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Five weeks in and the most apparent thing about the NRL this season is just how close it is. Again!
Last year’s grand finalists, the Warriors and Manly, kicked off round one in what I thought was the best game of the year so far. They’ve since both dropped down the ladder.
This is both surprising and not surprising at the same time. And the salary cap has had a big impact on that.
I’m a big fan of it, even more so over the past few years as I’ve seen first hand what impact not having a salary cap has had on English and European football.
The salary cap in the NRL evens out the competition and prevents some teams from dominating on the sheer weight of dollars they have at their disposal.
Without it, we’d have the scenario that usually unfolds in the EPL, with the outcome of the season predictable before a ball is even kicked.
I don’t know anything about English football, though I enjoy watching it. But I can comfortably predict who the top cluster of teams will be.
It all comes down to who has the biggest purse. And the ability of the NRL to restrict this advantage across the clubs has created the exciting, unpredictable competition we have this year.
Manly, who have been in two of the past four Grand Finals, are battling injuries, suspensions, and the loss of the outstanding Will Hopoate. But they’ll bounce back.
The Warriors are facing a different set of circumstances.
They’re starting games slowly, so they’re having to fight their way back into the contest. And while they have a talented roster of players, most of them are young and inexperienced, especially in the key positions of halfback and fullback.
Locke and Johnson are two genuine stars of the game. They’re players any club would want. But they’re still relatively inexperienced in the weekly grind of top level rugby league. And with young players like that, you need some tough times and some easy times. They’ll emerge out of this patch better players for it.
But back to the Salary Cap.
While I am a big supporter of it, I’d still like to see the players better rewarded with the new TV right deals. And I think some reward for developing players would be good.
But at the end of the day, it’s creating a much more level playing field and ensuring we have a competition where, literally, any team can beat their opposition on the day.
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