NRL General Discussion Thread

[Organix]

I read through the recent posts regarding the change in the game and that people are turning away from it and I agree that it's probably so far gone that it can't go back to what it was. The issue I have is that I want it back, so I want to watch ISC or something, but inevitably they will change their rules too.

I live in Germany and it's been so frustrating to see the rapid change (IMO for the worse) in the game. I was so angry last year with the 6-again, and I still believe it's a tool to control the sport like it's wrestling now. But really, what can we do? It's like coke changing their recipe, they do it and people notice, but they keep shoving it in your face and eventually that's what coke is now, like it or not. I don't want to forget what Rugby League should be. I don't want these new rules. They are so shithouse and all because PVL wanted them? How is that not dictatorial? What the **** is that guy to Rugby League anyway? He's a corrupt Horse Racing administrator and yet he can come in and take some of the worst cooked ideas from that fat lump of shit Gould and just have it so? **** that.

Even if you are shitty that the Broncos are shit (and many know I have my own theories about that), why the **** are people just accepting that this is the NRL now? What the **** is up with the players just letting it happen? The players union gets made out to be some sort of cabal? No, they have a legit disagreement with how this shit is just dictated to them, the ones doing the actual work, and the fox media crucifies them. Imagine your workplace did that to you. It's actually sick. Lunch breaks are now at your desk for 20min.

sorry vent over

 

[Sproj]

I read through the recent posts regarding the change in the game and that people are turning away from it and I agree that it's probably so far gone that it can't go back to what it was. The issue I have is that I want it back, so I want to watch ISC or something, but inevitably they will change their rules too.

I live in Germany and it's been so frustrating to see the rapid change (IMO for the worse) in the game. I was so angry last year with the 6-again, and I still believe it's a tool to control the sport like it's wrestling now. But really, what can we do? It's like coke changing their recipe, they do it and people notice, but they keep shoving it in your face and eventually that's what coke is now, like it or not. I don't want to forget what Rugby League should be. I don't want these new rules. They are so shithouse and all because PVL wanted them? How is that not dictatorial? What the **** is that guy to Rugby League anyway? He's a corrupt Horse Racing administrator and yet he can come in and take some of the worst cooked ideas from that fat lump of shit Gould and just have it so? **** that.

Even if you are shitty that the Broncos are shit (and many know I have my own theories about that), why the **** are people just accepting that this is the NRL now? What the **** is up with the players just letting it happen? The players union gets made out to be some sort of cabal? No, they have a legit disagreement with how this shit is just dictated to them, the ones doing the actual work, and the fox media crucifies them. Imagine your workplace did that to you. It's actually sick. Lunch breaks are now at your desk for 20min.

sorry vent over

I don’t know about conspiracies and whatever but I do know I don’t like to treated like trash and taken for granted so unless the NRL changes for the better, they’ve lost me. I haven’t watched a non-Broncos game in months now and I haven’t finished a Broncos game in weeks. 2 of the last four I haven’t even watched at all.

I’m one person but I hope others are doing the same and stick at it because losing fans for long periods and in droves is the only way change will happen. They’ve lost fans in droves but they put it down to Covid. Sticking at a silent protest is all I feel I can do.

 

[broncos4life]

I read through the recent posts regarding the change in the game and that people are turning away from it and I agree that it's probably so far gone that it can't go back to what it was. The issue I have is that I want it back, so I want to watch ISC or something, but inevitably they will change their rules too.

I live in Germany and it's been so frustrating to see the rapid change (IMO for the worse) in the game. I was so angry last year with the 6-again, and I still believe it's a tool to control the sport like it's wrestling now. But really, what can we do? It's like coke changing their recipe, they do it and people notice, but they keep shoving it in your face and eventually that's what coke is now, like it or not. I don't want to forget what Rugby League should be. I don't want these new rules. They are so shithouse and all because PVL wanted them? How is that not dictatorial? What the **** is that guy to Rugby League anyway? He's a corrupt Horse Racing administrator and yet he can come in and take some of the worst cooked ideas from that fat lump of shit Gould and just have it so? **** that.

Even if you are shitty that the Broncos are shit (and many know I have my own theories about that), why the **** are people just accepting that this is the NRL now? What the **** is up with the players just letting it happen? The players union gets made out to be some sort of cabal? No, they have a legit disagreement with how this shit is just dictated to them, the ones doing the actual work, and the fox media crucifies them. Imagine your workplace did that to you. It's actually sick. Lunch breaks are now at your desk for 20min.

sorry vent over

Completely feel your pain mate. I was where you are now about a month or two ago. I have moved past that now because I know there is nothing I can do. While ever that corrupt piece of shit is in charge this is what the game will be, sadly by the time he has been ousted it may be too late to get it back.

I was frustrated, I wrote emails that were ignored. I called into things like the triple M weekend shows to voice this stuff be but as soon as you tell them what you are calling to say they don’t put you on air. There is nothing we can do as fans.

I now watch the Broncos every week and then the AFL for the rest of the weekend. I estimate I have watched maybe 4 hours of RL outside of Broncos games this year and that is including origin. I can no longer put energy and emotion into a game that is destroying itself and does not care about its fans.

 

[broncos4life]

I don’t know about conspiracies and whatever but I do know I don’t like to treated like trash and taken for granted so unless the NRL changes for the better, they’ve lost me. I haven’t watched a non-Broncos game in months now and I haven’t finished a Broncos game in weeks. 2 of the last four I haven’t even watched at all.

I’m one person but I hope others are doing the same and stick at it because losing fans for long periods and in droves is the only way change will happen. They’ve lost fans in droves but they put it down to Covid. Sticking at a silent protest is all I feel I can do.

The last paragraph here is all we can do. Guys like Kent walk around defending PVL like he is the messiah but once this starts hitting the ratings hard and affecting his employment/salary he will turn on him so fast and lead the charge for PVL’s removal.

 

[Foordy]

so the question is when does Madge's job start getting questioned. he is into his 3rd year, with a team that he built and hasn't made the finals yet, and not looking likely to get there any time soon.

hell, Kevvie's job is being question by everyone from fans to the media after being in charge for just 15 games, coming off a diabolical wooden spoon season and hasn't had a chance to make any significant transfer moves to get the roster he wants.

if Madge did a similar job at the Broncos to what he has done at the Tigers ... there would be a back page article every single day and the fans would torch the entire suburb of Red Hill looking for him, so they could lynch him

 

[BroncsFan]

so the question is when does Madge's job start getting questioned. he is into his 3rd year, with a team that he built and hasn't made the finals yet, and not looking likely to get there any time soon.

hell, Kevvie's job is being question by everyone from fans to the media after being in charge for just 15 games, coming off a diabolical wooden spoon season and hasn't had a chance to make any significant transfer moves to get the roster he wants.

if Madge did a similar job at the Broncos to what he has done at the Tigers ... there would be a back page article every single day and the fans would torch the entire suburb of Red Hill looking for him, so they could lynch him

Every chance he's going to be sacked before the week is out when your team almost concedes 70!!

 

[IceWorks]

Least interested I have been in NRL for decades.

Sunshine Coast or Panthers will win and outside the top 3 or 4 your team has buckleys... 50 point shellackings, weird rule changes. Even if I supported the Panthers I think I wouldn't be enjoying this year.

Norths are my ISC club.. Probably will start following them as NRL is losing me.

 

[theshed]

so the question is when does Madge's job start getting questioned. he is into his 3rd year, with a team that he built and hasn't made the finals yet, and not looking likely to get there any time soon.

hell, Kevvie's job is being question by everyone from fans to the media after being in charge for just 15 games, coming off a diabolical wooden spoon season and hasn't had a chance to make any significant transfer moves to get the roster he wants.

if Madge did a similar job at the Broncos to what he has done at the Tigers ... there would be a back page article every single day and the fans would torch the entire suburb of Red Hill looking for him, so they could lynch him

Tigers recruiting has been disgusting and doesn’t fit Madge’s style of coaching at all. Shambles

 

[Harry Sack]

Tigers recruiting has been disgusting and doesn’t fit Madge’s style of coaching at all. Shambles

Tigers wishing they had DD right now to get shit done. **** yeah Broncos

 

[Alec]

so the question is when does Madge's job start getting questioned. he is into his 3rd year, with a team that he built and hasn't made the finals yet, and not looking likely to get there any time soon.

hell, Kevvie's job is being question by everyone from fans to the media after being in charge for just 15 games, coming off a diabolical wooden spoon season and hasn't had a chance to make any significant transfer moves to get the roster he wants.

if Madge did a similar job at the Broncos to what he has done at the Tigers ... there would be a back page article every single day and the fans would torch the entire suburb of Red Hill looking for him, so they could lynch him

It would probably get mentioned more if anyone actually really cared about the Tigers (one way or another).

 

[Sproj]

I think it needs to be said though that Wests have had a long history of struggling to attract talent. They have been trying to throw brown paper bags at almost every big name off contract and haven't been able to land any of them. So it isn't like McGuire hasn't tried, the club just has no appeal to anyone they need.

 

[Kimlo]

I think it needs to be said though that Wests have had a long history of struggling to attract talent. They have been trying to throw brown paper bags at almost every big name off contract and haven't been able to land any of them. So it isn't like McGuire hasn't tried, the club just has no appeal to anyone they need.

Which begs the question of why?
Seems like a nice enough place from a neutral fan's perspective, they're not cellar dwellers, they're in a nice part of Sydney, seems odd.

 

[Sproj]

Which begs the question of why?
Seems like a nice enough place from a neutral fan's perspective, they're not cellar dwellers, they're in a nice part of Sydney, seems odd.

Yeah I have no idea either but it has been happening since long before the current coach.

 

[BroncsFan]

Which begs the question of why?
Seems like a nice enough place from a neutral fan's perspective, they're not cellar dwellers, they're in a nice part of Sydney, seems odd.

I would only say that it's because you have like 8 teams within 30-60mins of each other... so if Wests are offering $800k, but roosters or souths are offering $600k, then you have to make the decision between money or prestige and opportunity.

Latrell turned down $1m from the tigers for $600k from souths... would Latrell be playing origin this year if he was playing for the tigers?

Could Latrell be playing left center for Australia at the end of the year because he chose souths over tigers??

When you have that many options in the same 'market' the player holds the advantage and Wests are a fucked club in the Sydney market. The only way they turn it around is if they suddenly become successful through a miraculous junior coming through (Cleary, etc.), landing a big free agent (Cronk + Teddy, etc.) or having a punt come off (Ponga, etc).

At the moment most teams are having to deal with the taking a punt on juniors (Walsh, etc.), because a) free agents won't go to a shit club when they're paying similar money to a 'strong' club, b) juniors don't end up being the superstars when playing against seasoned NRL players, and/or c) juniors are poached on massive deals before their time because of desperate teams taking a punt.

It's an NBA scenario where players will go to a 'big market' like New York, LA, etc. because you get more exposure and ability to promote your own brand.... Sydney is currently the big market, and probably always has been, but the Broncos created a 'glamour' club in SEQ as an alternative to Sydney and we were super successful straight away to build that hype.


The same questions will soon be asked about any player wanting to play in SEQ from 2023 onwards with BSmith wanting to come to SEQ, Harry and Munster being on the market in a few years, etc. because Vlando is obsessed with saturating the market... but of course he doesn't want to canibalise the existing teams

Titans have been a laughing stock (and largely still are despite what Mal and Gordie try to vomit every week on Fox, Triple M, etc.), but suddenly they give Fifita the highest salary in the history of the game and they are a prestige club (lol).

The Brisbane Plastics will have $10m to waste on someone and will be all about who they can land with Bennett at the helm, but it will quickly become whether they can be successful as a transplanted titans in Brisbane.

Brisbane still have the history to be a club that players want to come to, but we need to right the ship fast.

Storm probably represent one of the biggest threats to SEQ footy as they have somehow tricked everyone into believing they're located in Queensland even though they're actually located in subarctic conditions down south... but Bellamy will be gone in a few years and their players may be starting to get used to playing footy in a location where they can head to the beach for most of the year instead of that one sunny week in January down in Melbourne.
If they **** up the next coach and he can't replicate Bellamy's success or systems then players suddenly won't want to head there... unless they restart the 2005 initiative and start handing out brown paper bags, boats, etc.

 

[ivanhungryjak]

 

[Sproj]

Interestingly as well, last year’s premiere have so far lost a depth fullback and a winger for next year but have replaced said winger with another origin winger. The other GF team has lost a depth half.

Meanwhile the wooden spooners have lost the only two of their Qld origin players, a lot of their talent coming through and likely half their regular first graders. The salary cap is working!

 

[Kimlo]

Interestingly as well, last year’s premiere have so far lost a depth fullback and a winger for next year but have replaced said winger with another origin winger. The other GF team has lost a depth half. The salary cap is working!

And that winger only left for family reasons who was then replaced by a rep winger from a wooden spoon team. Absolute farce. The top 4 teams should be paying 20% more if they try to recruit someone from a bottom team when their existing club has made an offer.

The salary cap is a joke

 

[Scorchie]

I'm not sure focusing on GF 'losses/gains' and salary cap is the right approach - we dominated for years and rarely lost many. Gould's point about player development and rewarding those that stay is more important and his usual rant about reserve grade.

PvL is using his hearing eyes, but not listening.