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Fond memories of my days in the school yard have brought about a idea for the two largest winter sport codes of our nation.
NSW and Queensland have the State of Origin Series, which is an avenue for many of the greats of our game to pit their skills against each other – although some elite players have had to sit idly by on the sidelines and let the spectacle unfold.
There’s no doubt that many a Kiwi, Pacific Islander, or English player would have reveled in the opportunity to lace up a boot and take part in what is considered by many to be the ultimate sporting event in the nation.
Sadly, the AFL has lacked a suitable format that showcases the skills of the best against the best. With players now spread across six states, an origin concept would simply dilute the necessary talent that is required for an ultimate match-up.
I believe that it is still possible to organise an event where the best players are pitted against one another. The concept would be known as the Captains Pick.
Back in the school yard, whether we played cricket or footy, two captains would be selected. These captains would then take it in turn to select members for each of their teams. Each match was a fairly even distribution of talent, as captains would select the next best player at their disposal.
I’m positive that this simple concept could work wonders for the AFL, but would the NRL gain any more credibility or increase in its fan-base? More so, could the NRL fit another stand-alone match into its already hectic schedule? If so, then the concept could unfold as follows, with a match played once per year.
The NRL and AFL boards would select the two starting captains. For reasons of bias, each captain would be restricted to selecting no more than three players from their own club team, and six players from their state team.
For this example of the Captains Pick, I will use the NRL.
Johnathan Thurston is chosen as one captain and Cameron Smith as the other. The draft is shown live on free to air television, with each captain having a maximum of five minutes to make their next selection, similar to a game of chess when timers are used.
Cameron Smith wins the toss of the coin and is allowed to select the first player for his 18-man squad. Smith selects Greg Inglis. Thurston counters with Matt Scott. Smith picks Sam Burgess and Thurston follows up with Cory Parker. Smith wants Sean Johnson and Thurston grabs Cooper Cronk. The picks go on until the squads look something like this.
Team A: Greg Inglis, Blake Ferguson, Will Chambers, Josh Dugan, Curtis Rona, Anthony Milford, Sean Johnson, Sam Burgess, Cameron Smith(C), Nate Myles, Josh Papalii, Aiden Guerra, Simon Mannering. Bench – Bryce Cartwright, Aaaron Woods, Martin Taupau, Ben Matulino, James Tedesco.
Team B: Roger Tuivasa-Scheck, Semi Radrada, Michael Jennings, Josh Morris, Brett Morris, Cooper Cronk, Johnathan Thurston(C), Matt Scott, Issac Luke, Jesse Bromwich, Paul Gallen, Gavin Cooper, Cory Parker. Bench – James Graham, Jason Taumalolo, George Burgess, Boyd Cordner, Blake Austin.
The match in concept could be fierce and rise in popularity to a level beyond State Of Origin, but without state borders, patriotism, or local club allegiance, how could this be achieved? The only answer I can currently conceive is what many of our sporting elite desire most – cold hard cash.
Currently State Of Origin players receive less than 15 per cent of the revenue from each fixture. The Players Association has long been pushing for a pay rise to 25 per cent of revenue. The NRL can be bold enough to say no more rises should they allow the game’s elite to combat one another in an annual match where the winning team would take home 30 per cent of the revenue.
The losing team would fail to receive a penny, making the game an all or nothing affair.
This discrepancy in reward would surely be a catalyst to push players to their ultimate levels, and extra-time scenarios where the scores are drawn would raise the bar to a whole new level.
There’s no doubt that the AFL would have much more to gain in employing such a fixture where a showcase of the best available talent at a single venue takes place. The television audience for such an event could well eclipse all known records.
Sporting corporate sponsorship would be a necessary evil in funding such an event. The nation’s defence forces would be encouraged to jump on board as major sponsors, in something akin to an Army versus Air Force battle. As big Daryl Eastlake used to say – let the war begin!
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