Mr Sandow, Here's A Heritage Round Reflection - The Past That Should Not Be Forgotten - Eels Blogs

Having just watched the scenes from the 1965 Grand Final on Fox Sports, and hearing the players talk about how they were affected by the crowd scenes! It got me comparing today's professional game to the past. Reflecting on the days when players weren't paid enough money from the game and had to hold down a job to make ends meet.Why were such times the good old days? Why should players who just think about money nowadays pay attention to those times?As a disclaimer let me state that the game generates enough money for players to be well rewarded nowadays. Furthermore, full time training has resulted in footballers that part-timers of yesteryear would struggle to compete against.Yet there was something about the footballers of those days that is rarely seen today. - a genuine passion for the game and in most cases a passion for their club.Our game evolved from a competition that initially required residential qualification. By the 1970s we had a 13 import per club restriction. Of course such a rule could never exist in a fully professional era, but for a club like Parramatta in the 1970s it meant a golden age of following a first grade team filled with quality juniors.The semi-professional nature of the code also meant a proliferation of one club players, something that is recognised as a rarity in this day and age. Players would bide their time in reserve grade for their local club. Blokes like Max Krilich for Manly played for many years behind Fred Jones, yet when he eventually got his chance he went on to captain Australia. At Parramatta we fielded reserve grade teams in the late 70s and early 80s that could have held their own against first grade sides.Of course there were clubs who would throw some extra dollars to try to poach players. Western Suburbs were seen as the wealthy club of the early 60s as Manly were throughout the 70s and 80s. However, for the fans, we could follow a favourite player at our club for their career and the newspapers rarely mentioned contract negotiations. Player managers hadn't been born and backflips were a part of gymnastics.So as we enjoy watching this professional code on pay television or on Internet platforms, marvelling at the athleticism of the full-time stars, let us not forget important aspects of heritage round.Our game was borne from a time when players received a pittance for their exploits. They played for the love of the game and a passion for their jersey. If the players of today can channel that every week, it will remain the greatest game of all.

According to the Forbes list -some of the top 50 highest paid players of 2015 are as follows: Cristiano Ronaldo $79.6 million, Lionel Messi $73.8 million, Floyd Mayweather $300 million. These, I feel, are almost completely insane amounts of money, if you compare their pay cheque to our highest NRL players in Australia. Much has been said about DCE's 10 million and the some marquee players being worth over 1 million per season, but their earnings are a pittance in comparison to those guys. However, most humble fans would be lucky to get a small percentage of what these guys would earn in a year. If they are paid a good amount, the least they can do is honour the jersey -when and if they wear it. It is a massive privilege to be selected to represent the Eels or another team for that matter. Most of us can only dream about being in their place. I guess the Heritage round is, for me at least, a reminder of the halcyon years of our Aussie rugby league but, more importantly, a reminder to all that NRL players that they give mortals such as us, a chance to dream that we can be Sterlo and Kenny... (face it, most of us will never compete at their level). The mark of a greatness is not about how well they play, but whether the players have given their all -even when the chips are down. It's sad that as fans we are so quick to praise when they are winning and condemn them when they lose. When really, all we want is for the players to remember that when they wear the Jersey they are honouring the great heritage of their teams, past players, past premierships and their lifelong fans. It's not just about them, it's about who they are playing for -we have supported them through and through -that's why I will always love Parra. The measure of a true 'immortal' in the NRL is not only about the skill and success they have at FG, they are immortal because their passion for the game and their club resonated with them at every step of their journey...

"Out of all of them Galvins the one that we really wanted they put 7 figures in front of that guy and it still wasn't enough.It would have given you a long term window of 3-4 years with Iongi Smith/TDS Moses and Galvin by not landing him we are…"

"I think we need to just stop making public statements about going after players. We would have had a price limit here and clearly he priced us out of the market. No big deal really. I would much rather see what our juniors can do alongside our…"

"Honestly I'm glad we didn't land any of these guys. Galvin is a brat and has turned the dogs shit since going there. We have Lorenzo coming through who I'm very excited for. Same as Pezet one year deal which im happy with, same as the Galvin…"

Replies

Benny Eel July 18, 2015 at 6:55pm

Thanks Sixties. It is a shame when sports as a business becomes only that $$$. Watching the games of the 80s (most of the players needed other jobs to support their families), it seemed players were on the field out of love for the game, their team and club. I'm not saying players are not like that today -it just seems sad that contracts and the like are focused more on what we can give to players rather than what they can give to their club. While they deserve to be paid well - they are our warriors and we want the best- they need to want to wear the jersey more than just lining their pockets. If they don't have a passion for our club, how can they play in a way that truly reflects their value to us - the loyal fan base?
- sixtiesboy > Benny Eel July 18, 2015 at 7:32pm
  
  Thanks for your considered response Benny. And a good question to conclude with. It's important for me to see their passion. I wonder about other fans.
sixtiesboy July 18, 2015 at 7:35pm

How many media articles, Internet clicks etc, revolve around contract offers, salary cap breaches, TPAs and the money side of the game. The times have changed and that's the way it is in the professional game. We need to ensure that the passion remains.
sixtiesboy July 18, 2015 at 8:17pm

Is the heritage round just about remembering rivalries or old jerseys? Shouldn't it be about where our game has come from? About why players played the game? Or is it only about chasing the big pay cheque these days?
- Benny Eel > sixtiesboy July 18, 2015 at 10:14pm
  
  According to the Forbes list -some of the top 50 highest paid players of 2015 are as follows: Cristiano Ronaldo $79.6 million, Lionel Messi $73.8 million, Floyd Mayweather $300 million. These, I feel, are almost completely insane amounts of money, if you compare their pay cheque to our highest NRL players in Australia. Much has been said about DCE's 10 million and the some marquee players being worth over 1 million per season, but their earnings are a pittance in comparison to those guys. However, most humble fans would be lucky to get a small percentage of what these guys would earn in a year. If they are paid a good amount, the least they can do is honour the jersey -when and if they wear it. It is a massive privilege to be selected to represent the Eels or another team for that matter. Most of us can only dream about being in their place. I guess the Heritage round is, for me at least, a reminder of the halcyon years of our Aussie rugby league but, more importantly, a reminder to all that NRL players that they give mortals such as us, a chance to dream that we can be Sterlo and Kenny... (face it, most of us will never compete at their level). The mark of a greatness is not about how well they play, but whether the players have given their all -even when the chips are down. It's sad that as fans we are so quick to praise when they are winning and condemn them when they lose. When really, all we want is for the players to remember that when they wear the Jersey they are honouring the great heritage of their teams, past players, past premierships and their lifelong fans. It's not just about them, it's about who they are playing for -we have supported them through and through -that's why I will always love Parra. The measure of a true 'immortal' in the NRL is not only about the skill and success they have at FG, they are immortal because their passion for the game and their club resonated with them at every step of their journey...
slip July 18, 2015 at 8:21pm

The day our beloved sport became a business was the day it was ruined.
- sixtiesboy > slip July 18, 2015 at 8:29pm
  
  Back in the 1960s American footballers also held down other jobs. Its been the way of sport across the globe. Can't deny them a good income but something got lost along the way.
sixtiesboy July 19, 2015 at 12:20am

Benny, I really appreciate the quality of your blog responses. Thank you. As supporters we have a greater opportunity now to share our opinions on fan forums than any fan has ever had in the past. It's truly a different world to the "halcyon days". I'm not sure whether that is always a good thing as our emotional responses are out there forever and can never be taken back.
Parramatta Tragic July 19, 2015 at 6:26am

I think the slippery slide began when media started reporting on the personal lives of people as the number one story to pursue. I personally do not want to hear one thing about anyone's personal life in media. I just want football related stories and media men and women who report on the game. Most media would not be able to survive if you took personal gossip out of the equation. I wonder if modern teams have previous team greats talk to the players about club traditions and talk over old games like Sterlo did last week with the 86 Grand Final'? As you say SB and BE (writing initials always makes me want someone to be called Brown Owl) sport as business has ruined sport for passions sake. I think Foran is a throwback and will help bring some passion back but as a club we have had the worst 6 weeks in our history. Third party payments mean the salary cap is useless and means nothing so maybe going back to the thirteen imports rule is not a bad thing. Can anyone give me some dot points for and against the thirteen import rule because it only looks like a plus to me. You cant manufacture passion and support. If juniors are not playing in an area its for a reason. Having Melbourne with feeder clubs interstate makes no sense to me. In an economic era of comparative advantage, our game is basically using a tariff system to artificially support clubs with no supporter base.Thirteen imports with a local catchment area for juniors plus a reserve grade will bring back passion and support

This reply was deleted.

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