‘This isn’t a bush comp’: NRLW coach hits out at stalled CBA as players face uncertain year ahead

While the Jillaroos are one win away from World Cup glory, NRLW players are facing an uncertain return to Australia.

NRLW stars like Millie Boyle are disappointed with the ongoing delays surrounding the CBA. Picture; Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

The impact of the ongoing collective bargaining agreement (CBA) delay has been exposed, with Dragons NRLW coach Jamie Soward revealing just how difficult life threatens to be for female players with zero certainty around next year’s competition.

While the men’s draw was officially released last week, there is still no clarity around what to expect for the 2023 NRLW season that was supposed to be celebrated as the biggest on record.

The sixth edition of the women’s competition has been expanded to 10 teams for the first time, but when the season starts, how long it goes for and the makeup of the salary cap are still up in the air.

Players hope RLPA chief executive Clint Newton can sort out a new deal soon. Picture; AAP Image/James Gourley

It’s unclear whether the next season will be played alongside the men’s regular season or whether it will start later in the year to wrap up at the same time as the NRL finals.

With the CBA deal now two weeks behind schedule, players are running out of time to arrange work, study and potential living arrangements given they don’t have the same guarantees as their male counterparts.

“For the players, it’s very frustrating,” Soward told NCA NewsWire.

“I’ve been lucky enough to play, coach and work in the media, so I know that money doesn’t just grow on trees.

“But I just think it’s really unfair on the players that they are essentially going to go out of this World Cup and not know what their plans are for 2023.

“How are they supposed to plan for work?

“There’s a fair chance a lot of these players will need to move interstate next year because of the new teams coming in, but they can’t plan for that because they don’t know what’s happening.

“We’re talking about people with kids, partners and jobs outside of footy, while others have to study. They need to plan ahead for this.”

Jamie Soward has strong views on the CBA delay. Picture; Richard Walker

A concrete salary cap is something NRLW squads need sorted immediately, with the Raiders, Sharks, Cowboys and Wests Tigers joining the competition next year and eager to steal talent from the established clubs.

But managers have no idea what a good deal looks like based on the cap, while coaches can’t start making moves because they have no idea what the competition will look like.

“We have not heard anything,” Soward said.

“How do I plan pre-season, budgets and who to sign?

“I’m pretty much in a blank room at the moment as are the other nine coaches. We all have dream teams that we want and we’ve probably stacked up the same names, but there’s nothing we can do.

“It’s going to be a frenzy when it eventually gets sorted because you don’t just sign players overnight. I don’t understand why we’re this late into the process and nothing has been sorted.

The Dragons would love to start negotiating with stars like Emma Tonegato. Picture; Jan Kruger/Getty Images for RLWC

“I’m doing the best I can as a coach. We’ve got a squad that we want to target and we’ve tried to keep as many girls as we can from this season, but we understand that there’s going to be a lot of money out there.

“I just hope as a game we don’t throw it to the wolves and hope everything is going to be fine. These girls need security and certainty around their future and where that lies.

“This isn’t a bush comp where you sign one year and don’t worry about what happens next. We don’t want that. We want some consistency and some stability for these girls, and that starts with the CBA.

“The men’s game is different because they sign multi-year deals and they’ve got massive cash. These girls are signing deals for essentially six months and with no certainty around where that next deal is coming from.”

Originally published as ‘This isn’t a bush comp’: NRLW coach hits out at stalled CBA as players face uncertain year ahead