Wild Card Weekend - reports NRL looking to expand finals to ten teams

[Man of Steele]

Literally no one has said this but sure whatever

This was said, and it’s bound to happen. But my team will benefit greatly with this. Coming twelfth, only 2 points out of the top 10. You beauty, we can still get into the finals with a couple of wins.

 

[Last Week]

Remove 2 rounds from the competition - 16 less games.

Add two teams to the competition - 22 more games (on a 22 round season)

Suddenly, games mean more and a 'wild card' weekend might be more palatable.

 

[TheFrog]

The wildcard should be the team that has the most sex tapes plays off against the team with the most (alleged) criminal proceedings.

We got dis.

 

[Last Week]

But even with all that money they are also considering adding 2 more wildcard teams.

Really? How?

 

[siv]

For those supporting this insane scheme, here's another way to phrase it.

By making it easier to make the finals, you make each game of the premiership worth less. Winning matters less, losing matters less. There's always another bite of the cherry.
So in reducing the amount of "dead" games and throwing out hope to a few more teams, you're simultaneously creating a whole heap more games that simply don't matter. This is what it means when people say it "devalues" the competition.
The worst part is, those games will fall in the top half of the ladder. You're making top 6 blockbuster clashes have less worth.
And fans will know it.

Agree

Just look at the ESL

While the middle 8 was of huge interest

The Top 8 for 7 weeks became a boring period as we all were waiting for the finals to start

 

[Hello, I'm The Doctor]

So maybe rigging it to fit in even more shitty teams isnt the direction we should be heading in?

What kind of bent logic is "it's already a bit shit, so it doesnt matter if its shitter"

This isnt a debate about "shitness", these games will probably be great to watch. It's a debate about "unfairness"...

"Wahhh, my team came first and we go knocked out be a team that came 10th. Waahhhh". Honestly though, toughen the f*ck up. If you team loses a game the needed to win, they dont deserve to be Premiers. If they have a perfect winning record but cant handle the pressure of September football, the dont deserve to be premiers. If you need to look back and say, "we only played this team once and this team twice", you dont deserve to be premiers.

The best team will probably win at the end anyway. Im more interested in entertaining football, not a purists vision of an even competition...

 

[Diesel]

Im against it, but would be willing to give it a go for 2-3 seasons if we expand to 18.

 

[Last Week]

I went looking through the ladders from the competition between 2000 and 2006. Years when we only had 14 and 15 teams, but still had 8 finals teams.

2002 was incredible.
6th - Parra with a record of 10 - 2 - 12
7th - Dragons with a record of 9 - 3 - 12
8th - Canberra with a record of 10 - 1 - 13

This was also when the Bulldogs had 37 points removed.

In 2004;
8th - Canberra with a record of 11 - 0 - 13.

In 7 seasons, they were the only times that teams made the finals with a losing record. Which I find incredible considering it was essentially easier to make the finals.

 

[Hello, I'm The Doctor]

Judging based on F/A is not a fair system when you don't play everyone twice. The ladder itself is affected by it. So it's contradictory to claim fairness and then go on that tangent you did.

You could argue it would be more fair if a team that finished a point outside the 8 playoff for a finals spot when the competition is slightly uneven.

This was my point....

The schedule is already unfair and it can NEVER be made fair. There will always be something to whinge about.

Im saying calm the f*ck down about that and focus on an exciting comp worth watching...

 

[Hello, I'm The Doctor]

Literally no one has said this but sure whatever

This is EVERYONES problem with it...

"it is too easy to get into the finals", "it doesnt reward the higher placed teams", "9 or 10 could lose more than they win and still knock out sneak into the finals".

Put simply, the more consistent teams arent rewarded enough. Its just not fair....

 

[madunit]

2018 was the first time since 1969 that there was 6 competition points separating the lowest ranked team that reached the finals and the team directly behind them.

This concept is a knee-jerk reaction to one very unique season.

 

[TheFrog]

So in reducing the amount of "dead" games and throwing out hope to a few more teams, you're simultaneously creating a whole heap more games that simply don't matter. This is what it means when people say it "devalues" the competition.

Really, that is the case now. So long as you win a few games in the first half, you can make the finals in most years.

 

[DC_fan]

Would start a week earlier I imagine, you wouldn't want to move the GF off the long weekend.

Maybe they could move the long weekend. After all it is just a Labour Day.

 

[Danish]

If you want less meaningless games, you have to remove games. Not add them.

We basically coasted for the first half of the season in 2018 because the season is so long, knowing full well we only needed to start getting things right around July to make a run for the finals. Making the path to the finals even easier will only add to the amount of teams taking such an approach

 

[gerg]

I agree that there is probably too many rounds and the season needs to be shorter, but given all the off season/off field crap I can understand why NRL HQ want to go the other way.

 

[Man of Steele]

You’re all a bunch of old flogs. It’s a good idea, ask Buzz, his the biggest old flog.

 

[shiznit]

Really? How?

By adding a team to each side...

Only the top seed gets a bye in the first round and it plays like this...

Wildcard Round: 2v7, 3v6 & 4v5

Then if it all goes by seed..

Divisional Round:2v3 & 1v5

Conference Championship: 1v2

 

[Mr Angry]

barring a shyte load injury early on the season, teams that 10th do so for reason. Not concerned about 10 winning.

 

[no name]

Maybe they could move the long weekend. After all it is just a Labour Day.

The NRL decides when public holidays are?

 

[Crippler]

If we insist 10 teams in finals.

Why not split it into 2 X ,top 5 systems like everyone loved in the 80s/90s

Teams 1 , 3 , 5 , 7 , 9 in one side

Teams 2 , 4. , 6 , 8 , 10 in other side

Winner of each half faces each other in Grand final

Advantages

Awards the better team in each game.
Alot more even games hopefully leading to more attractive games

Ensures 1 vs 2 can only happen in the grand final even if they lose a game in their semi final group.

All the judges keep saying the old top 5 was best so let's just double that.