Wayne Bennett slams NRL administrations for making the game a ‘laughing stock’

[FreshSoulL]

WAYNE Bennett has slammed the NRL’s administration, saying their reluctance to make hard decisions has led to the round 13 “farce”.

Brisbane’s master coach let rip at the NRL for allowing players to get out of contracts until round 13 rule, a rule Sea Eagle Daly Cherry-Evans may yet exploit.

While noting Dave Smith wasn’t the one who created the law, Bennett said current officials had let it fester for three years.

Bennett said Manly’s poor form was a direct result of the distractions presented by their two stars in Kieran Foran and Cherry-Evans leaving.

He called for the NRL to introduce a trade week similar to the ones used by the AFL and American sports.

“It is a farce. It is a joke and it is embarrassing,” Bennett said of the round 13 mess.

“All of a sudden, someone at the top must have got embarrassed about it because now they are doing something when people such as myself have spoken about this for five or six years at least.

“Who they need to please are the fans.

“The fans suffer in all this. There is no doubt that this is a distraction for clubs day to day and through the season.


“Maybe someone at the top of our sport has realised they are looking like a laughing stock so they are doing something about it.

“To think you can sign a contract and two months later change your mind on it… that doesn’t happen in the real world.

“All the other games have their acts together with trading periods.

“It is pretty simple, I don’t see what is complex about it.

“The difficult part is someone making a hard decision and that’s what they don’t want to do.

“They are putting bandaids on something that is haemorrhaging.”

The Broncos received good news at training yesterday ahead of their clash Parramatta with veteran Justin Hodges completing the session and he will play right centre.

Daniel Vidot drops out of the team and Frank Molo will play his first game of the season.

Originally published as Bennett slams NRL contracts ‘farce’

 

[Ahecee]

Sounds about right (other than Manly’s poor form being because of this, injuries haven't helped them at all...... neither has a crap coach).

There are plenty of sports with solutions in place for trading windows the NRL could just copy, or at the very least, have a set time for contract cooling off like 2 weeks, rather than set to round 13. Then clubs still get the final chance to make a better offer, but it doesn't drag on for possibly 13 weeks.

 

[Freakzilla]

It's not hard to introduce a transfer window from October 10-October 31. They do it in other sports and it works perfectly.

 

[Mr Invisible]

Manly's form is due to injuries and an aging roster. It was always going to happen, regardless who the coach is.

There's a FAR simpler way to handle all this: Sign a contract and that's it. You're locked in for that period.
+ If you back out for any (non emergency) reason, you sit out from the sport for that contract period.
+ If you NEED to back out (and want to play for another side), then a good reason needs to be given (e.g long term injury to immediate family or spouse issues - partner not coping away from family), and you cannot sign a contract for more than your previous one.

But the other idea is far easier!!! Allow clubs to have a player swap/transfer system.

So lets say for example sake DCE. He signs with Titans until end of 2017 on a $800,000 a year contract.

SCENARIO 1 - He wants out without a valid reason (just wants to play with his mates in Manly). He cancels the contract and sits out of the sport until 2018, whereby he is contracted to Manly.
SCENARIO 2 - DCE's partner is homesick and misses her family. He applies for a release and it is granted. He signs with a club for $900,000 a season. NRL reject this contract as it is more than Titans offered.
SCENARIO 3 - DCE's partner is homesick and misses her family. He applies for a release and it is granted. He signs with a club for $800,000 a season. NRL approve this contract as it is the same as Titans offered.
SCENARIO 4 - DCE or his partner have a family member who is terminally ill. He applies for a release and it is granted. He can sign with a club for $800,000 a season.
SCENARIO 5 - DCE for some reason wants to stay at Manly. Titans have no place for him in their starting side, so lease him to another club at $40k per game. This amount is subtracted from his salary cap with Titans.

...........

For a brand like the NRL with such big wigs involved, it amazes me the lack of thinkers they have employed.

Some of these ideas and changes (for the better of the game), are so simple that even a primary school kid could figure them out, and yet it seems like the NRL twiddle their thumbs unable to find solutions to the easiest of problems.

 

[LordSidious66]

It's not hard to introduce a transfer window from October 10-October 31. They do it in other sports and it works perfectly.

This would work perfectly. Mate you should work for the nel

 

[CrittaMagic69]

This coming from the bloke that signs contracted players and moves on contracted player without batting an eye aha

 

[Ahecee]

Manly's form is due to injuries and an aging roster. It was always going to happen, regardless who the coach is.

That's mostly true, injuries are an issue for any club, and they have had some unkind issues, but.... their team moral issues didn't start this year, half the squad wanted out late last year, the age of some of their other players shouldn't have been a shock for them, pretty sure they keep those ages on file

On the contracts, most big contracts have a cooling off period built in, but they are set by a number of days, not a single time of the year, changing that alone would be a good start.

If they are reviewing the way contracts are handled, it would be good if they did it for more than just the start of them, its just as big an issue with players wanting out of them. A total overhaul would be better.

 

[GoTheDoggies]

nrl lol what joke. Absolutely agree with Bennett, the way it is setup at the moment is so unprofessional but then again you wouldn't expect anything less from the nrl.

 

[sultanofsydney]

nrl contracts end on october 31, yes? so i think if you sign a contract after that then thats is where you go no if's or but's, you can't sign a contract with another club unless your in the last year of your contract, only exception may be for expansion clubs, not reloctions, extending this to 18 months. if player asks for release then they can not sign a contract worth more than what they where on, just as clubs make up the difference of contracts for players they let go.

 

[sultanofsydney]

the reason i don't think a trade window will work is because there will still be all the speculation and suggestion of deals being done without being done as there was with june 30

 

[c-b-b]

This coming from the bloke that signs contracted players and moves on contracted player without batting an eye aha

100% right. Bennett is a hypocrite, he wouldn't have been able to make changes to his squad if the system he wants was in place.

To solve the problem just remove the round 13 thing. You sign a contract and you're bound to play for that club, no backing out. Players will think about it seriously before signing if that was the case.

Even if they introduce a transfer window player managers are going to speak to clubs and players will know if they want to go elsewhere.