With the seasonal shift well and truly nigh, our attention begins to shift away from football to summertime, barbecues and cricket. Yet, for many there is a genuine wish that the footy seasons would never end.
I myself don’t think the season ever has to and I intend on explaining how this could be achieved.
Year round football is currently a blessing bestowed only on two codes. Firstly association football fans who between English Premier League, A-League and international fixtures are never short of content.
Secondly, rugby union too through their monthly Sevens tournament are able to provide a sprinkling of union between October and March.
The main Australian codes, rugby league and AFL, can’t offer this kind of year round coverage.
However, if media attention is anything to go by, many out there seemingly dream of year round AFL/NRL, as evidenced by the level of coverage provided to these codes during their hibernation and the inanity of the content reported.
Where there is a product demand, an opportunity exists to supply it and I will spend the rest of this article outlining how the NRL can achieve this.
Put forthrightly, the NRL should consider introducing a touch football competition played between Sydney clubs during the pre-season months. Touch football has more registered participants than contact rugby league and union combined (ABS 2009-2010) and therefore has no lack of credibility as a sport.
Indeed some of the codes greatest entertainers in the game, such as Benji Marshall and Shaun Johnson, honed their skills by playing touch football. The sport of touch football, via trans-tasman and State of Origin matches, is already broadcast on Fox Sports and the entertainment value of this product would sky rocket via the participation of Ben Barba, Greg Inglis, Jarryd Hayne and co.
Such a competition has minimal downside and considerable upside. The injury rate for touch football is low (relatively), while the intensity required should have no impact on pre-season preparations.
If the competition was limited to Sydney clubs, there would also be limited cost to holding such tournaments. On the upside, there are significant benefits to be reaped in terms of game development, finance and media presence.
NSW represents the lion share of television ratings and Foxtel subscriptions, therefore a Sydney club touch tournament would provide a potentially enticing media proposition.
By extension, such tournaments would keep rugby league in the media over summer for positive reasons. Additionally, such games would provide the perfect opportunity to revisit forgotten homes such as North Sydney Oval or Henson Park.
More likely, such games could provide the backbone to festival style events in regional centres to promote the game in manner similar to City versus Country. Such festivals would also promote tourism in a smaller scale to that of the English Super League’s ‘Magic Weekend’.
Clubs could also benefit by playing a mix of established stars and young guns. A player such as Marmin Barba (Parramatta) comes first to mind as someone who would benefit from the experience yet also provide significant entertainment value.
A NRL touch football summer comp would provide considerable benefits, both social and financial. Most importantly however, it would keep myself and many others sane over the footy-free summer months.
Andy_Roo
Roar Guru
I can't agree with this idea for a number ofreasons. Firstly the players need and deserve a break from the physical and mental aspects of playing as well as they need a break from the fisbowl existence of a professional athlete. Secondly it would impact on their pre-season training. Pre-season is a lot about running and strength, building a core fitness base to get the players through the footy season. Thirdly as Matt says 'you'd have to be a bit of a nutter to spend ~50 weekends a year watching the same sport'.
Matt
Guest
You have to look forward to it. AFL and NRL compete with next to nothing. If you see a chick with big knockers you get all giggity but if every woman had them you wouldn't care... too much of a good thing is a bad. Frankly you'd have to be a bit of a nutter to spend ~50 weekends a year watching the same sport.
mushi
Roar Guru
If it is such a no brainer why not stump up the cash and make yourself a fortune?
Bob Anderson
Guest
I think year round sports are awful. For fans especially, its a good time to follow another sport or get another interest. In the US, football is not played for over five months in the offseason. It makes it more popular, because it keeps fans in anticipation. Arrogant sports like soccer feel they are so important they should play year round.
peeeko
Roar Guru
it could be a one off weekend carnival and could be oztag which is closer the RL than touch. Bill Harrigan is one of the bosses of the sport and plenty of NRL players have played the game in the cronulla summer comp over the years
peeeko
Roar Guru
i like the idea but i think your last point is a very good one about overkill
chris
Guest
Great idea but not for top players or TV.All NRL clubs should run there own 8 week Touch Rugby League comps over the summer for all levels and ages off there fan base with there own players managing a team each and then have play-offs towards a NRL Touch League Grand Final.
MattRusty
Roar Pro
Pretty sure clubs ban players from playing Touch over summer. It is a pretty dull game to watch even at the top level. I can watch top level touch but 'the market' would switch off far sooner.
HunterFujak
Roar Rookie
Sheek, Penrith returned to training last week while another eight clubs return to training this week. The rest are no more than another week or two away. Therefore I don't see how a summer competition would impinge on player holidays. In practicality, such a competition would be built around club pre-season training schedules with the lure of prize money potentially used to cajole clubs in providing reasonable squads. The 'poor diddums' are ultimately consumers, and I believe that there are enough of them to be interested in such a product to warrant the event/s, particularly in regional centres who are deprived of NRL matches or even visitation. If Ben/Marmin Barba + Dane Nielson played in a NRL touch footy gala day in Mackay, I believe the crowd would still be 75% of what they were able to achieve for the NRL game...and they wouldn't need to worry about the logistical issues.. Ignoring the financial side, considering the 'out of side, out of mind' factor, I believe touch football festivals involving NRL clubs/players in country towns could be just as a effective in promotional value as City vs Country, without having anywhere near the workload impact that fixture has.
mushi
Roar Guru
Mate a bit of a tough ask to get the NRL administration to clear up negative reporting. May as well ask them to genetically modify pigs to fly
oikee
Guest
I never said i liked him, all i said was he brought up some good points and i am surprised he mentioned a the Director for good stories. As you said he is the one that they need to take the big broom to, sweep the deadwood out of the place. Most reporters are negative. I had nothing else to read, so the first time i read his blog for awhile. I was just going to slate him before i had read the 50 ideas. This is a area i have been asking for the game to clean up, all the negative reporting. The less you read their rubbish, the less they will have a chance to report. ox are experts at this rubbish as well. They play afl against league on their site i noticed.
GCTiger
Guest
Any moron can find 50 things that need to be fixed up in an organistation that big. Most his points were lame and will always be problems. Would be interesting to see an article called " 50 things that need to be fixed up at the Telecrap". 1. Needs an editor with a clue and list will go on.
james
Guest
you are better then the telegraph and buzz Oikee. don't you find it a little hypocritical that buzz is saying that the NRL needs a media director for good NRL stories when 99.9% of his dribble is bad mouthing NRL? a bulk of his "article" will be sorted in time. we just need some patience
sheek
Roar Guru
Have you spoken to the players themselves about this? I wonder how they would feel giving up their summer lay-off to play touch footy just so the poor diddums fans didn't get bored..........
oikee
Guest
"Get tready for next deason " and nobody finds anything wrong with that. :) I must start reading my posts, strueth.
Rodney McDonell
Guest
It's a good idea and one i've had myself. However, i wonder why you'd want to restrict it too Sydney? As you said, Touch footy has good participation rates and so is likely to be well received by more. It's also got a lot of women participants. I'd like to see this idea such that you have NRL stars running along side seasoned touch footy players both men and women.
oikee
Guest
I say we do nothing until we have fixed up the game. I was just reading through the 50 things that the commission has to do to fix up the game. I found myself nodding in agreement to 49 of these problems. The last thing we want is any distractions. Look, rugby union 7's is a sport we can join if we want to run around during hot summer months wasting time and errort. Lets sort the game out, i dont like that Buzz dude but gee whiz, he has cracked most the issues wrong with the game. He even mentioned bringing in a new media director for the good rugby league stories, as i have been complaining about now for years. We have touch and other comps, i think we have a nines comp which i like. In the meantime, our boys are all back in training this week for next year. Finding time after having a short holiday, then having to get tready for next deason, when will we have time for a summer comp. Maybe for everyone but out top line players,. We might even find a smokey in amounst the rubble.
Bearfax
Guest
Yeh, now that Cliffy Lyons has retired, it would give other teams a chance to win a touch football comp.
byrne_86
Guest
I like your thinking, but there are some points you might want to consider. Firstly touch football is not rugby league, the rules are different, the plays are different and the players who play at the top level are different. What makes you think that the NRL players would even make the top level touch comp? Seriously, some of the best play makers in the NRL would not make the top level of touch. And outside of the halves and backs who from the NRL would play? In order to make it an NRL touch comp you would need NRL players to play. Once players from outside the NRL start to dominate then it is no longer an NRL touch comp. And if you restricted it to NRL players, it would be as fast or skillfull as it could be. Who would watch it. Touch is more fun to play than watch. If it,as a sport, was worthy of the television audience the NRL has, it would already have that audience (or at least something similar). What are the TV ratings like for the state and national games that are aired? I am sure nothing like the NRL. The last thing is, what about overkill? The reason we all crave RL in the off season is, we dont have it. If we had it all year round would we still be as excited when the season starts? Have a look at cricket, how much overskill has it has in the past 10 year?
steve b
Guest
Its a great idea , especially if it was held as pre season lead up to seaon proper . That way they still get a good brake and coaches could use it as pre season fitness. The fans would love it and im sure it would get a good following . Played under lights would take care of the heat to some degree yeah bring it on .