With the release of the NRL draw came plenty of commentary on social media.
As always some teams fared better than others. A few sides can sit back and enjoy constant seven day turn-arounds in front of big free-to-air audiences, while other sides will jet set and struggle to back up from five day turn-arounds.
Of course not everything about the draw was negative, as some common sense decisions have been made, and some mouth-watering clashes set up.
Below are 8 things the draw got right, and 10 it unfortunately did not.
8 Things They Got Right
1. The Cowboys host all of their opening home games (up until round 13) in the night. Given the early season temperatures in North Queensland, this is a common sense move and should be applauded.
2. The Roosters vs Bunnies round one clash is being held on a Sunday afternoon rather than the usual Friday night. For fans, this is a brilliant decision and should allow a huge crowd at Moore Park. Travel and parking after work is horrible. This will give fans no excuse not to turn up.
3. The second instalment of the Dragons/Sharks local derby will take place at Kogarah’s Jubilee Stadium rather than at WIN Stadium in the gong. Nothing against the Illawarra contingent of the club, but both cubs market this as a local derby, and a return to Kogarah adds to this.
4. The Grand Final “rematch” is in round four, which should allow both teams to find their groove and put on the best game possible.
5. Three fixtures on Anzac Day in three towns mean three more very public occasions to further honour the Anzacs.
6. The NRL hasn’t shied away from controversy and has continued on with the Good Friday matchup between the Rabbits and Bulldogs. Despite last year’s ugly scenes the game is a genuine highlight on the calendar.
7. I can’t be the only one glad to see the end of delayed rugby league. Thursday Night isn’t the ideal situation but we won’t have sit through an hour of ads for 80 minutes of footy on Friday night.
8. Canberra have three free-to-air games. It’s nothing compared to the Broncos and Bunnies but it’s a start.
10 Things They Got Wrong
1. Manly have seven Monday night fixtures in the first 20 rounds (and as a result have many five day turnarounds). The Dogs and the Sharks each have six. Channel 9 darlings have zero. The timeslot is a horrible one for home teams as crowds are terrible in comparison. I understand why Channel 9 lean on the Broncos, but this is the NRL draw, not the channel 9 draw … or is it?
2. The Broncos play only twice in daylight, with their other games scheduled for the night. The Tigers have 11 day light fixtures. I hope for the Tigers player’s sake it’s not a hot winter.
3. I hope that people unable to afford or connect Foxtel like watching the Broncos or Souths. Brisbane play 11 times on Thursday or Friday. The Rabbits also play 11 times.
4. The Sharks play only three of their last nine games at home. I can never work out why the NRL always has one or two sides play a heap of games at home (or away) in a clump. The development in the Shire won’t take effect until after the season, so that is not to blame.
5. The Bunnies and Roosters play twice in the opening six weeks. The Roosters play the Broncos twice in the final six weeks. Ridiculous.
6. The Sea Eagles game on the Gold Coast has been scheduled in an Origin affected round. If DCE gets picked for Origin, the Titans are robbed of a marquee fixture.
7.The Titans only play their QLD rivals once each. Given both sides contested the grand final they may be happy with this, but it doesn’t make sense.
8. Warriors fans have to wait until round three for a home fixture. This isn’t a huge issue but it’s not like they can travel a short distance for an away game.
9. Given there are already two games on Easter Monday, there is no way a Monday Night game is warranted. Saturday and Sunday afternoon game slots are free. Common sense does not prevail here.
10. Why can the NRL not allocate the full 26 rounds? Fans hoping to plan away trips have to wait months until the final six rounds are allocated. Not ideal.
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