The NRL and Rugby League Players’ Association conceded there’d be no changes to the competition draw for 2016 despite ongoing concerns about the management of player workloads.
Representatives of the two groups met on Tuesday to nut out the issue after the RLPA and a number of players had expressed concerns about clubs having multiple five-day turnarounds between matches again in 2016.
But, despite the NRL conceding it “hadn’t followed the consultation process as agreed with the RLPA” about discussing the issue prior to the draw being locked away, both bodies agreed changes couldn’t be considered until 2017.
“I have told RLPA general president Clint Newton and chief executive Ian Prendergast today that we are targeting a 25 percent reduction in five-day turnarounds in the 2017 season,” NRL head of football Todd Greenberg said.
“Both parties today acknowledged that it was not possible to change next years draw.”
Greenberg said the talks with the RLPA had been productive and agreed further work would be done over the next fortnight, prior to the next ARL Commission meeting.
“Player wellbeing is a priority for the NRL and we are very mindful of the feedback from the playing group that they wish to see a decrease in five-day turnarounds,” he said.
“We have a unique situation in 2016 where we will have premiership matches from Thursday to Monday regularly and that created some challenges in terms of turnarounds.”
Newton said there had been robust and productive discussions despite the fact changes weren’t possible for next season.
“The NRL has undertaken to explore a number of measures designed to offset the impact of the five-day turnaround in 2016,” he said.
Of the 20 rounds publicly released for 2016 there has been no reduction in the amount of five-day turnarounds, (31) clubs are forced to endure between fixtures.
The AFL has no five-day turnarounds in its schedule.
“The evidence suggests it is very difficult for players to recover from a five day period,” Prendergast said earlier on Tuesday in his first press conference in his new role.
“We are putting players at an unnecessary risk in terms of their health and safety. You would like to think we can find ways to ensure they are not put in this position.
“There needs to be steps put in place to reduce them dramatically which we understood to be the commitment from the NRL.”
Renegade
Roar Guru
I didn't consider the eyeballs at pubs, etc.... so yeah you might right there. In terms of pure fox sports numbers - Monday was the highest rating game each week for them.
Squidward
Roar Rookie
I'm gonna to have a word to my boss about my 1day turn arounds
Mike from Tari
Guest
To be paid 1/2 million to a million dollars a season means your paid to play footy, if you don't want to then quit & get a 9 to 5 job, I also noticed that no one complains in England playing Super League & Challenge Cup games.
Mamma
Guest
The broadcasters select the draw but surely only the blockbusters and Manly don't rate that well compared to the western Sydney teams and saints and Souths. Manly, not my favourite team have been screwed and it wouldn't take a genius to work out a draw where Nine got what it wanted for blockbusters and the teams had 6 day breaks...
eagleJack
Roar Guru
I've only done a brief review of the numbers but I can't see how a live Friday night game wouldn't significantly outrate a Monday game. Not to mention advertising space can be charged at a premium for prime time Friday night over the weaker Monday night. On a Monday you have Foxtel subscribers only. Not many would head out to watch the game. Whereas you have tens of thousands more in pubs on a Friday night, meaning far more eyeballs consuming the product. It's a much better deal for Fox I would have thought. TWAS, I don't think any club expects to control their own draw. But they would expect for it to be equitable. Atleast to some extent. But trying to tell people that player welfare is a consideration when Manly play 3 games in 10 days, then fly to NZ before backing up for the Eels 5 days later again, shows that they really couldn't careless. Nine wanted Eels v Manly on a Thurs night, so what happened prior to that is irrelevant in the eyes of the NRL. This has nothing to do with squads. All clubs would be severely strained by that schedule.
Ben Lott
Roar Pro
These guys are Pro-Athletes... supposedly. If there was a 2 day turn-around, who cares? They are paid to play a sport, well paid. They have a shortened professional career... they chose themselves. Euro Football (soccer for the plebs) players sometimes have to play 2 days in a row (rare, but it happens)... and often play twice well inside a 5 day period. It's a joke that's a non-issue from a fan or administration perspective. The real issue is how they are training... not enough endurance work, too much strength work, and certainly, no player specific body training is being done, and if it is, the trainer needs to be better educated or actually qualified, not a former player themselves. I spent a year (2014) following an NRL Club's training regime, including nutrition, in my local gym, and didn't see any strength or fitness gains. This year, I followed an MMA regime, and am now sitting at 12% body fat, can run 10km daily without issue, swim 20 laps of a pool, and play sport (League and Soccer) on both days of the weekend. I would be remiss if i didn't mention most true fitness participant are healthier, and could out-last any NRL player in endurance activities, and often are likely stronger, more flexible and faster than most of them, too. What I'm trying to get at, is that any player who struggles with a 5 day turn-around, isn't fit.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
It's a consideration when it's factors in their control. I don't see a single club saying "we'll cut our grant for more control of our draw" so I don't see where they can go. Part of the big deal was the broadcasters rights to select the draw. Nobody's offering up anything back from the money in their pocket out of it, just complaining about the conditions that were there in order to get that amount.
Renegade
Roar Guru
I've always felt this whole thing is a storm in a teacup, absolute non-issue..... hopefully everyone can just move on and leave this behind now.
Renegade
Roar Guru
I disagree EJ... Fox didn't want to give up the Monday game and I'd be incredibly surprised if the Friday 6pm games rates higher than the Monday slot did.
Parrafan
Guest
We all knew that to be the case for the current broadcast deal. There were a number of terms that had to be agreed to to get rid of the first and last rights that Fox had. It was a case of grit our teeth and bare it to get News/Fox strangle hold on the game removed. Essentially I agree with what you are saying James. The NRL have negotiated a good deal for the next broadcast which removes Monday night games. There will be almost no 5 day turn arounds and the NRL will have greater control over the draw, however it will have to wait. As discussed in previous articles blogs, all the onus can't be on the nrl in regard to player welfare. Clubs have a duty to recruit a good 25, and rotate players. As I've mentioned previously Manly have done a fantastic job of recruiting a top 13 with some fantastic signings, however they have little to no depth outside of that starting 13. That is not the NRL's fault. Manly need to take some of the accountability for player welfare and stop pointing the finger at the NRL.
eagleJack
Roar Guru
It is a consideration when talking to the media only. They may raise it with the networks, but at the end of the day they have 100% of the say on who plays when. The RLPA being cut from talks in early Oct raised alarm bells with them that their requests would not be considered. As for Fox wanting Monday nights, I disagree. No doubt the ratings are good for a Monday night. But they will be far better on a Friday night when they get the live game there instead. If they believed they would get better ratings on a Monday over a Friday, no amount of club opposition would sway them to move.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Because it is a consideration. But as you say, networks are who decide the current schedule. Hence why a reduction is not possible. BTW Fox would be happy to keep Monday nights. The clubs are the opposition.
jamesb
Guest
" despite the NRL conceding it “hadn’t followed the consultation process as agreed with the RLPA” about discussing the issue prior to the draw being locked away, both bodies agreed changes couldn’t be considered until 2017." That's poor form the NRL. By the sounds of it, the NRL got bent over really hard from the networks and the result of it, the NRL is on five days a work for majority of 2016. And from 2017-2022, we will have the farcical Friday 6pm game. Meanwhile the RLPA were stone silent during the TV negotiations and before the draw was announced. Newton and the RLPA should have voiced there concerns about five day turnarounds before the draw came out. Now it's too late.
eagleJack
Roar Guru
Greenberg shown to be a fool once again, nothing new here. No idea why he couldn't just say that player welfare is not a consideration for the NRL when it's the networks that decide the schedule. And please, Mr Greenberg, stop pretending that Monday nights are being scrapped in 2017 as "player wellbeing is a priority". If the networks wanted to keep them, they'd still be around. And you'd simply shut the door on the RLPA again. But lucky for you the networks see shifting a Monday game to a second live Friday game, with Thursdays now permanent, as far better for ratings. So you can pretend you had something to do with it. When we know you have zero sway.