Do you support a promotion/relegation system in the NRL?

[R L Winger]

The future of rugby league has been the subject of much debate around conferences, expansion and bush footy. Here’s a solution....Story By Phil (Buzz) Rothfield

 

Bring back the North Sydney Bears and, while we’re at it, the Newtown Jets.

And do it without affecting the quality of the NRL competition.

The future of rugby league has been the subject of much debate around conferences, expansion, a lopsided competition and the survival of bush footy.

One option the NRL should consider is promotion and relegation like in UK soccer.

Relegate two clubs to have a streamlined 14-team NRL premiership and a 10-team Championship (2nd division.)

Here’s how it would work.

The two-conference proposal first raised seven years ago in this newspaper will not improve the standard of the product each week.

It will actually make it worse in that there are not enough quality football players to fill 16 teams, let alone 18.

The gap between the top and bottom teams is too great. We see it every week.

Reducing the number of teams will create a much stronger NRL competition with fewer blowouts and more regular blockbusters.

Players that aren’t quite first graders can join a Championship team.

THE DESPERATION

There would be as much interest in the bottom end of the ladder as the top.

Lower teams would be as desperate to avoid relegation as top clubs are to make the finals.

It would add huge interest at the back end of the season to games that are normally dead rubbers.

This will surely increase the quality of football, attendances and television ratings.

Imagine the interest if St George-Illawarra was playing the Wests Tigers and needed to win to avoid relegation in the final round. You’d need a big stadium.

DETAILS AT A GLANCE

 

* Initially two teams relegated from bottom of the ladder

* 1 team promoted and relegated each year

* 14 strong NRL clubs

* New 10-team Championship (2nd division)

* Not as many blowouts

* More blockbuster games

* Huge interest in bottom placed NRL teams late in season

* Huge interest in top Championship teams late in season 

* Brings back the Bears and Newtown 

* Puts the onus on the clubs to get their houses in order 

* Massive boost for bush football

* League on the Central Coast

* Loan player arrangements for promoted clubs

* Championship match of the round on TV Wednesday nights

DEMOTED NRL CLUBS

The bottom two teams on the premiership ladder would initially drop to The Championship.

Then the bottom team each year would be relegated.

It sounds harsh and there would no doubt be met with outrage by fans of underperforming NRL clubs like the Wests Tigers, the Canterbury Bulldogs or even the Cronulla Sharks.

However tough and not always fan-friendly calls need to be made.

Uncompetitive teams on the receiving end of blowouts each week are hurting the quality of the NRL competition.

Let them go back to The Championship, get their house in order, then try to make it back through better management.

This will force them to think smarter and run a business as well as clubs like the Roosters, Rabbitohs, Storm and the Parramatta Eels.

THE PLAYERS

So what happens to the star NRL players from the clubs that are demoted?

The players could be lent to clubs in the NRL competition. Like Melbourne Storm, the Wests Tigers and Harry Grant last year. It can be done.

The promoted Championship club each year would get first crack in a draft for these players.

NRL 14-TEAM COMP

$10 million salary cap

Teams: Panthers, Storm, Eels, Roosters, Raiders, Rabbitohs, Knights, Sharks, Titans

Warriors, Manly, Dragons, Broncos, Cowboys

* Play each other twice

* Top 5 finals series

* Bottom team drops to Championship

 

THE CHAMPIONSHIP

Imagine the excitement around a fairytale return for traditional old clubs like the North Sydney Bears and the Newtown Jets.

While these clubs at the moment are nowhere near in a position to be running an NRL side, this at least leaves the door ever so slightly ajar for it to happen in the future.

Both clubs still have enormous fan bases.

The Championship 10-team competition would also put rugby league back on the Central Coast.

This is a thriving rugby league area but lacks enough corporate support to have an NRL franchise. This would change if they won The Championship.

It would also be a way help new expansion clubs like a second Brisbane or New Zealand team get their introductions into a professional environment.

Teams would have a salary cap of $4 million.

CHAMPIONSHIP 10-TEAM COMP

$4 million salary cap

Teams: Wests Tigers, 2nd Brisbane team, Bulldogs, Wellington (NZ), NSW Country, Perth, Central Coast, North Sydney Bears, Newtown, Mackay

NSW COUNTRY

This would give country football the lift and revitalisation it so desperately needs.

The side could be based out of the Riverina, (population 155,000) and once a rugby league heartland before the AFL steamrolled into Wagga Wagga.

It could be a satellite team playing home games in country towns like Dubbo, Bathurst, Mudgee, Tamworth, Armidale and Coffs Harbour but the majority of games out of the Riverina.

It would mean high quality rugby league in the bush every weekend. Youngsters in country towns would dream of making the side and getting TV exposure along a pathway to the NRL.

TV COVERAGE

Having two competitions would allow the NRL to spread the coverage of the game around the TV networks, like what happens with major sport in the United States.

All Championship matches would be covered on TV as well as NRL.

The match of the round could become a regular Wednesday night game on Fox Sports.

THE REACTION

Peter V’Landys has always said he will listen to the fans. This is fantastic.

However you can’t be completely driven by the parochialism of rugby league supporters.

There will be initial pain but tough decisions need to be made in big business and in sport.

[R L Winger]

RESULTS SO FAR IN AN AUSTRALIAN MEDIA POLL

Do you support a promotion/relegation system in the NRL?

 

Yes

56%

 

No

44%

678 Voters So Far

 

If you would like to vote in this poll here is the link to the poll below

NRL 2021: Buzz Rothfield’s promotion, relegation system for rugby league | Daily Telegraph

[R L Winger]

My thoughts on this subject I started talking about back in 1982 when the Canberra Raiders & the Illawarra Steelers came into the then NSWRFL competition and made it a 14 team competition for the first time.

I agree 100% of the idea of relegation & promotion in the NRL and I votes yes for it in both polls. Bellow is my differences to what is in the media in Australia today.

1...It should be 14 teams in division 1 & division 2.

2...Each team in both divisions play each other twice, in a home & away set of 26 rounds followed by a 5 team semi finals series in both divisions

3...The salary cap has to be even across both divisions.

4. The idea of teams in the 2nd division lending their star players to the teams in the 1st division does not make sense to me (What I see with that is, the 2nd division clubs being nothing more than feeder clubs to the 1st division clubs) The 2nd division clubs would need their star players to help them get out of 2nd division and into the 1st division competition the following year.

5. I am also open to the idea of last place in 1st division playing the premiers of 2nd division at the end of the semi final series to see who gets promoted or relegated, but don't feel as strong on that to the other 4 differences above. 

Please add your ideas on this subject of promotion & relegation below.

 

[DoubleD]

7 hours ago, R L Winger said:

My thoughts on this subject I started talking about back in 1982 when the Canberra Raiders & the Illawarra Steelers came into the then NSWRFL competition and made it a 14 team competition for the first time.

I agree 100% of the idea of relegation & promotion in the NRL and I votes yes for it in both polls. Bellow is my differences to what is in the media in Australia today.

1...It should be 14 teams in division 1 & division 2.

2...Each team in both divisions play each other twice, in a home & away set of 26 rounds followed by a 5 team semi finals series in both divisions

3...The salary cap has to be even across both divisions.

4. The idea of teams in the 2nd division lending their star players to the teams in the 1st division does not make sense to me (What I see with that is, the 2nd division clubs being nothing more than feeder clubs to the 1st division clubs) The 2nd division clubs would need their star players to help them get out of 2nd division and into the 1st division competition the following year.

5. I am also open to the idea of last place in 1st division playing the premiers of 2nd division at the end of the semi final series to see who gets promoted or relegated, but don't feel as strong on that to the other 4 differences above. 

Please add your ideas on this subject of promotion & relegation below.

 

How are you going to get an even salary cap across both divisions? Where’s the money coming from for it? You’re not going to get 28 clubs at the level of the current salary cap. 

I’m not necessarily against P&R in NRL but not with the proposed system. I have warmed to the current conference proposal and I would then restructure the second division to allow potential P&R. If North Sydney finished top, they could play off against Canterbury for a spot in the next year. That said, I’m not sold on the idea that it’s required 

[Sports Prophet]

23 hours ago, DoubleD said:

How are you going to get an even salary cap across both divisions? Where’s the money coming from for it? You’re not going to get 28 clubs at the level of the current salary cap. 

I’m not necessarily against P&R in NRL but not with the proposed system. I have warmed to the current conference proposal and I would then restructure the second division to allow potential P&R. If North Sydney finished top, they could play off against Canterbury for a spot in the next year. That said, I’m not sold on the idea that it’s required 

Just because the cap is $9m, doesn’t mean you have to spend it. 

to be clear, I voted no, but should’ve selected no, but maybe in the future.

[Graham]

I do support promotion and relegation where it is established in sport. I’m not sure that I can see it happening in the NRL as it is a radical change to the status quo. 

[DiddyDave]

Definitely a no because the underling division will be a joke. Clubs will go broke trying to attract so called star players who won`t be value for money. British sport is full of it especially football, it`s a recipe for disaster by clubs who generally don`t have a penny to scratch their backsides with, but want to be up their with the elites. The salary cap will be rorted beyond belief, so don`t try to change something that`s not broken.

[Martyn Sadler]

It would be difficult to imagine a worse idea for the NRL.

It would be a club killer and would do enormous damage to the NRL itself.

[The Future is League]

I can't see how it work at the moment with any great success

With what i have read their player pool would have to increase vastly to what it is now and it would take a number of years to do that. Go to 18 teams and really push the game at grass roots level and see what happens in the future