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While it is great for New South Wales to finally win back the Origin shield, the standard of competition in the NRL has dropped.
Origin is the pinnacle of the game and for some great servants – such as Paul Gallen – who haven’t achieved premiership glory, it becomes like a grand final every time they step out in the NSW jersey.
But what toll is Origin having on the fairness of the main competition?
First of all, NRL games have become easily predictable over the Origin break. In Round 11 I tipped five from five, Round 13 I had eight from eight and Round 14 I tipped four from five. If you looked at my tipping results from the rest of the year you would know that I am no tipping genius.
In an age where the salary cap has made the competition closer than ever, missing two or three marquee players can pretty much end your chances of winning.
The next issue is the bye schedule. This is an incredibly difficult task to complete, and the NRL do their best to comply with most teams requests, but it’s hard to deny that some teams get a better deal than others.
Looking at the draw, the key byes are those preceding an Origin match. Origin stars are rested, so if you are a team with no rep players then you can pretty much add two points to your tally. If your team is brimming with talent then those weekends are a nightmare.
Is this simply the cost of success or does it make the competition uneven? In 2014, seven teams have both their byes in rounds without rep players, while five teams have their byes both fall outside of these rounds.
The Warriors, who have byes in Rounds 14 and 17, would have loved to have games on both of those weekends, as Jacob Lillyman is their only Origin player. The Rabbitohs get to play these games and are only missing Greg Inglis, and even though he is a massive loss, other teams are missing much more talent.
On the other hand, the Bulldogs have games in all three Origin effected rounds, with both of their halves unable to play, along with Tony Williams and Josh Morris for Round 11.
Having already lost in Rounds 11 and 14, it’s no wonder Des Hasler is blowing up about the unfairness of the draw. With a Round 17 match up against the table topping Manly side (who will likely be missing just Daly Cherry-Evans for Origin 3), Canterbury are looking at three losses from three for 2014 Origin rounds.
As much as I love Origin on a Wednesday night, probably because it is all I’ve known, it might be time to make the change to ensure the NRL season doesn’t become so predictable and subpar for nine weeks in the middle of every year.
Whether that be having Origin on three consecutive weekends, like Wayne Bennett suggests, or another solution, 2014 should be the year that marks the end of fans having to pay good money to see their team play minus their biggest stars.
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