Phil ‘Buzz’ Rothfield: 10 ways to make the greatest game even greater
Why should Spencer Leniu and Latrell Mitchell be allowed to go the full season without a single interview? Every player should promoting the game, writes BUZZ ROTHFIELD as he reveals 10 ways to make the NRL greater.
From a wildcard weekend, to bush footy and an overhaul of the player transfer market, Phil ‘Buzz’ Rothfield unveils his plan to take rugby league to another level.
1. The schedule
Ensure there is a minimum 10-week gap between clubs playing against each other for a second time. Also even out the travel commitments. The Raiders had to do Las Vegas, Townsville, Auckland and Darwin early this year. It’s unfair. It’s going to be a big issue with expansion teams Perth and PNG.
2. Wildcard weekend
This one is a no brainer. Tenth play seventh, ninth plays eighth for the right to play in the finals. It gives the top six clubs a huge advantage over seventh and eighth by having the weekend off before the finals. Would stop coaches at the top clubs resting players at the back end of the season knowing they will get a break before the finals.
3. The finals
Abandon suburban grounds to stop locking out fans for the first week of the finals. All Sydney finals should be played at either CommBank, Accor or Allianz to give fans from both clubs the opportunity to purchase tickets. It would be a huge financial gain for the NRL.
4. The Dally M awards
Make it compulsory for players from all 17 clubs to attend the awards night. Also, change the rules that denied Harry Grant and Joe Tapine from winning positional awards for minor offences. We should also have a separate NRLW medal night. The girls deserve it as their game gets bigger.
5. Shorten the season
Having 27 rounds makes the season too long and too taxing on the players. Shorten the schedule by at least a couple of weeks for player welfare. Look at the calibre of player who has pulled out of the Kangaroo tour – James Tedesco, Tom Trbojevic, Liam Martin and Latrell Mitchell to treat injuries. To ramp up international footy, a great area of potential growth, we need all the stars playing. International footy is one area the AFL can’t compete with us.
6. Media bans
It’s outrageous that Latrell Mitchell and Spencer Leniu were allowed to go all season, including State of Origin, without doing one interview. Why should other players bother when these two won’t. It should be mandatory that ALL players are made available to promote the game.
7. No more crackdowns
Just consistently referee from the rule book from round one to the grand final. We should never again have to put up with 18 players being sin-binned for high shots like we did in round eight.
8. Bush footy
The Penrith Panthers were the only club to go to regional towns this year. That’s a disgrace. Every club should be made to take a game to country NSW and country Queensland every second year to promote the game in the bush. Get out there and promote the game in the schools and communities.
9. Player transfers
Find a better system better than we currently have for player movement. Transfer windows or rookie drafts need to be investigated. Let’s get all the best brains together to work this out.
10. Afternoon grand final
A poll by this masthead revealed last week that 94 per cent of fans want a 4pm kick-off. Sunday afternoon footy this finals series has resulted in record TV ratings, monster crowds and the most breathtaking footy we’ve seen for years in finals football. The AFL grand final on a Saturday afternoon got a four million plus TV audience, which was more than the Origin III decider.
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