William Hopoate makes a break for Manly. AAP Image/Action Photographics, Renee McKay
The NRL salary cap was once as popular as the carbon tax, but now it’s providing fans with one of the closest competitions in recent memory.
The top five teams are separated by six points with one game left to play in round 19.
Melbourne, Manly, Brisbane and St George Illawarra have established themselves as the form teams of the competition while North Queensland is hanging on in fifth place.
Looking at the ladder it would be easy to assume that the rich have gotten richer while the poor are making up the numbers.
But that’s not the case.
There’s just four points between the sixth placed New Zealand Warriors and the Bulldogs in 12th.
The seventh placed Wests Tigers are also just six points above the Roosters in 15th spot.
This is where you see the real effect of the salary cap.
It’s designed to ensure an even spread of talent across the league and when you look at the rosters of the Rabbitohs, Bulldogs, Eels and Roosters they’re bulging with players who should be performing better.
These sides aren’t in the top eight, but crucially they’re also not far away despite dismal seasons.
The race for the last three spots in the top eight is going to be intriguing and will more than likely not be decided until the final week of the season.
The salary cap has in the past been credited with ripping great teams to shreds after they’ve been successful.
Fans have expressed annoyance that players who are their idols in 2011 will be the enemy in 2012.
But this is a necessary evil of the competition.
We’re not quite at the level where any team can beat another on any given weekend, but it’s not far away.
The level of the salary cap does need to lift, but that is on top of the to-do list for the incoming independent commission.
Not only will clubs be able to pay players more money, but for once the dollars won’t be coming out of their own pocket.
The NRL is aiming to ensure that the grant given to the clubs matches the level of the salary cap.
At the moment that isn’t the case.
It won’t be time for CEOs to breathe easy though.
Regenerating squads, like the Wests Tigers are being forced to do this season, will still be the key.
The Tigers have a promising group of youngsters coming through from the National Youth Competition and have cleared the decks in order to ensure that talent has a pathway into the NRL.
It has caused huge problems within the squad, but their coach Tim Sheens was right when he said his players should’ve been more professional with the way they’ve handled it.
The likes of Bryce Gibbs and Andrew Fifita aren’t being sent out into the sporting wilderness without a penny to their name.
The Tigers will feel their loss, but the Sharks – and the competition – will be stronger for gaining them.
Ricky Stuart said in his newspaper column yesterday that when he was in charge of the Roosters, it was his decision to retain some of the club’s older players and shed the young guns that led to his downfall.
The roster got too old and the pace of the competition was too much for them.
List management wins premierships, and even when the salary cap pie gets bigger than ever before that won’t change.
kovana
Guest
Rugby world cup is the 2nd most popular World cup in the world IMO.
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
"Our home country" refers to Australia - you know, the place where this website originates from. Union's popularity is a good thing, and for either Rugby code to continue to flourish throughout the world is sensational in anyone's language. I've played both games, enjoy watching both games, and prefer both codes over AFL and soccer. But please - what we don't need are folks like yourself making claims that Union is the third most popular sport in the world. 33 million people world wide for the pinnacle event - the RWC Final - beamed live to 110 countries is woeful when you consider that only half a million watched live outside of France, England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, South Africa, NZ, and Australia. Your truly deluded if you think this event is of global importance in comparison to other sports. Formula 1, World Boxing Title Fights, NFL, Golf, Tennis, Soccer, Tour De France, and Cricket leave RU international television audiences for dead. .
clipper
Guest
kovana - you said "the Fact that Rugby has superior popularity then league nearly everywhere else in the world" which should read "Rugby has superior popularity over league everywhere in the world except the economic powerhouse PNG, parts of NSW and QLD" - and that includes Surry Hills!
kovana
Guest
Problem is.. Its not soccer fans that do it.. Its league fans.. Which is ironic. "The fact that RL has superior popularity in our home country, seems to upset you to no end." No it doesnt. RL is more popular then Rugby in Oz.. and its been that way for a long time and will continue to be that way.. What seems to upset you to no end is the Fact that Rugby has superior popularity then league nearly everywhere else in the world.
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
My code ???????? I'm not the one making false claims of world popularity of any given sport. The fact that RL has superior popularity in our home country, seems to upset you to no end. Imagine if a few soccer fans jumped on your RU threads to tell you how popular their game was in a global context, in an attempt to discredit your code.
kovana
Guest
"but global television audiences are the stark reality of real popularity in his day and age." "What I don’t appreciate are people who contort statistics for their own gains." Well read your 2 comments.. You have stated the above comment so that you can make it seem that your code is more popular then others. So see.. You have done the same thing. World CUPs are a good gauge of popularity.
Emric
Guest
Sorry I can't edit the above post but i looked up the link http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/tv-riches-to-eclipse-afl-deal/story-e6frep5x-1226099327176 Thanks
Emric
Guest
Oikee Congarulations for predicting a 1 billion dollar deal - I was reading the paper this morning and they are saying the NRL has been offered a 1.4 billion dollar deal by the TV networks.. IF they figure out how to get more adverts into the game :)
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
Joseph's initial comment - quote - "You do realize the Wallabies are an Australian team in the worlds 3rd biggest event." is simply not true. You then try to change the statement to include the term "World Cup". Bums on seats are one thing - but global television audiences are the stark reality of real popularity in his day and age. How many people do you think watch the US Masters Golf for instance around the globe ? Can you pack 50,000 people onto the golf course, or to watch a game of tennis ? The repeated quotes by RU spruikers that the game is the third biggest in the world is a load of baloney. RU would not even rate in the top fifty sports for any television audience globally. There's no hate here Joseph - I enjoy a decent game of RU. What I don't appreciate are people who contort statistics for their own gains.
kovana
Guest
Friend.. We are talking WORLD Cups. NFL is not a world cup. Again picking arguments which have no context. Cmon..Tell us the average for the American Football WCs.... and even previous Cricket WCs.
kovana
Guest
So.. why the hate. So are you saying 33 million watching the RWC final is small? So.. how many watched the RLWC Final in 2008? Say what you want.. But the first RWC was held in 1987. The 2007 RWC was the 6th tournament.. Yet it keeps getting bigger. This years RWC will have an even bigger reach with Argentina and USA also having games FTA for the entire nations.
kovana
Guest
"Any game not involving NZ or involving either England or SA iis usually a pretty poor advertisement for the code, " But yet it continues to grow.
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
The last cricket world cup was played on grounds that were not capable of seating 50,000 people, with the exception of Eden Park in India which packs in 90,000. Neither Sri Lanka or Bangladesh had the facilities - full stop. Most of the grounds were 35,000 capacity. To compare bums on seats from a RWC hosted in it's hometowns of the UK and France is misleading at best. For the 2007 world cup you averaged 47,150 per game. As a comparison, NFL averages 67,000 plus per game through an entire series !
NF
Guest
kovana Stick to the Union threads.
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
You're a dill. 32.5 million watched in UK, France, Ireland, NZ, South Africa, and Australia. 500 thousand watched the game live in every other part of the entire world. Global game..........pffftttt. Being as you're on a league thread - you needn't guess what my favourite sport is - or do you Scherlock ?
kovana
Guest
Oh really dean. I heard 33 million around the globe watched the RWC final 2007.. My gosh you really are bad. What is your favourite sport by the way?... Or should i even have to guess. And here are some others. Based on crowd averages for most Recent World Cups. 1. FIFA WORLD CUP 2. RWC 3. Cricket WC
JVGO
Guest
So what do you actually think the effect of the NRL salary cap is Joseph? Anything to say?
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
You'll also find that more people tune in globally to both The Davis Cup (Tennis World Cup), and Golf's World Cup (formerly the Canadian Cup).
JVGO
Guest
Some of the dreariest games of football ever have been RWC finals. The two the Wallabies won for instance. Any game not involving NZ or involving either England or SA iis usually a pretty poor advertisement for the code, The whole of the last RWC was trash really. (How the hell did the code war start on this thread. It is suddenly going to be unbearable with the rugby types all over every RL thread from now on) There have been some pretty good semi finals however.
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
The Soccer World Cup - number one The Cricket World Cup - number two Rugby Union shouldn't even be mentioned in the same breath - you're not even in the ballpark ! Seriously kovana - (take away the 8 places where Union has history) A live audience of only half a million people throughout the entire globe for The World Cup Final is hardly bragging rights. This is despite the fact that Union claims to be popular in 110 countries.