Zolton Zavos writes: The inability of most teams in the NRL to consistently string a series of wins together really is undermining the overall quality of the competition. Penrith beating Souths over the weekend for instance is a good example of this ‘level playing field’ that we’ve discussed on The Roar before. How often would an upset like this happen in English football or in American basketball, where the stronger teams seem to triumph over the weaker opponents with far more predictable regularity?
Michael Kenneally
Guest
Can't agree with you on this one Spiro and Zolton. I believe that one major reason League is rating well with fans is the closeness of the competition...with one or two exceptions there is not a yawning gap between most teams. I have just been reading some commentary on the upcoming English football season and as has been the case for the last 3-4 years only 2 teams ..Chelsea and Man U are mentioned as the only genuine title contenders with the other two usual suspects...Arsenal and Liverpool again mentioned as the only other possible cahnces (albeit slim). Is ths predictability even before a ball has been kicked what we want for our codes ??...i think not . A "level playing field "gives the supporters of most sides cause for optimism ...you only need to look at the effect of the demise of the Wallabies and the Australian Super 14 sides to guage the effect on spectator numbers when sides are'nt competitive
MM
Guest
Fair comments fellas but I wouldn't be surprised to read an article on this website soon about "how boring it is seeing Man U and Chelsea alone in the hunt for the EPL title again" or "how world cricket is suffering due to Australia's continued dominance" or maybe "what an embarassment the Rugby World Cup preliminary round matches have been" after the All Blacks towel Portugal and Romania for example. The St.George fans of the 50's and 60's would have loved every season but it would have been yard hakka supporting the other teams. You can't tell me the average Newtown or Norths fan back then wouldn't have loved to see Reg Gasnier rock up to training and give them a hope? I reckon a typical NRL weekend at the moment is bloody interesting. What interest is there for the non-partisan supporter in watching games where the result is essentially pre-determined? Turn on any NRL game at the moment and any team could win. It's great entertainment in my opinion. Yeah, the standard of the top teams may not be as high as the dominant teams of previous eras but nor are the bottom teams the pathetic easybeats of clubs of yesteryear. Remember the superstars of Wests in the 1980's, the Gold Coast in the 90's or Penrith and Newtown in 1970's? Me either. And don't say Terry Lamb played for Wests in the 80's. He got out of there as soon as he could to join the cashed up Dogs and ruin the hopes and dreams of Magpies fans again.
Spiro Zavos
Expert
I've never gone along with the 'level playing field' argument. Fans want champion teams and champion players. The rugby league following was at its strongest in Sydney, for instance, during the great St George era. Imagine what would have happened to that side if the present rules had applied. Reg Gasnier, Johnnie Raper and all the other stars would have been dispersed throughout the competition and the outstanding side which created such an interest in the game would have been broken up. Thank goodness this never happened.