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I’m a firm believer that we need to reduce the number of interchanges permitted in NRL down to 6 each match. This would give those guys who are super fit a chance to play a full 80 minutes.
It would bring more skill back into the game and give the little men more chance to run the footy as the bigger forwards get tired.
But most importantly, it could rid the game of the wrestle technique which has crept in over recent seasons and which is a blight on our great game.
As players would tire quicker, they would have less energy to wrestle, and coaches would no longer factor this into their pre-game preparations.
If this change were to be made, and hopefully it will in the off-season, then coaches will have to be more careful with using their interchanges.
It will bring the frontrower back into the game who can play for a full match and open the game up again to the smaller, quicker players who have all but been squeezed out.
You’ll get certain factions saying that we need to protect the players, so the current interchange system should remain in place. And I support protecting the players.
But, really, the players want to stay on the field longer.
Don’t get me wrong: I love the way the game is played right now, at 100 miles an hour. This could eliminate the wrestling that is in our game now. And I reckon this would be simplest way to do it.
And just on the recent Test match, I’ve heard whispers that they want to change the timing for this one-off game. That would be a mistake. It has to stay.
The players love it, the fans love it (35,000 plus Kiwis turned up) and it needs to be a permanent part of the calendar.
Why take that away from the supporters who want to pay good money to watch this great battle between two competitive nations?
Don’t read too much into the scoreline or the unbalanced results of late.
Once the Kiwis reduce the number of mistakes they make, and improve a traditionally poor kicking game, they’ll be in with a real chance of upsetting the Aussies.
Rugby league at that level is all about control of the football. Remember, the Kiwis were only behind by two points at one point before some unforced errors ruined their chances.
I would have liked to have seen the Kiwis throw the ball around a bit more while Billy Slater was off the field. But instead they kept running out of dummy half.
That all comes down to concentration and really understanding how much the errors hurt. It’s the same problem the Warriors suffer from every now and then.
Hopefully, both are learning a valuable lesson.
Gary ‘Wiz’ Freeman is one of the great halfbacks in New Zealand rugby league history. Now an outspoken and popular media personality, he joins The Roar as an expert rugby league columnist.
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