League’s new order is impressing no-one

Whoa. This thread really flamed the petrol lol :) This pun is not directed at you, Tim. I will take you on your point - you make a good one. You are definitely entitled to your opinion, and you are not wrong in some senses. at least you have put your thoughts up on the page and you deserve credit for speaking at the end. In general conversation I suspect many people could have had a respectful and communicative-exact back and forth on the various points for clarification and position, ect. Its being read as black and white, but I am sure most people don't want to whinge and critisize a whole heap, while in reality, its probably shades of grey. But the final end of the season seems darker now the shining light of Origin left. The roar is an excellent opinion site and you are right too that whenever an article comes up, people (when I have written some too) seem to maybe just skim some paragraphs (I dont actually know) and comment on their own, separate points, related to certain matters that weren't even mentioned in the article. I guess this is human nature. I'm guilty of that - I finished it up with TV! lol. I dont think you mentioned tv. Inconsistency - you are 100% spot on. I dont want to stir a nest up, but years ago it was judiciary everywhere you turned in your face. Now its the refs. See, personally I am compromised in my assessments - because I am so sick and tired of the newspapers digging at rugby league - when it comes to sites like these. I would never try and talk down to my peers, but sometimes when putting it in black and white, in order to rise about the ding of noise (at times white noise) one does try to make an impact. I would say critically speaking that your points about what you say in the article in regards to on field incidents, ect, are right and its made for a somewhat lackluster year when all is said and told. This is coupled with ASADA and the crazy notion of having the bottom team and an underperforming broncos feature on tv. Such things are exacerbated when we all had high hopes for the season. I can remember sitting waiting for the season in eager anticipation and dreading the whole thought of "gee, I hope nothing happens in this off season, nothings happened so far but there's still a month to go"....then ASADA. And the whole "not again!" Must admit that I too have come away less than impressed; I am not scathing as I have enjoyed much of the season. However, on other levels I can see some heights reached this year - new structures, more cohesive planning, they are trying to do something to the refs and the official's powers on the field. The loudspeaker refs explanation is something I have been suggesting for a long time and its finally come about. The junior footy joint venture with touch, effectively Annexing them into our own space. *** I think the true successes of this year are actually behind the scenes in foundational senses. There were some classic games on field, sure, and this was the year of no more fighting and no more shoulder charge. I'm fine with that. Ultimately maybe its an adjustment phase and people need to adjust to the game; see in the long run I think everything will pan out for the better. Yet this does not alter what has otherwise been a somewhat lackluster year. And EVEN THO :) Souths and Roosters could square off in the Grand Final, I have really enjoyed those 2 teams this year, and the Broncos V warriors game, and the Souths v Warriors in Perth, as my highlights, so the year could end better. One of the things to emerge in a cultural sense for the year is the more intense support from those who are still attending. And the other emergence is the realization that business still gets dirty in this day and age - I.e bulldogs and Barba, and the seeming cover up. * Another sad point related to that is a well known reporter is leaving much of his really good reporting over such issues. No one can give him a striaght answer. So as I see it the stakes have risen now, and the sport is getting serious, so serious that it will go to lengths.....though we must remember News ltd is not really there protecting its own anymore. ********** Its not entirely relevant to mention such negatives with the reporting on two fronts, but we are seeing the will, desire and determination of this administration to rectify the wrongs, and the rub of the green has thrown up some bad happenings this year. So I can symptahise with a bad hand of cards, you know. I wish it didn't happen to league tho every year. Its shown us an ugly side, and this must be contributing to our feelings of discord. And on that note, a shame that Steve Mascord is severely reducing his reporting on the game. ********* But yeah, people can't claim you are being untoward. You are calling it how you see it, and expect people to see and comment on what you call. Very fair.

Also, this result is not a rugby league result (that of the ratings) its a result of tv network greed backfiring. In the papers they said they 'played it safe'. lol who would have thought, brisbane, parra, st g/i ,et all, would fail to fire this year? We must be careful not to water down the happenings and fall into 'polarising' opinions, such as the rag-papers love to do so their kings jester-readers can assimilate the information more easily and also whip drama up to massive heights (details just ruin a cracking story, with 1000 extra scenes that are tedious, such as this tedious interlude right here......) --- so I dont blame the NRL for the tv as such, I blame the networks. It may be a hard pill to swollow, and so much rides on their results for themselves, and look it backfired. Like I said, who would have thought. Maybe next year the crack from them on a fixed draw ratings success will be better. I dont mind flexibility here -- just say they pick the last placed team who many thought would be 1st, in that case, change the match. It will never be perfect anyway. I can't not state once more that I found the article severely lacking, and Prentice must have had an off day because he's generally really good. Bit of a scum bag thing to do, yeah, I am disgusted ultimately, because we should not have to trawl through bile to enjoy our sport, especially on the roar.

Reported this morning that Channel Nine viewers for rugby league is down 900,000 this season, while Fox Sports rugby league ratings are down 9 per cent. Ratings are up in private boxes according to guru Scott Woodward for the freeloading brigade, but everywhere else the game is struggling. Tim Prentice got his story exactly right.

I asked my sister, who has been in the USA since 1971, if she could nominate an NFL team for me to support given that I'm absolutely gutted about the NRL and the value of contracts after Dugan and Ferguson walked out on my club. She replied "My advice...stay with your Rugby. at the rate Americans are killing each other there may not be too many football players to choose from". And then "There are a bunch of crazies here, no way around it." So maybe the NFL is a no-go for me, but if I'm to take my sisters' advice, Ferguson had better be de-registered for at least half of next year (i.e. to Rd 14). At a minimum. I DO NOT WANT TO HEAR - THE BEST PLACE FOR BLAKE IS PLAYING FOOTY from the NRL. It's obviously correct but he walked away from it. Why would the NRL suck up to this idiot, and would anyone care if he wasn't a damned good footy player. No. Had they dealt with his Dumb and Dumber partner properly, he'd still be employed by the Raiders now. But we'd be waiting to see what hell he raises in Bali, or anywhere he happens to be.

My favourite innovation by Smith was the 1 hour 20 minutes of nothing between the double header the other night. Brilliant idea!

I'm not the only one who thinks crowd attendances are exaggerated. It is a fairly common belief to many commentators and fans.

It's because what's being reported is done so by the media - how much research do you think these hacks undertake.... you're being sucked in big time.

"oikee, you seem to have accepted the reality of the situation lately and you're quite correct" Clipper you need a 'HA' tag on all your posts....This sentence shows just how out of touch you are with reality. Oikee doesn't even know what he had for Breakfast ;)

Not sure we should compare Scott to Wilson. Probably defamatory.

"Meesta Gallop has nothing at all to do with how well Soccer is doing, the A league already had a ten year plan written up on how to expand their game, Meesta Gallop took up the position with the plan in force." LOL. There was hardly a 5 or 10 year plan in place before Gallop game along to the a-league. Ben Buckley was a dismal failure. The thing that has revaitalised the a-league is the introduction of WSW and removal of the two QLD teams, the quality of marquee players we are starting to get into the comp and having David Gallop as our CEO. The introduction of WSW has taken football to an area where its strength is (Sydney/NSW) and taken out its weakness (QLD). Football would be the number two code in NSW (and breathing down the NRL's neck). In QLD it is the number 4 code. The introduction of Gallop was good for Football because he has the confidence to speak in front of a camera like Buckley does not. He also has strong admin experience in the Oz sporting landscape and has contacts with media and sponsors that Football really needs. The reason he was wilting at the end of his NRL tenure is because the NRL is like a little confused little kid who is not sure what it wants. Wants to expand, but doesn't want to let go of its Sydney heartland. This is a recipe for disaster for any CEO who takes the job becasue they are relying on an apathetic Sydney RL supporting public who would rather watch the game on TV than live. Maybe QLD should have its own comp. My feeling is that Queenslanders are much more passionate about RL. Similar to Victorians and the AFL. NSW is a very different place.

The truth is actually all I ask Oikee, just sick of your lies season after season.

You found another league fan to beat up on, tell Mushi as well, he loves to sink the boot into people who can see the truth, know the truth, but are belted from pillar to post by dinosaurs and backward thinkers. Live in the dark all you like, you wont be holding Queensland back. Queensland moved forward when it stopped listening to Melbourne and Sydney,. Sydney's enclosed shop and ignoring everyone will come back to bite it on the backside soon. There is more happening in the local league here in Queensland than anything coming outta the NRL, because nobody knows what is happening in the NRL. Call me ignorant, well now you know why. Cant say much when they dont report anything. Just chitlings this code, this game. Other codes yell it from the rooftops, the only thing yelled from the rooftops with league is bad behaviour, amen.

oikee, you seem to have accepted the reality of the situation lately, and you're quite correct in saying that league fans won't admit the truth, only wanting to hear the positive - but perhaps many of them still want to hold onto the overcrowded Sydney market and jealously don't want any more teams in QLD to even out the geographical nature of the sport.

Just like Rebecca Wilson gets in the Swans corp box as an ambassador?

Actually it goes well before that and in fact its not directed at Smith alone. This is the fall out of the years with Gallop and the feeling that things wont change much. early days. The immediate information I supplied was given to me well over a fortnight ago.

What else are they not telling us....maybe Dave Smith was behind the assasination of JFK as well. I can't stand these type of comments - "There is no doubt official crowd figures are inflated to try and hide poor attendances." I'd find a more rational statement from a 5 year old.

I suspect crowds are down a lot more than they tell us. There is no doubt official crowd figures are inflated to try and hide poor attendances. Imagine if they told it like it really is. The fallout would be a lot worse. Tv ratings are more accurate as they are measured by external groups.

It's going to be hard to improve things soon as smith and co have inherited a lemon. The drug investigation is still going, many clubs are mismanaged, referee decisions are as controversial as ever. Falling crowds and ratings.The biggest hurdle is a dodgy 5 year tv deal locked in with nine. Poor scheduling and lack of free to air games is going to be very hard to fix. It's going to be a tough call to expect results in the near future.

So we're not grown up because we don't agree with you? Irony. That sounds like a very mature stance.