Announcing player transfers a season in advance.

[marklaspalmas]

I started following the NRL some time ago and a distracting aspect of being a fan of that league is the way that future deals are announced all season long. It's kind of understandable with say Perth, a new club coming in, but otherwise I found it off-putting and in some ways devalues the current comp by always looking at the future, " they'll be teammates next season".

Now I'm changing a little. Free agent lists are quite interesting to keep up with and the trading and jostling for the 25 man squad spots are quite revealing and correspond to player form and future prospects.

In this sense the NRL follows big US sports. I think it would be fair to say UK RL sort of follows the UK soccer system where it's all kept officially under wraps until the end of the season. In done cases that now feels artificial and ridiculous.

Now football may change according to this article:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c87nxvyq4yqo

How do you see the current and future picture with regards to negotiations and transfers, and their announcements?

[Click]

London have announced Philbin and King from Warrington got next season already. 

I don't think we do really follow the football route as there are so many loud mouths agents, etc that no secrets stay secret 

Edited August 3 by Click

[Just Browny]

20 minutes ago, Click said:

London have announced Philbin and King from Warrington got next season already. 

 

Taking this off on a tangent alreasy but both of these guys have been criticised by Warrington fans in previous years, not entirely unreasonably, for dropping their standards after signing a new contract. Both have been excellent since their move to London has been confirmed.

[marklaspalmas]

2 minutes ago, Just Browny said:

Taking this off on a tangent alreasy but both of these guys have been criticised by Warrington fans in previous years, not entirely unreasonably, for dropping their standards after signing a new contract. Both have been excellent since their move to London has been confirmed.

I don't think that's a tangent at all. It's an interesting observation of what can happen, albeit perhaps the opposite of what we might intuitively expect, "he's off to xxxx next season, so he doesn't care anymore".

[marklaspalmas]

The NRL system allows players to have swansongs/fond farewells to players who are going to other clubs in the same way as they do for retiring players.

It seems to work, despite the distractive points I mentioned. 

I think it's perhaps worse with a Head Coach position, rather than a particular player.

[Click]

2 minutes ago, marklaspalmas said:

The NRL system allows players to have swansongs/fond farewells to players who are going to other clubs in the same way as they do for retiring players.

It seems to work, despite the distractive points I mentioned. 

I think it's perhaps worse with a Head Coach position, rather than a particular player.

Other than Peters, has there been much movement of head coaches from club to club?

I'm trying to think of previous examples, I'm sure McDermott was lined to for Leeds when still at London but it was awhile ago and can't remember

[gingerjon]

I can't think of (m)any examples of players who were known to be moving on stopping trying/giving less for their current teams?

It does feel weird to me to have moves lined up for the season after next but I think that's a 'me' issue rather than because it's necessarily a bad thing.

[marklaspalmas]

10 minutes ago, Click said:

Other than Peters, has there been much movement of head coaches from club to club?

I'm trying to think of previous examples, I'm sure McDermott was lined to for Leeds when still at London but it was awhile ago and can't remember

I was thinking more of the NRL. 

Right now both Penrith and Melbourne know their coach is leaving

Edited August 3 by marklaspalmas

[marklaspalmas]

4 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

I can't think of (m)any examples of players who were known to be moving on stopping trying/giving less for their current teams?

It does feel weird to me to have moves lined up for the season after next but I think that's a 'me' issue rather than because it's necessarily a bad thing.

Yes, ATEOTD the players are professionals.

And yes.

[Agbrigg]

18 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

I can't think of (m)any examples of players who were known to be moving on stopping trying/giving less for their current teams?

 

Well Wakey Leeds is a big game coming on Friday in front of a full house. I wonder how Cam Smith will go against his team for next season

[Welshleaguelover]

It's nothing to do with the NRL following American sports. American sports don't have that system.

 

[Tommygilf]

I think football is different from RL in the sense that in football there is a transfer market in which clubs offer sums to other clubs to buy players out of the remainder of their contracts.

In RL this is nowhere near as common, in fact I can think of a handful of scenarios - Hardaker to Cas 2017, Croft and Ackers to Leeds from Salford, Wakefield put in a bid for Robertson at Saints this season? The nature of the Salary cap and the finances involved make it just less common to have the transfer circus we see in football.

Instead most of our deals are for players who are out of contract or who clubs want to move on earlier than their contract expiration. There's some etiquette around that, with the new club waiting on the old one to confirm the departure. 

Another factor here is that whilst some of our players are well paid, even the best paid ones aren't in a position of total financial independence. Very few players would want to go anywhere near the off season without a club for the upcoming year. Thus you end up with the scenario of players confirming with new clubs pretty early in the season.

Football has almost the opposite attitude, if a player has 1 year left and isn't going to sign an extension (thus protecting his transfer value), most clubs would likely look to sell at that point rather than "lose them on a free".

[marklaspalmas]

13 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

I think football is different from RL in the sense that in football there is a transfer market in which clubs offer sums to other clubs to buy players out of the remainder of their contracts.

In RL this is nowhere near as common, in fact I can think of a handful of scenarios - Hardaker to Cas 2017, Croft and Ackers to Leeds from Salford, Wakefield put in a bid for Robertson at Saints this season? The nature of the Salary cap and the finances involved make it just less common to have the transfer circus we see in football.

Instead most of our deals are for players who are out of contract or who clubs want to move on earlier than their contract expiration. There's some etiquette around that, with the new club waiting on the old one to confirm the departure. 

Another factor here is that whilst some of our players are well paid, even the best paid ones aren't in a position of total financial independence. Very few players would want to go anywhere near the off season without a club for the upcoming year. Thus you end up with the scenario of players confirming with new clubs pretty early in the season.

Football has almost the opposite attitude, if a player has 1 year left and isn't going to sign an extension (thus protecting his transfer value), most clubs would likely look to sell at that point rather than "lose them on a free".

Fair assessment, ta. Perhaps my main point was to do with this "etiquette" you mention, which seems to exist in the UK, but perhaps is now changing to the Australian way of doing things?

I'm not really too interested in soccer (or American sports) tbh. Just an article which provoked my observation.

[Tommygilf]

23 minutes ago, marklaspalmas said:

Fair assessment, ta. Perhaps my main point was to do with this "etiquette" you mention, which seems to exist in the UK, but perhaps is now changing to the Australian way of doing things?

I'm not really too interested in soccer (or American sports) tbh. Just an article which provoked my observation.

I like the etiquette, I think it helps keep things civil in what is often a difficult scenario. I think there can be issues where say one club wants to announce a signing earlier than another wants to announce a departure (perhaps with commercial benefits in mind), and likewise, the future of any player being unsettled can affect a squad.

[Dunbar]

Jarome Luai is probably the best example currently of forward contracts.

He signed a five-year deal with Wests Tigers but it had exit clauses so he signed for the PNG side for the 2028 season. Next year, he will spend a season Parramatta, during which the Tigers will pay $500,000 of his $1.2 million salary.

[marklaspalmas]

55 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

I like the etiquette, I think it helps keep things civil in what is often a difficult scenario. I think there can be issues where say one club wants to announce a signing earlier than another wants to announce a departure (perhaps with commercial benefits in mind), and likewise, the future of any player being unsettled can affect a squad.

I don't disagree with you, and mentioned previously of how trades and changes for 2027 can often distract fans from what's happening in 2026.

But perhaps the UK will drift towards the more "open" system in Australia whereby fans know of future comings and goings as they happen during the season before.

[marklaspalmas]

25 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

Jarome Luai is probably the best example currently of forward contracts.

He signed a five-year deal with Wests Tigers but it had exit clauses so he signed for the PNG side for the 2028 season. Next year, he will spend a season Parramatta, during which the Tigers will pay $500,000 of his $1.2 million salary.

Yes. Players' salaries being common knowledge seems to be much more prevalent in the NRL rather than UK

[Loiner]

Brody Croft a perfect example, signed for Warrington next season but he's busting a gut and been outstanding this season.

[marklaspalmas]

7 minutes ago, Loiner said:

Brody Croft a perfect example, signed for Warrington next season but he's busting a gut and been outstanding this season.

Perfect example of..... ? A professional rugby player? I don't know if he's perfect, but yes.

[The Phantom Horseman]

32 minutes ago, marklaspalmas said:

I don't disagree with you, and mentioned previously of how trades and changes for 2027 can often distract fans from what's happening in 2026.

But perhaps the UK will drift towards the more "open" system in Australia whereby fans know of future comings and goings as they happen during the season before.

I kind of think it happens already - there's a 10-page thread called "2027 Transfer Tracker" further down the page, though quite a few of the players mentioned are overseas imports - but maybe not officially announced, over here most transfers seem to leak out through journos (via agents) well before they are announced by clubs. One or two have been officially confirmed by the clubs though eg Cameron Smith to Wakefield was announced in January and Robbie Mulhern to Cas has also been announced.

[Anita Bath]

1 hour ago, Dunbar said:

Jarome Luai is probably the best example currently of forward contracts.

He signed a five-year deal with Wests Tigers but it had exit clauses so he signed for the PNG side for the 2028 season. Next year, he will spend a season Parramatta, during which the Tigers will pay $500,000 of his $1.2 million salary.

Yes I really struggle with this one. If he used the exit clause to get out of the contract why are they still paying him? Or was the exit clause only called on for the PNG contract and Tigers just wanted rid before the exit clause took effect?

 

Its crazy that tigers fans and members will be paying part of the salary of an opposition player next year.