Rumours and Stuff

[hineyrulz]

Start forensically auditing all clubs ... than Work it out for yourself Todd

And Maybe go all the way back to when he ran the show at the Dogs?????


Oh wait

 

[Glenneel]

Genuine TPAs (can they even be classified as that?) such as Slater doing Gatorade ads should be exempt from any TPA regulation. Where there is no obvious effort to promote a business, these are dodgy TPAs imo, much like the little pensioner sponsoring Moanly players need to be regulated.

 

[84 Baby]

No way clubs would go near it .... they will claim the TPAs are nothing to do with them why should they pay a tax on it

You’re probably right but my proposal way back also allowed clubs to organise TPAs

 

[Forty20]

I still believe only the absolute top talent can truely attract legit TPAs independent of clubs

I think you are wrong mate. I say that as someone that used to think exactly that way because our experience in the NRL pretty much teaches us that. When you think of legit TPAs you think Jarryd Hayne, Cameron Smith, Billy Slater and Greg Inglis and that is analogous for the top endorsement deals in any sport or code. Strap yourself in because rant mode is getting engaged.

Here is the quarterback of my NFL team in a super high profile Bose ad also featuring Macklemore:


That perfectly fits the superstar-endorsement formula. Wilson is one of the most recognisable players in the NFL and he has an impeccable profile that he has carefully cultivated on top of it all.

He also has a sweet deal with Nike:


But here he is pimping an ad for a local car dealership in Seattle:


So let's dive a little bit deeper!


Sticking with my boys, here is Bobby Wager - one of two best 4-3 Middle Linebackers in the game (alongside Luke Kuechly) but a criminally undervalued position as far as media exposure goes - getting his side hustle on for a local plumbing company.

The NFL is littered (LITTERED!) with stars, superstars and megastars working overtime to build their brand and maximise their value no matter how lame the outlet is. If they need to shill pistachio nuts or the latest protein yogurt then they will suck it up and smile, corniness be damned.

This leads to me to the two main issues I see with the NRL. Firstly, players can not use any club gear for TPAs. I understand that this is meant to separate a TPA from existing purely to play for a certain club but that is such a flawed concept that I can only shrug. At best I can only say that it is intended to prevent the stockpiling of TPAs in the congested Sydney market because otherwise interstate teams will be hugely preferable options to their local businesses. Anyway, this is by far the smaller of the two issues.

The real issue in my eyes is that players and their managers are lazy. Or perhaps entitled. There is a prevailing thought that TPAs are part of the base contract. Someone signs for $300,000 and a $50,000 TPA then they get the total $350,000 no matter what. That 50k is meant to represent a personal business obligation for the player whereby they fulfil their end of the deal by providing a reciprocal value in marketing or corporate motivation or even just hanging out and shooting the shit with a huge fan dropping considerable dosh to support his club.

None of this excuses the vulnerability of the existing TPA system to exploitation by crafty (or let's be perfectly honest, not braindead) football executives but what I am trying to get at is that there is a very good chance a big part of it all is that NRL players and player managers are lazy. Your Daniel Alvaros and Kenny Edwards are never going to get those sweet 6-figure endorsement deals so why not work 3 or 4 $3-5k radio ad gigs over the course of a year? Find a local plumber, car dealership, restaurant or freaking sewerage cleaning company (1300 pooman!) and make them an attractive offer. Radio, Internet, Television, Printed Press. There are a 100 and 1 ways to sell yourself and your sponsor these days but you need to be hustling and I honestly can't think of a single NRL player that springs to mind for that.

Just like their football careers, where these blokes invariably all started from the humblest of beginnings - this sort of shit takes time and hardwork for the vast majority. Start small and build that brand up. Even if the work is eye-rollingly cringey you are still going to make more money for that gig than most people make over a month.

And above all it would give player managers something to f**king do instead of whinging that their clients are underpaid and leaking information to the media about supposed player discontent.

Rant over.

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

I think you are wrong mate. I say that as someone that used to that exactly that way because our experience in the NRL pretty much teaches us that. When you think of legit TPAs you think Jarryd Hayne, Cameron Smith, Billy Slater and Greg Inglis and that is analogous for the top endorsement deals in any sport or code. Strap yourself in because rant mode is getting engaged.

Here is the quarterback of my NFL team in a super high profile Bose ad also featuring Macklemore:


That perfectly fits the superstar-endorsement formula. Wilson is one of the most recognisable players in the NFL and he has an impeccable profile that he has carefully cultivated on top of it all.

He also has a sweet deal with Nike:


But here he is pimping an ad for a local car dealership in Seattle:


So let's dive a little bit deeper!


Sticking with my boys, here is Bobby Wager - one of two best 4-3 Middle Linebackers in the game (alongside Luke Kuechly) but a criminally undervalued position as far as media exposure goes - getting his side hustle on for a local plumbing company.

The NFL is littered (LITTERED!) with stars, superstars and megastars working overtime to build their brand and maximise their value no matter how lame the outlet is. If they need to shill pistachio nuts or the latest protein yogurt then they will suck it up and smile, corniness be damned.

This leads to me to the two main issues I see with the NRL. Firstly, players can not use any club gear for TPAs. I understand that this is meant to separate a TPA from existing purely to play for a certain club but that is such a flawed concept that I can only shrug. At best I can only say that it is intended to prevent the stockpiling of TPAs in the congested Sydney market because otherwise interstate teams will be hugely preferable options to their local businesses. Anyway, this is by far the smaller of the two issues.

The real issue in my eyes is that players and their managers are lazy. Or perhaps entitled. There is a prevailing thought that TPAs are part of the base contract. Someone signs for $300,000 and a $50,000 TPA then they get the total $350,000 no matter what. That 50k is meant to represent a personal business obligation for the player whereby they fulfil their end of the deal by providing a reciprocal value in marketing or corporate motivation or even just hanging out and shooting the shit with a huge fan dropping considerable dosh to support his club.

None of this excuses the vulnerability of the existing TPA system to exploitation by crafty (or let's be perfectly honest, not braindead) football executives but what I am trying to get at is that there is a very good chance a big part of it all is that NRL players and player managers are lazy. Your Daniel Alvaros and Kenny Edwards are never going to get those sweet 6-figure endorsement deals so why not work 3 or 4 $3-5k radio ad gigs over the course of a year? Find a local plumber, car dealership, restaurant or freaking sewerage cleaning company (1300 pooman!) and make them an attractive offer. Radio, Internet, Television, Printed Press. There are a 100 and 1 ways to sell yourself and your sponsor these days but you need to be hustling and I honestly can't think of a single NRL player that springs to mind for that.

Just like their football careers, where these blokes invariably all started from the humblest of beginnings - this sort of shit takes time and hardwork for the vast majority. Start small and build that brand up. Even if the work is eye-rollingly cringey you are still going to make more money for that gig than most people make over a month.

And above all it would give player managers something to f**king do instead of whinging that their clients are underpaid and leaking information to the media about supposed player discontent.

Rant over.

Now that's a rant!

 

[Twizzle]

The real issue in my eyes is that players and their managers are lazy.

I completely agree, the thing is that they have been made lazy by certain clubs with money, power and the right contacts to do everything for them

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

I don't see how player managers working harder takes pressure off clubs to cheat with dodgy TPAs.

 

[Forty20]

I don't see how player managers working harder takes pressure off clubs to cheat with dodgy TPAs.

I'm addressing what I allege as a fallacy that only marquee players can generate sponsorship/endorsement deals.

Ultimately there is no real way to stop clubs attempting to cheat the cap. You can discourage it with periodic forensic accounting but that is an expensive endeavour while other popular systems like the point based method have too many flaws to adopt, in my opinion.

Arguably the best method of disincentivising cheating is to significantly (and I mean significantly) raise the cap. If NRL teams operated with a cap of 12-15 million, cheating is still possible but it becomes prohibitively more expensive to garner the same cap advantages that the big 3 or 4 clubs currently hold. That is pure fantasy though.

In isolation though nothing is the silver bullet. I desperately want to see the NRL adopt a cap rollover system that allows struggling clubs to ride a barren stretch and come out of it able to aggressively recruit quality players without comprising their future cap.

That same system also rewards strong clubs for diligently recruiting project players and making them starters because they too can roll over the cap gains from said efforts.

In the end my frustrations largely lie with the way endorsement deals are viewed by all parties in the NRL. Player managers are meant to MANAGE their clients. Go out and make them money so you can get your cut!

 

[Poupou Escobar]

I don't see how player managers working harder takes pressure off clubs to cheat with dodgy TPAs.

Exactly right. If a player wants to work hard in his own time earning TPAs he can also get dodgy ones from a club that offers them. And if he doesn’t want to spend his time working for legit TPAs the dodgy ones are still available if he goes to the right club.

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

I'm addressing what I allege as a fallacy that only marquee players can generate sponsorship/endorsement deals.

Ultimately there is no real way to stop clubs attempting to cheat the cap. You can discourage it with periodic forensic accounting but that is an expensive endeavour while other popular systems like the point based method have too many flaws to adopt, in my opinion.

Arguably the best method of disincentivising cheating is to significantly (and I mean significantly) raise the cap. If NRL teams operated with a cap of 12-15 million, cheating is still possible but it becomes prohibitively more expensive to garner the same cap advantages that the big 3 or 4 clubs currently hold. That is pure fantasy though.

In isolation though nothing is the silver bullet. I desperately want to see the NRL adopt a cap rollover system that allows struggling clubs to ride a barren stretch and come out of it able to aggressively recruit quality players without comprising their future cap.

That same system also rewards strong clubs for diligently recruiting project players and making them starters because they too can roll over the cap gains from said efforts.

In the end my frustrations largely lie with the way endorsement deals are viewed by all parties in the NRL. Player managers are meant to MANAGE their clients. Go out and make them money so you can get your cut!

Yes I think player managers probably could get more TPAs than they currently do but it wouldn't stop clubs cheating with dodgy ones so we still have the same problem. It might though keep a few players from heading overseas, maybe. I think rather than tear down the whole system I would be happy with the NRL publishing the amount of TPAs per club. And get another team in Brisbane.

 

[hindy111]

Start forensically auditing all clubs ... than Work it out for yourself Todd

Ive always thought the fairest system is a rating.

You get say 10000 points to spend and players get a score/rating.Im unsure how ypud factor the rating.. You could then factor in discounts like if a players over 32 you take 10% off his score. Or if he is under 22yld. Or at club from a junior or been there for more then 5yrs in first grade etc.

Id also have a discount on weight.So perhaps players under a certain size get a percentage taken off their rating.

My example would be say Boyd Cornder gets a 90/100 while Manu may get 80.

This system would have floors also like any. But it would create the most even comp.
Salary cap wont factor in Origin payments or lifestyles. High profile Players are going to sacrifice 50k to live on the nth beaches over Penrith more often then not.And if at a strong club your chances of origin increases.

The problem the NRL has is the top clubs are always the ones fighting it out and it can take 10yrs for another club to become good.

Look at the NFL. Last year Phili,Rams,Jacksonville,viking where ordinary teams. This year all made play offs one won the superbowl and the other two made the last 4.

Id almost guarantee that all those 4 wont top their own groups next season.And id be suprised if they all where in the play offs.

 

[Bandwagon]

I would start by publishing the total values of registered TPAs for each club

while this doesnt fix anything at all, it at least exposes the reality of how things are

I'd go a little further and name the companies involved, So total dollars of TPA's, number of TPA's and who is providing them.

The reasoning being that disclosure of who provides them goes to showing exactly how arms length they are.

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

Ive always thought the fairest system is a rating.

You get say 10000 points to spend and players get a score/rating.Im unsure how ypud factor the rating.. You could then factor in discounts like if a players over 32 you take 10% off his score. Or if he is under 22yld. Or at club from a junior or been there for more then 5yrs in first grade etc.

Id also have a discount on weight.So perhaps players under a certain size get a percentage taken off their rating.

My example would be say Boyd Cornder gets a 90/100 while Manu may get 80.

This system would have floors also like any. But it would create the most even comp.
Salary cap wont factor in Origin payments or lifestyles. High profile Players are going to sacrifice 50k to live on the nth beaches over Penrith more often then not.And if at a strong club your chances of origin increases.

The problem the NRL has is the top clubs are always the ones fighting it out and it can take 10yrs for another club to become good.

Look at the NFL. Last year Phili,Rams,Jacksonville,viking where ordinary teams. This year all made play offs one won the superbowl and the other two made the last 4.

Id almost guarantee that all those 4 wont top their own groups next season.And id be suprised if they all where in the play offs.

I've suggested in the past that clubs themselves rate every player and then take the average. In theory they could gang up on some teams but it isn't likely I reckon (unless some club is dominating).

 

[El Diablo]

You’re probably right but my proposal way back also allowed clubs to organise TPAs

like the Roosters and Broncos currently do?

 

[hindy111]

I feel like both Parra and Penrith can make finals again and even top 4.

How do you think i felt when both where rubish ? Twice the pain.

 

[El Diablo]

like when you get dp'd or doesn't that hurt?

 

[Oscarman]

like the Roosters and Broncos currently do?

Nothing to see here. Feel free to add the Bennett and El Beardo pic.

 

[lingard]

A r

Now that's a rant!

A rant with pictures!

 

[lingard]

So he intends getting all the CEO's in a room together to discuss 'improving' the TPA system?
Does he really think the CEO's at Melbourne, Brisbane, Easts, etc, are going to be interested in 'improving' the current system? There'll be no general consensus because of the vested interests of each club. At the end of the day, this is just a P.R. exercise. The NRL can turn around and say, "well, we consulted with you all and you couldn't agree on a better way, so stop complaining". The NRL needs to work this out themselves. Greenberg is just shirking the responsibility.

 

[lingard]

I feel like both Parra and Penrith can make finals again and even top 4.

How do you think i felt when both where rubish ? Twice the pain.

Parramatta should make the top four this year. Sadly, I can't see Penrith coming anywhere near the top four in the next few years, Hindy.