POTENTIAL changes to IMG’s rugby league grading system are in the pipeline for the medium-term future, according to RFL chief executive Tony Sutton.
Though Sutton has conceded that it will likely be the third year of IMG’s new grading system that people may see some changes, the desire to adapt is very much there, Sutton has admitted.
That has come off the back of complaints from the likes of Salford Red Devils and Hull FC in Super League, Widnes Vikings, Doncaster and Toulouse Olympique in the Championship and Hunslet in League One.
“I think it will evolve, but it wouldn’t be a great position for us to change things fundamentally in the short term,” Sutton siad.
We’re in the middle of a consultation period with clubs, and if it’s going to be anything fundamental, my view would be that it should be at least three years away.
“It depends what it was, but if it was going to be a facility point, it would take time, funding, planning, and so on. If it’s going to be something fundamental, it should therefore be an appropriate timeframe to do so.
“However, going back to another element I mentioned, if it’s about a different broadcast landscape, and therefore should the thresholds change? Yes, they should. Should they be next year? Probably. I think there’s a range of how it may look.
“It depends on what you’re talking about, and we’ve discussed a number of things in open sessions with clubs, and rightly so because we can learn things on how the model is operated.”
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