With Joseph Tapine released from his final year with the Knights to take up a long-term contract with the Raiders, it again has to be asked what the hell the NRL are up to?
The season starts in two weeks and yet again we have players signing contracts 12 months in advance of their current deal expiring.
The most famous example is perhaps James Maloney signing with the Roosters some 400 days before his contract with the Warriors expired, which many argued led to the Warriors struggling in season 2012 after they made the 2011 grand final.
The blame for the situation with the Raiders and the Knights lies 100 per cent with the NRL, and their inability or unwillingness to act. It is time to introduce a transfer or free-agency period at the end of the year.
Look at the NBA. Kevin Durant, this year’s big name unrestricted free agent, won’t sign with the Wizards or whoever else 12 months before his current deal expires, because he is not allowed to. He can ask for a trade and that’s it.
The AFL, NFL and every football competition in the world has a transfer and free agency period, the NRL should join these professional leagues and provide the fans with a level of certainty.
A free-agency period at the end of the year would see most movement occur. Perhaps there should also be a window halfway through the year, allowing clubs to cover injury or provide a player with a first-grade opportunity.
The argument that players need time to move house and adjust to their new environment holds no weight. There are nine Sydney clubs and the rest of the NRL is at most a few hours on a plane. If other professional athletes can move across nations or all over the USA, NRL players such as Tapine can handle moving from Newcastle to Canberra over a few months.
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