Let's hear it for the NRL fans

With the start of the 2015 NRL season rapidly approaching, it might be time to turn our focus to the most under-appreciated sector of the NRL – the fans.

Sure, every player says it’s all about the fans, and the NRL constantly talk about how they are trying to improve the experience for the fans, but what is the gap between how the fans really feel and how they are told to feel?

Let’s start at the very beginning – loyalty. Essentially, since the Super League war of the mid-1990s we have been told by the media over and over again that loyalty in rugby league is dead. The example most often cited is the constant movement of players and staff between clubs, codes and countries.

The problem is loyalty has never been stronger among the fans. Fans don’t swap teams. Fans are there for the wins, fans are there for the losses. It’s offensive for media commentators to constantly tell the one loyal sector left in the game that there is no loyalty left in rugby league.

The players are not innocent in this either. Players are constantly talking about how hard things are for them – if they have a short turn around between games, or have to travel too much or that they are not getting paid enough. The fans who they are trying to gain sympathy from are not exactly on easy street.

Players like Greg Inglis, Cameron Smith and Johnathan Thurston are some of the highest paid people in Australia, doing a job they love. While some fans are getting up every morning to do a job they can’t stand for a lot less money. The justification the players use is that their careers are short. But, what is to stop them getting a job after rugby league? Legends like Ray Price and Brett Kenny managed to get jobs once they retired from rugby league, what makes today’s players so special that they can’t do the same?

Players need to understand that fans don’t begrudge them making the income they do during their league careers. The issue is with the players’ attitude in thinking that the worst thing that could happen to them upon retirement is that they have to get another job.

Finally, let’s look at the television deal. The current rugby league deal is worth more than $1 billion dollars over five years. This brings more money to the league administration, more money to leagues clubs (from NRL all the way down to grassroots), and it means more money for the players. That’s all great, but what does it mean to the fans? Well, really not much.

In terms of live experience, most clubs are now charging more than $30 general entrance, and let’s not even start to talk about the cost of going to a State of Origin match or a grand final. Once you get into the ground you can access the poor quality, but well overpriced, food and beverages. If you want to show your support the regular price of a jersey is more than $150 each and clubs now release up to six jerseys a year.

But, the broadcast deal is about TV I hear you say. Okay, so what does the fan get in terms of a television experience? Up to now there have been six games live per week. That said, to access five of those games you’d have to be part of the minority of households that has Foxtel, or spend a lot of the time down the pub.

If you have free-to-air only, you get one live game and two delayed games. If you live in Brisbane your live game has to include the Broncos as apparently people in Queensland will only watch Queensland teams, which means the Broncos, even though there are two other Queensland teams.

When talking of delayed games there has been much contention over the two games on Friday night. Channel Nine, who currently own the free-to-air rights, have three channels – Channel Nine, Go and GEM. Why don’t they show both games live – one game on Nine, and one game on GO or GEM?

Surely the second game shown on delay is not such a ratings bonanza that it has to stay on the primary channel, or is it that they are scared that showing both Friday night games live will take away ratings from the game shown on the main channel?

The other delayed game is the Sunday afternoon game of the round. The game is played live at 3pm but shown on delay on Channel Nine at 4pm. After much complaining Channel Nine has decided that they will show the Sunday game live from 2015. Sounds great on paper, but the kick-off will now be moved back to 4pm to accommodate the Channel Nine schedule. Obviously it is more important that the schedule be maintained than the thousands of families who come out and pay to watch the game can get home in time for dinner.

Rugby league is a great game, and fans love the game so much they are willing to pay to be a part of it. It’s just a pity no-one else in the rugby league community seems to care about the fans anywhere as near as much as they should.