Fan of changes but NRL club spending continues to baffle

I am slowly warming to the ARL Commission Chair Mr V’landys, but my clubmate and CEO of the Falcons is a fan after they had a phone hook- up on Monday with the head honchos of rugby league.

ARLC Chairman Peter V’landys. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

I AM slowly warming to the ARL Commission Chair Peter V’landys, but my clubmate and CEO of the Falcons is a fan after they had a phone hook-up on Monday with the head honchos of rugby league.

So, I will be guided by Chris Flannery if he thinks the ARL commission are going to back up what they say they will, ie. grassroots and everything in between up to the two state second tier pathway competitions.

That won’t stop me making some observations though, like a few weeks ago, when May 28 was tossed around as a start date, some NRL clubs were talking about signing some overseas stars like Quade Cooper, Folau, Sonny-Bill and whoever was idle at the time both in rugby and league.

Are you serious? The same mob talking about signing these stars were the same folk needing every cent they could get from the game and to hell with the rest of us.

I now see they are at it again talking about raiding the ARU for a busload of their stars that the $500 million loss of ‘the game they play in heaven’ can’t afford to keep; that will do me.

On a brighter note, and while the coaches don’t like it, I am a fan of the one referee saving and the six-to-go in the ruck for slowing play up.

I can’t see why that won’t work and it will save a bucketload of money.

There might be a few wrestle coaches out of a job because the game will resemble touch footy if players try to still slow the play up in the ruck, particularly inside the attacking 20m, but hopefully they will get with the program.

As May 28 looms large on the radar there will be a problem with the one-referee system. With no crowds how the hell are they going to manage the game with no-one to tell them what to do from the stands?

Just on that, it would be remiss of me not to mention someone that knew a lot about the game and most other things that sadly passed away last weekend — Owen Wright.

He was a legend around Mooloolaba for decades, loved his rugby league and Mooloolaba Surf Club.

I first came across him decades ago when I was working on the door at Mooloolaba Hotel and Owen, who I had seen around but didn’t really know, fronted up but wasn’t appropriately attired which I tried to explain to him.

But, he wasn’t having it and said, “You just think I am too fat. I can touch my toes you know”, and proceeded to do so, which was impressive but didn’t get him in the door.

I got to know him well after that and we always laughed about where that came from, that it was his shirt that was stopping him getting in. RIP mate, I reckon St Peter will be impressed.

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