thickos' 4th annual season review: 2004

[Purtell The Turtle]

Oh....did anyone notice Goose wasn't commentating on the Rooters match last weekend? Could it be that there were complaints from football areas? I don't think so, but one could only hope.... :idea:

 

[Edwahu]

Believe what you want but from what I have seen since R.Finch became refs boss every effort has been made to speed the ruck up and make line speed all important and the teams who use techniques to successfully combat these tactics have had the rules changed on them or have been heavily policed in that area (us and the Storm for example). One guy is in charge of making these decisions and he is the father of a player on the team that benifits most from the quick ruck and linespeed.

Its also pretty obvious that when teams line up agains the Roosters that the refs go in with the attitude that whoever is playing them is going to try and put them off theire game but the attitude only goes one way. I would love to see the ruck penalties for and against for the Roosters. It pisses me off that whoever plays them 90 percent of the time is forced to play at their speed or get penalised out of the game.

Whether there is nepotism at play (its not a conspiracy when it could be as simple as one man doing the wrong thing) or not, no other sport in the world would let such a massive conflict of interest exist.

As for the rest of the NRL, well look at the facts. The team with no juniors is in the GF in all three grades. This isnt a healthy situation. The only conclusion you can come to is that investment in local juniors is no longer considered to be "professional" since its rammed home to the clubs that do do it all the time that they struggle because they are lagging behind the Roosters in professionalism. It will be a sad day when the Raiders are forced to field Flegg and SG Ball sides with barely a local in them but the day is fast approaching.

The comps priorities are rooted and im in the same boat as Woodgers, its putting me off big time.

 

[greeneyed]

Salary cap: I don't honestly believe that the Roosters are cheating the cap. I think they are able to get extra funds from legitimate 3rd party sources because they are able to attract cashed-up "sponsors" due to their profile and reputation as the league's best team.

It's just one of those things. Canberra is not in a market where there is as much money to throw around.

I don't believe they are "cheating" the cap, even though they have a couple of years ago been fined for exceeding it, by a small amount.

What I don't agree with is the proposition that 3rd party payments are "legitimate". Either we have a salary cap or we don't. If we have a cap, it shouldn't be allowed. If it is allowed, then forget the cap. It is a sham.

 

[greeneyed]

I probably agree with half the things Woodgers has said. I think it speaks volumes that every single person I have spoken to this week wants the Bulldogs to win. When you consider the mire that club has been in over the last two or three years, that speaks volumes for how unhappy people are about what is happening in relation to the management of the NRL and its interaction with the Roosters.

If Ricketson gets off, it will be the last straw.......

 

[greeneyed]

Oh, and look at the balance of opinion on these forums... They would be quite representative of how the normal, passionate rugby league fan feels. The various polls indicate that a Roosters win this weekend would probably be the most unpopular in decades.

 

[Raider_69]

i really cant bring myself to support a club that has brought so much shame to this great game

we may have suspecions about salary cap cheating, we think that the Walkers, Hodges etc are all f**king tools, we may believe that the roosters have the hands in to many pots, but the dogs have been proven to be scum

for that reason im going for the roosters

 

[greeneyed]

They are both scum clubs... what a choice!

 

[hrundi99]

I don't believe they are "cheating" the cap, even though they have a couple of years ago been fined for exceeding it, by a small amount.

What I don't agree with is the proposition that 3rd party payments are "legitimate". Either we have a salary cap or we don't. If we have a cap, it shouldn't be allowed. If it is allowed, then forget the cap. It is a sham.

Don't you think players should be able to earn money outside of their NRL salary because they are marketable?

 

[greeneyed]

I don't believe they are "cheating" the cap, even though they have a couple of years ago been fined for exceeding it, by a small amount.

What I don't agree with is the proposition that 3rd party payments are "legitimate". Either we have a salary cap or we don't. If we have a cap, it shouldn't be allowed. If it is allowed, then forget the cap. It is a sham.

Don't you think players should be able to earn money outside of their NRL salary because they are marketable?

If we decide this should be allowed, then we should abandon the salary cap. The salary cap is meaningless if we decide this should be allowed.

At the moment, some clubs are advantaged because they can mobilise more "third party sponsorships" for individual players than others.

Our club, for example, might be one that gets more club sponsorship and club revenue than sponsorship for individual players......

 

[hrundi99]

Having the salary cap means there is more control than there would be otherwise.

If you're suggesting that players shouldn't earn any income other than what's included in the cap then how do we inspire the players to do things like studying and perhaps starting their own business on the side to set themselves up for the future?

 

[Kris_man]

Krisman, woodgers (and the rest of us), the best debates are the ones where people express their opinions, and articulate why you believe that. Not having a go at anyone in particular, but simply saying "as I've said elsewhere" or "as I have said in the past" never wins arguments, and rarely sways people's opinions.

Having a go at people (phrases such as "you've got problems" or "you're an idiot") are not constructive.

Everyone has opinions, but please, if you're going to try to convince others that you're more right than they are, explain your opinions, don't just say the same things again and again.

Kris_man everyone knows you like to argue your point; thats fine. But woodgers is equally as entitled to his point of view as well, and considering how much he loves this club (we all do!) and how much he has done for the Army this season to get it going, I can appreciate his frustration. It seems like you are swimming against the current, going nowhere, when your club does not seem to be afforded the same luxuries other clubs receive.

i don't get how i'm told off yet woodgers was the one being a prick. talk about bias :roll:

 

[greeneyed]

Having the salary cap means there is more control than there would be otherwise.

If you're suggesting that players shouldn't earn any income other than what's included in the cap then how do we inspire the players to do things like studying and perhaps starting their own business on the side to set themselves up for the future?

I'm NOT saying they shouldn't earn stuff from activity like that. I am just saying, if we HAVE a salary cap, it is ridiculous to EXCLUDE income from that. I am not supporting a cap at all. I am just saying if we really believe in having a cap, ALL income for players, no matter from whatever source, should be counted to it.

 

[thickos]

http://www.raiders.com.au/newsroom/sep/29_ar01/

The pretty version of my season review is up in full colour with pics now for everyone to admire :mrgreen:

 

[Spinach]

Onya thickos!

 

[thickos]

Cheers Spinach 8)