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Over the last year, I have watched with great interest the new organisational structure in the NRL deliver a strong vision for the league.
I have also watched from afar as the UK’s Rugby Football League finally convinces the Super League clubs to vote in a new 8x8x8 relegation/promotion structure.
As I watch these organisations work, I cant help to think that that they are a world away from each other, not just in physical sense but in structure, culture, governance, rules and finance.
Barring the World Club Challenge, the two competitions rarely come together.
Super League supporters cry poor as they watch their best players being poached by NRL clubs, while NRL supporters would be doing well to name more than a handful of Super League clubs.
Now stop and imagine if these two competitions started working together to double their strength.
Now pick yourself off the floor, as if you are familiar with rugby league, you’ll be familiar with its long history of little cooperation, rebel competitions, short sightedness and in-fighting.
But let’s think positively and see the NRL and ESL working hand in hand towards a common vision.
Now imagine if combined major competitions in both North America and Europe, also joined the NRL and ESL to form the four premier rugby league competitions in the world across four confederations.
Each competition would have the same amount of clubs, and each club would be formally affiliated with a club in each other competition.
This affiliation would allow for sharing of players, coaches, staff, finances, supporters and sponsors, making each club stronger combined as they would have been separate.
Clubs would ideally be affiliated with similar identities and where possible linking stronger clubs with weaker clubs – a good example would be linking the very strong Brisbane Broncos club with the much weaker London Broncos.
Now apply this daydream to today. Sam Tomkins is the best Super League player in 2013, winning the Premiership and Challenge Cup with Wigan Warriors. Wanting to challenge himself further, he signs with New Zealand Warriors in the NRL with a transfer fee of $1.2 million.
If these clubs were affiliated, Wigan supporters would already support the New Zealand Warriors as their NRL team and so would not be necessarily be ‘losing’ their favourite player.
Likewise, each club only has a top 20 players, so New Zealand’s 21st best player would be at Wigan, allowing for much greater player transfer across the competitions.
Following this concept further, the creation of four top-flight competitions would allow budding professional players opportunities where there aren’t any now.
Instead of a second tier player being hidden in the crowded Australian or English market, in the Queensland Cup, NSW Cup or the Championship, they can instead help promote the game and raise the standard of the growing regions of North America and Europe, where sponsorship and supporter growth opportunities are greater.
I know this simple idea of rugby league cooperation may seem radical. But it may just be crazy enough to work.
You can read my full proposal here.
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