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This weekend, the NRL competition will be shaken up by the loss of players out on State of Origin duty.
In a sense, it might bring a bit of evenness to the competition. In another sense, it is unfair.
Teams that are performing poorly are giving a chance to get a win against sides missing their Origin players. For example, the Canberra Raiders take on the North Queensland Cowboys without Johnathan Thurston, Matt Scott, James Tamou, and Brent Tate.
Some will say it’s a ‘leveller’ to the Raiders who desperately need a win to keep their slim chance of making the eight alive. Other teams such as the Penrith Panthers and New Zealand Warriors with no Origin players will take this as an opportunity to garner as many points possible against Origin effected sides.
It is unfair to teams who put in the hard work early on in the season to be reduced to second-string squads.
To think, rugby league is the only code to put its competition’s credibility and integrity on hold for representative duties. No other sporting code harms its national competition on purpose just to showcase the jewel in its crown.
Association football has the right idea, separating the national competitions and representative duties by having international breaks. This preserves the quality of the national competitions and ensures players are fully focused on the rep fixtures.
The NRL once held stand-alone Origin in 2001 but abandoned it due to the lack of NRL action on the weekend.
As a result, the NRL has found itself in a quandary. Does it continually sacrifice the club competition to ensure there is weekly rugby league?
Or does the NRL find a way to give Origin the spotlight it rightly deserves, while maintaining the quality and credibility of the club competition.
The NRL has to weigh up the short term gains of State of Origin against the long term impact on the NRL.
To my fellow Roarers, what are the alternatives out there to get the NRL out of this Origin quandary?
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