NRL defends draw process as Eels brace for horror stretch against teams coming off the bye

Parramatta hasn’t won a game and Eels fans are blowing up about a draw quirk and the NRL has explained why it’s happened.

Parramatta’s tough start gets even harder with another two games against refreshed teams coming up. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

The NRL has conceded it is “not ideal” for winless Parramatta to have three games in a row against clubs coming off the bye as they try to get their season on track.

But head of football Graham Annesley denies it was an oversight and that other sides will go through something similar later in the year.

The Eels have lost their opening three games and head into this week’s grand final rematch against a refreshed Penrith outfit who had the bye last week.

That comes on the back of playing Manly who had the bye in Round 2, while the Eels then take on the Roosters next week who will also be fresh off the bye.

It’s a brutal set of circumstances for Parramatta but it’s all part of a complex draw system which factors in several things like short turnarounds and the gap between clubs playing other teams.

Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins will play Parramatta later in the year after a bye. Picture: NRL Imagery

The 2023 draw is harder than most given there’s a new team which means weekly byes return for the first time since 2006, while the Women’s FIFA World Cup affects venue availability later in the year.

“It is something that is taken into consideration,” Annesley said.

“All of those factors are looked at before a final draw is approved for release. None of those things are ideal in any draw, but they are consequences of all of the competing factors that get built into the draw.

“We have club requests, we have venue unavailability, and this year we’re heavily constrained in terms of venue availability because of the World Cup that’s on later in the year which means a lot of venues are out of action.

“There are major events like Magic Round, we’ve got to look at the placement of byes, and when teams get byes, we’ve got to try to give relief to teams around Origin as much as possible.

“There are so many factors that play into the draw that it’s just not possible to completely resolve everything that you’d like to resolve.”

The Eels have one more game in Round 17 when they play the Dolphins off a bye, while the Broncos are in a similar boat when they play the Warriors, Sharks and Knights in consecutive weeks after those teams had the bye.

“There was a year – I can’t remember when it was, but it was a long time ago when we had byes previously – when it was an unintended consequence and I think there was one particular club that followed the team coming off the bye for most of the season,” Annesley said.

“It’s not that this is something that slips through the cracks. A lot of time and effort goes into trying to minimise those matters as much as possible.

“If you have a look at how many teams play teams coming off the bye, it’s pretty widespread across the course of the season.”

Annesley said that the technology used to construct the draw factors in byes, but trying to work around them would be like plugging one hole and creating another problem elsewhere.

Graham Annesley says it’s not an ideal situation for the Eels but it’s all part of the draw. Picture: AAP Image/James Gourley

“These are compromises that have to be made to try to fit as many of the essential elements in the draw into the process as possible,” he said.

“Even though we use some of the highest powered technology available to help us resolve the draw, including the same software the NFL use for their draw as well as a lot of other major leagues around the world, it’s not possible to satisfy every single requirement because the computer just grinds to a halt and says ‘this doesn’t work’.

“When the draw is developed, there are a whole bunch of constraints that are built into the software … and you get to a point where you can’t load any more constraints in because the thing just won’t spit out a result.

“Then you have to start loosening some levers, and then it starts giving you results again.

“It’s not something that was overlooked, it’s not something that’s ideal, but it doesn’t only affect one team.”