The current model of player movement though is effective in having players move clubs, it is not effective for the fans that have to deal with seeing players that are playing for their clubs this year knowing in the back of their mind they will be at a rival next year.
It has only been in the recent say 2-3 years where this has bottled over towards numerous players annoucing they are leaving before their last season with their current club has even began, now as i see it i would prefer these players leave now so we can try someone else and develop them earlier, now that is not realistic to do nor a way to run a football club i know that. But the NRL need to reconsider different approaches in order to get players to move.
Transfer window has been the most popular choice, have it open mid october and have a free for all of signings for that coming season, so for example Reed Mahoney would be in the trasnfer window at the end of 2022 and play for Canterbury in 2023. Things that could be argued against this type of process would be "what if there is a world cup or four nations" players playing for the Kangaroos or Kiwis may be off contract but cannot get a deal done until they are back, and when they are back barely have a pre-season as they are rested until late January. Another is that exact notion, some deals may not get done til late and most of the early pre-season preparation is gone and the player is behind in their preparations for the new year.
Though most big name players do not come back to full training until a week or two or even more after the majority of the squad does so if it drags i think a team would rather have that player and have them miss some pre-season than not have them at all. Salary cap is another concern as most clubs will have money set aside for certain players and may not even sign the ones they want and have money left over after the window which is a big no no from the NRL. To this the clubs will say the current system gives them more time to sign players and utilise their cap instead of a free for all where they target their cap for 4-5 players and only get 1. One thing in this concepts favour is the current process of negotiation between player and club either current or new is the same as current process, Mahoney for example Parramatta can talk and get a deal done whenever they like before the window and after the window, Canterbury can only discuss interest and but cannot give an offer until the window. You could do a thing of not other clubs can negotiate or talk to a team before the window but then there are loopholes and teams do it anyway issue and it is more trouble than it is worth
These are logical arguments, where you look at the NFL for example, season ends early Feb, free agency is late feb and they do not began their prep fully until roughly May, around a few weeks after the draft. It is a great system though cannot be compared due to their season being half of ours so more time is available. Football in Europe have a transfer window in summer and winter and it works fine as deals are done within days and though the football season is chaotic, deals get done in timely manner and behind the scenes reletively quick.
I cannot think of any actual other sport, not even AFL (happy to be proven wrong), that have players moving clubs for the next season announced before the new season has even came close to starting. The most common is players signing for the next season halfway through the current season, and even that is an annoying process but i has been met with not as bad negative response as what we have seen recently.
For me i think a transfer window and even a trade system could thrive in the NRL, though there are hurdles like post-season competitions that can hinder the signings but other than that i think it is better than what we currently have, only thing against a trade window is what to trade, AFL have draft picks to give away where we do not so it is simply player for player type and though it can work just fine it is not as tempting as AFL. Every system is flawed but some more than others, would rather a system that has less possibilites to be exploited than this one.
What do we think is the best way to go about transfers? is the current system fine? Is a new system needed? if so what system?
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Got to agree completely, the nrl system is a complete joke. Most players off contract that had a good year are going to sign elsewhere asap for big money. Not going to risk getting injured or form dropping which means the money drops. Over the origin period maybe a transfer window and signing period for the following season. If not leave the free agency till the end of the year.
Only issue there is teams might say it is added distraction to their players near end of the year. Imagine going for a top 4 or 8 spot with Parramatta drama of Gutho and Mahoney maybe signing elsewhere and having trouble with contracts at the club. We have it with re-signings all year, imagine if it involves other clubs, it is a distraction that is not needed.
The best bet would be doing it at the end of the season. Still gives them plenty of time. Maybe a 4 week period or something like that around origin time. They need to change the current concept.