Bennett: NRL don't know what they're doing

[Super Freak]

WAYNE Bennett, the greatest rugby league coach of the modern era, believes the current NRL administration is out of touch with the game and loyal fans are being ripped off by a State of Origin schedule that desperately requires an overhaul.

Bennett launched a stunning strike at the game’s hierarchy after NSW and Queensland Origin stars Beau Scott, Darius Boyd and Josh McGuire were all injured during Brisbane’s win over Newcastle on Friday night.

Scott (shoulder) and Boyd (groin) are now in doubt for Origin III at Suncorp Stadium on July 8 while the Maroons will be forced to select either Canberra’s Josh Papalli or Sydney Roosters forward Dylan Napa with McGuire’s season over with a torn Achilles.

Should Scott be deemed unavailable for Blues selection, hard-running St George-Illawarra forward Tyson Frizell is tipped to earn his NSW State of Origin debut.

“You keep hearing (from the NRL) that we are concerned about player welfare, well nothing changes,’’ Bennett said.

“In my opinion they don’t get it. They just don’t understand what they’re doing.

“We’re at the coalface. So we’re really in touch with what’s happening in the game and I don’t believe that’s the case (at the NRL).”

The seven-time premiership winning coach’s lambasting of the NRL administration supports recent claims to fix the ‘embarrassing’ NRL competition, from highly successful Canterbury coach Des Hasler.

“It’s a wonderful event. But I think professionally as a code, I think the NRL are trying to put it out there that when you ravage a competition for Origin, it’s a bit embarrassing isn’t it?” Hasler, who with Bennett has coached over 1000 NRL games, said before Origin II.

Pointing to the trio of injuries suffered on Friday night coupled with the further omission this weekend of Origin stars Paul Gallen (ribs), Cooper Cronk (shoulder), Johnathan Thurston (fatigue) and Sam Thaiday (fatigue) from their respective club sides, Bennett suggested that the pressure on the game’s elite players to perform at Origin level while also backing-up for their club was beyond reason.

“Is Josh McGuire’s injury a victim of three games in nine days a fatigue factor?’ Bennett told ABC radio.

“The game is getting harder and quicker all the time. We keep saying it. The coaches say it, the player’s say it, but nothing changes at the other end.

“Darius Boyd’s injury is definitely an injury of fatigue. You not only put three games in nine days, you put the training loads on top of that as well.

“They’ve got to go to training sessions and you’ve got this situation where the weekend isn’t over yet, so who knows what other players could be missing come Monday.’’

Bennett suggested that ultimately he felt sorry for the fans.

“They’re charging $250 a ticket (for Origin),’’ Bennett said.

“The fans paying that type of money deserve the best players on the football field.

“We’ve lost Cooper Cronk, we’ve lost Josh McGuire, we’ve lost Beau Scott — all three are Origin players — because they’re back playing club football.

“It just shouldn’t happen. There’s no need for it to happen going forward if we’re committed to improving our product and giving the fans absolute value for their money and that’s not happening right now.

“I’d be certainly reluctant to buy a $250 ticket knowing that the best players in the game area’ going to be there because they’re injured playing club football.

“We’ve got to do better than what we’re doing with it.’’

However, both Bennett and Hasler’s cause for alarm is unlikely to result in any immediate change due to the NRL’s current broadcast deal, which will not be altered, if at all, until the end of 2017.

The Sunday Telegraph was unable to gain comment from NRL head of football Todd Greenberg, however an NRL spokesman revealed that head of strategy Shane Richardson’s was in the process of formulating a detailed assessment of the NRL calendar, of which will be presented to all clubs at the end of this year.

The complete diagnosis of Scott’s shoulder injury will be revealed in the next 24-hours after the NSW enforcer underwent scans in Newcastle on Saturday.

It’s believed that only through injury or suspension will NSW coach Laurie Daley make any changes to his 17-man squad which levelled the series 1-1 all in Melbourne. Both the NSW and Queensland squads for Origin III will be named on Tuesday.

http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...st-doesnt-get-it/story-fn2mcuj6-1227417818647

 

[Nashy]

Craig Bellamy also had some words on this too. The more high profile coaches, IE, not Toovey, who complain about this, and start to make noise, the better.

It will come to a head at some point, and the NRL are going to have to do something about it.

 

[broncos4life]

To be honest I dont think we can even dream about changes until the banker has been thrown out on his arse

 

[Big Pete]

It's not as if Dave Smith is afraid of making changes or if this is a new problem. Bennett has been peddling this longer than I've been alive and it goes back to the first ever Origin game.

Either way, you're going to piss somebody else. If you make it a stand-alone weekend, the players will whinge about fatigue since you're basically extending the season to compensate. Plus, if you do that, you get certain sections of the media and fanbases crying that they're bored and going to flick it to the AFL or whatever. Point is, this isn't a system you can rush into and Bennett's suggestion isn't exactly the best idea either. If you want the best Origin players on the field, giving them a week to recover isn't going to allow that to happen.

 

[Broncoman]

Agree with most of what Wayne said

The stand alone weekend for the mid year test, city v country and other representative games have been a success and I believe they should do it for Origin games as well. Origin never disappoints but with players dropping out because of injury it drops the standard of club football down during Origin time and doesn't make for quality viewing at times.

 

[Battler]

The premiership is the apex of rugby league in Australia and should be treated as such. As much as I love origin, it's a joke how much it impacts the quality of the nrl.

 

[Sproj]

Why not just do a stand alone three weeks over both hemispheres? England do their origin games on a Sunday afternoon, keep origin Wednesday night or whatever, do a NZ v islanders game on a Friday night and maybe even have a city v country from Qld and NSW double header on the Saturday.

Host broadcasters from both hemispheres would buy into it as it gives them at least five rep games for the round and the audience would love seeing all the activities from around the globe. Why not?

 

[1910]

This isn't a 2015 issue, player welfare has always been thrown around. We as a code have never found an answer.

You reduce the games you lose money, clubs lose. Clubs can't afford to lose money. Four clubs already need additional funding from the NRL.

If you make the Origin stand alone, you either have to start the season in February or end it in November- they're both far from ideal or you lessen the games played.

For less games something has to give.

 

[Porthoz]

This isn't a 2015 issue, player welfare has always been thrown around. We as a code have never found an answer.

You reduce the games you lose money, clubs lose. Clubs can't afford to lose money. Four clubs already need additional funding from the NRL.

If you make the Origin stand alone, you either have to start the season in February or end it in November- they're both far from ideal or you lessen the games played.

For less games something has to give.

You essentially only need an extra week, as you'd be removing the bye weeks for all teams, while maintaining the same amount of rounds played (24). The extra week would be resting for most players, except the Origin guys, who would play up to 28 games during the regular season, as opposed to a maximum of 25 now.
In compensation, those guys would not play more than 1 game a week, as opposed to 3 games in 9 days... I know what I would prefer!

 

[theshed]

Professional footballers can play upward of 60 games a year. I guess our sport has more contact which could play a part in burn out but I doubt tackling or being tackles caused Josh's Achilles to go.

Maybe we should loosen the 2nd tier cap constraints and force squad rotations in some fashion. Each player gets rested a minimum amount of matches per season or something. The coaches will have to decide who to rest and when tactically.

There is player burn out but no ones forcing coaches not to rest their stars through out the season.

 

[ivanhungryjak]

You essentially only need an extra week, as you'd be removing the bye weeks for all teams, while maintaining the same amount of rounds played (24). The extra week would be resting for most players, except the Origin guys, who would play up to 28 games during the regular season, as opposed to a maximum of 25 now.
In compensation, those guys would not play more than 1 game a week, as opposed to 3 games in 9 days... I know what I would prefer!

Exactly this. I can't understand the extra three weeks arguement when it's clearly a phallacy.
Also, why not two trials instead of three? Most of the guns don't have a run until the final trial anyway. If everyone's in the same boat, I can't see a downside.

 

[Mortician]

They wont **** with a formula that is getting record tv numbers year after year after year.

What is worse and a fucking disgrace is the jacking up of the price to go see the games now. Greedy *****.

 

[Charmamba]

Scrap Origin for all I care, club first state second.

 

[Mister Wright]

They say that the NRL is all about the fans and growing the game for kids. However, they can' honestly expect us to believe that while Origin games don't begin until close to 9pm on a school night.

 

[Huge]

Exactly this. I can't understand the extra three weeks arguement when it's clearly a phallacy.
Also, why not two trials instead of three? Most of the guns don't have a run until the final trial anyway. If everyone's in the same boat, I can't see a downside.

Lol....what's a penis got to do with it unless you mean it's a **** up ! Fallacy perhaps ?

 

[Foordy]

It is certainly a fine line.

As much as we don't like it, TV Networks will always get a say in scheduling. Especially when they are paying over $1 billion go the NRL for the rights.

So, do we go against their wishes and risk getting less money for the rights? Which can have a flow on effect by the game getting less money ... Which potentially means a smaller salary cap (something people still complain is not big enough)... Clubs would also get less money from the NRL, forcing them to look for ways to increase their revenue (i.e. increased merchandise or ticket prices)

As i said, it is a fine line and a difficult situation.

 

[ivanhungryjak]

Lol....what's a penis got to do with it unless you mean it's a **** up ! Fallacy perhaps ?

Oops, sorry for making a dick of myself.

 

[Huge]

The clubs are being stolen blind. They should get millions more each