Well, I am back from my trip back to the 1970s. I did not have to travel via the Middle East, just gave myself a quick uppercut and told myself to stop dreaming about ‘Hoges’ and beautiful young women handing out an unlimited supply of Winfield Reds at the footy. Ian is back after being sent for ‘Time Out’ after a couple of uncharacteristic outbursts, or ‘rants’ as he described them, last week. He has assured me that if he transgresses again, he will ‘self-refer’ himself in the interests of consistency. The RITV is back, full of beans and possibly some red wine after the great start to the year by his beloved Bunnies. The ‘Prop’ is also back. A source has told me that he was sighted at Almanac headquarters this week enquiring about a transfer to the Music department. He seems to be vacillating between Rugby League and the comment rich world of Almanac music. There is no word yet how that request was received.
There was some interesting feedback from last week’s trip back. Most interesting was that Wayne Benett coached Ipswich in 1976 in what was his first senior coaching job. He was not particularly successful, but he did go on to bigger and better things, although his first premiership victory was still 9 years away.
Round 1 is in the books. I scored an ok five for the round. I would like to issue a timely warning to all tipsters as they ponder their tips for Round 2. I remember reading a quote from ‘Crash’ Craddock some years ago. “No team is as good, or as bad, as they appear in Round 1”. Having watched this with interest over the past few years, it has plenty of merit.
I would like to devote some time this week to the topic of expansion in the NRL. I was surprised to hear recently that a prominent player manager had said that there is a surprising amount of interest from players in the new PNG franchise. More interest than expansion rivals, the Perth Bears. This morning, I read an interview with Patrick Carrigan from the Broncos, expressing similar sentiments. I was surprised to read this from Carrigan, who is considered an elite level player and one of the better paid players in the game. The Airways resort in Port Moresby has been announced as the accommodation for the players and their families and, by the looks of it, is very impressive. Tax free dollars, plenty of them, a 5-star resort and suddenly PNG is starting to look a lot better.
The Perth side are well underway getting their roster together and have signed some very good quality NRL players such as Meaney, Wishart, Henry, Sorensen and Talakai without landing any real marquee quality players. Time is running out for them to do this. The consensus is that they will struggle to make significant inroads in their first couple of years.
The NRL landscape is scattered with the carcasses of clubs that for, one reason or another, have disappeared from the Rugby League ecosystem. The Gold Coast alone has seen several incarnations of clubs, the Giants, Seagulls, Chargers and Titans. Historically, expansion clubs do it pretty tough. Of course, the Melbourne Storm are excluded from that, winning in their second year and sustaining that level of excellence for 25 years on top of that. What they have achieved in their history is amazing. Even the Brisbane Broncos, with all their star signings and resources, did not make the semi finals in their first two seasons, and it was 5 years until they won the competition.
The latest entry into the NRL, the Dolphins have done well. However, they had some obvious advantages. They were already a well-established club, with plenty of money and existing infrastructure. They had a well-established fan base, in a Rugby League city, where there is considerable anti-Bronco sentiment. They were able to capitalise on that.
Before 2025, the last 8 premierships had been won by 3 clubs, the Storm, the Roosters and Penrith. The Broncos breaking that domination is not exactly a minnow club rising to the top but rather a sleeping giant awakening. That is in the ‘salary cap’ era which is meant to equalise the competition. Will the salary cap work more effectively with another two teams in the competition? It is hard to imagine that it will. The powerhouse clubs will be able to keep their top end talent, and the rest will continue to struggle. It appears many players in the last two years were eager to re-sign with their clubs to avoid speculation about joining the new teams. Of course, their clubs were keen to take them off the market.
The new clubs are attractive to players nearing the end of their careers, who may be able to get an extra year or two on their contracts and more money. The Qld Cup has plenty of good talent capable of playing at an NRL level who could be targeted. The problem, of course, is going to be attracting the top-level talent. The same problem that many of the existing, less successful clubs have had in the last 10 years. The Raiders turned to the Super League and have developed some young talent to become a force, but it is a challenging task.
Anyway, time will tell. I wish the new clubs well and I would like to see a variety of names on the trophy over the next few years. I would like to finish this week with a trivia question a mate of mine sent me this week.
Who am I? I played at the elite level in Australia for 5 years and won five premierships, for 2 different clubs. I played in the NSWRL.
Good luck with that one, and good luck with your tipping this week.
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I’m not sure if vacillating is a key attribute although I have on at least 1 occasion been accused it it – now 2. Clearly there is a music bent that runs through the almanacers and I’m just trying to tap into that rig vein! My answer to the quiz was Steven Edge but have been advised that’s incorrect
I think you are exactly correct, Prospector, that there is a real chance that the ‘big’ clubs will dominate and there will be class difference between them and the new ones as well as those that are struggling at present. The salary cap hasn’t been effective in evening out the comp, but it has given clubs like the Bulldogs and Tigers opportunity to poach players from successful teams who have developed them. Although it was once scuppered as a ‘restraint of trade’, the NRL needs a Draft. If it is managed well to include experienced as well as rookie players, in the long term I believe it would become a cherished feature of the season, just as it is in US elite sport.
I couldn’t agree more MFBR. If you go to a schoolboy carnival, it is not hard to spot a Payne Haas, Reece Walsh or Sam Walker. EVERYONE wants to sign them but the poor old scout from the Titans or the Knights or the Tigers have no chance. A Draft would solve this and as the dollars on offer in the game increase, it becomes more likely. I hope they revisit the concept soon.
Edge was my first thought. He did win 5 comps at 2 different clubs but played many more than 5 seasons. the player in question had a 10 year plus gap between the first 2 and the last 3. As you are into your music in such a big way, i will give you a musical clue. Bobby Darin. Good luck.
I reckon that the player who won five in five years must have won some of them with the Dragons during their run of eleven straight, but I can’t suggest who it might be as I don’t think another team won consecutive titles before or after that streak. Steven Edge, who Prop suggests, came to mind for me also but I don’t think he only played five seasons of NSWRL. An incredible personal record and i hope that you will provide the answer next week.
Someone may have only played 5 seasons in the NSWRL, but they may not have been in consecutive years …
Correct Greg, there is a 10-year gap between the 2 and the 3. The player concerned had a long career in England in between.
A great series of well made points, Prospector
A draft – YES
& key point: pre 2025, the dominance of the Storm, Roosters & Penrith. As a rusted on South Sydney member, I have to acknowledge: they are 3 very, very well administered clubs, well coached, no DH policies