There are many myths and misconceptions about what happened during the Super League War that tore Rugby League apart. This stems from the fact that media outlets were the main protagonists of the war, and they all used their media reach to spread lies and propaganda about what their motivations were, and what the Super…
1997 was the height of the Super League War, with Australian Rugby League officially split in two and the ARL completely isolated by the rest of the Rugby League playing world. There were so many stories that emerged during this year that would be pivotal to the future of the game. It was one of…
In this episode we look back on the 1995 season, a year that should have been a celebration of 100 years of Rugby League but instead was dominated by a battle for control of the game, otherwise known as The Super League War. The football took a back seat to court cases and while the…
NRL clubs have made a move to oust Australian Rugby League Commission Chairman John Grant after Grant, along with NRL CEO Todd Greenberg, promised clubs a funding bonus, and then backpedaled on that promise due to other areas of the game needed the money more. The clubs not only want Grant removed, they also want…
It would be very easy to look at the NRL’s newly announced broadcasting deal with Channel 9 and be blinded by the figures. Channel 9 currently pays $90 million per year to broadcast 3 NRL matches per round, as well as the finals series, and representative fixtures. The newly announced deal that kicks off in…
Over the last few weeks I’ve been shocked by the way some Brisbane Broncos supporters and sections of the Brisbane media have talked about the days when players all wanted to play for the Brisbane Broncos. You would think that the Broncos were the team everyone had to play for. That players were climbing over…
In 1999 Rugby League in Australia wasn’t in a very good position. It was still recovering from the Super League War, it was cutting back on spending, it was looking to kick teams out of the competition…basically it was in damage control. At the same time Rugby Union in Australia was starting to come to…
For over a decade Rugby League in Australia found itself living on a tight budget. The aftermath of the Super League War actually saw salaries shrink considerably. This was followed up by under funding after the game signed off on poor broadcasting deals, and it created a situation in which teams were spending the least amount of…
The Rugby Football League should be on the phone right now to David Gallop and offering him the role as RFL Chairman along with a sizable contract. During David Gallops time in charge of the NRL he always pushed three major idea’s and never wavered on their importance. Gallop resisted calls to raise the salary…
As a Penrith Panthers fan, I didn’t want to see Cooper Cronk leave the Melbourne Storm. Having been talent scouted by the Storm, developed, given his first grade debut and blossomed into a super star of the game at the club, I thought it would have been tragic to see Cronk leave the Storm and…
I am a big supporter of the salary cap because quite simply, when the salary cap is working, every supporter can go into any given season knowing their team could be winning the Grand Final in 8 months time. The salary cap has two basic functions in Rugby League. The first function is to limit…
In the Sydney print media there is basically two different camps. In one corner you have Fairfax, they own the Sydney Morning Herald. In the other corner, you have News Limited. They own the Sydney Daily Telegraph. They have always been at each others throats in a petty game of back and forth snide remarks….
Obviously the Melbourne Storm are under the pump at the moment and you will find a lot of the good old fashioned Rugby League alarmists talking about the complete demise of the club. That would be great for the game, we could then look to expand the comp in 15 years time and wonder why…
I know, I know…..I apologize! We all know it should be me, but because far to busy and important to take up the role, I thought I should force my opinions onto the like of you, ya know, kind of like what I’ve been doing for the last 11 years. I’ve said for a long…
Suggestions that the move by Johns to be “excused” from playing the opening Tri Series match will just degrade the Australian test jersey are laughable. Let me get this straight. So in 1995 the ARL decides it wont select players that have signed up to the new Super League competition. It goes on to not…
The Sydney Roosters threat to challenge the NRL on the Salary Cap under the Trade Practices act is the second most disgraceful act by a Rugby League club since the Brisbane Broncos decision to help build Super League. Coming off of a golden era for the club, the Roosters have played in three NRL Grand…