo]

Also the first post you replied to was talking about NFL refs, not NRL.

Whoops. My bad

 

[Perth Red]

What would they need to learn? The player's names? f**k it. They can go back to calling numbers.

Obviously I'm joking and there is more to what you're saying, but I'm curious what you think would be the big issue? I'd be happy to see games reffed like local leagues. Some things would be missed but that would be a minor sacrifice to make if the game was allowed to flow again.

Dont disagree but the way the media crucifies them over every decision means the pandoras box is open and never shutting. You would need to get media agreement not to show replays and not to make comment on ref decisions to go back to the good old days. Good luck with that!

Its actually not the ref's or NRL's fault, its the media who put so much pressure on thatthe NRL responds and the fans get led by the nose by the likes of Gould to believe the refs are sht.