It’s our year. Pray for the Raiders in this weekend’s final round. Photo: Jaye Grieshaber.
It’s September and the NRL is still grinding on.
The AFL home and away rounds concluded the weekend before last, then teams had a rest before the final series is bounced into action on Thursday night.
We all know when the AFL Grand Final is – the last Saturday in September. While AFL bigwigs have flirted with changing the date and the traditional afternoon starting siren, sentiment and fear of a lynching prevailed.
But with the NRL final eight just about sorted, already battered rugby league players now endure a macabre Russian roulette to survive the last round this weekend.
The Raiders had been blessed with a relatively injury-free season until star winger Xavier Savage smashed his shoulder in the Miracle in Mudgee.
No miracle for him. His season is over.
The Broncos lost star playmakers Adam Reynolds and Ezra Mam in one game a few weeks back.
It’s turning into a game of Survivor. Who will be out this weekend?
For teams already out of the finals, we talk about playing for pride, but professional footballers, their agents and clubs have a lot riding on these dead rubber games.
It won’t be touch footy, but nobody will want to do an ACL this weekend.
The irony is that injuries can occur if players throttle down to play it safe.
Clubs planning their finals campaigns have already been managing their stars to minimise injuries. Penrith rested 16 players last Thursday, feeding their young understudies to the Dogs.
The ‘cubs’ did them proud. But the decision raises questions about the length of the NRL season, and whether Penrith disrespected the home and away setup and fans.
The coaching logic behind resting stars is irrefutable, but the NRL will need to address what is, in effect, debasing of the currency of its premiership.
There was no let-up from Ricky Stuart’s Raiders, who desperately wanted that minor premiership and home final.
The NRL Grand Final will be played on Sunday, 5 October, at 7:30 pm – any qualms about a night final went the way of contested scrums.
For what started out as a winter sport, that’s a long march since Round 1, way back on 2 March.
The NRL is adding two more teams to the competition – the Perth Bears in 2027 and an unnamed Papua New Guinea side in 2028.
Accommodating them in an already congested season will be challenging, and the NRL is already toying with US-style conferences to manage it. But spare us the Americana, please.
One can see a long home and away season degenerating into an us and them competition with a long tail. Increasing the finals chances to a 10-team series is one option being considered to keep clubs and their fans interested.
Rugby league has come a long way from the dour, violent working-class game limited to NSW and Queensland. A ruthless NRL has transformed it into a fast-moving gladiatorial spectacle, aided by rule changes that promote athleticism and reward skill.
It also unashamedly framed it for TV.
The wind has been at the game’s back, but the challenges to that success story are on the horizon.
The sight of an entire Penrith squad in the stands last Thursday betrayed the stresses of the competition.
Player and fan fatigue, the coming potentially unwieldy size of the competition and the undercurrent of the concussion dilemma all threaten the NRL’s golden run.
It can succeed if it retains the integrity of the game, contains the season to a meaningful length, protects the players and respects the fans.
