Eels Blogs

Some interesting articles are being written about Clubs poaching players out of their district. Our responses that clubs such as Easts, Manly, Melbourne should relocate to do their development were equally interesting.

I will start by saying that Rugby League is a Tribal and Gladiatorial Sport. Essentially, it is politically incorrect. We love it for what it is, despite rising health and safety concerns that may increasingly be on the nose for mums and dads at grassroots.

Mitchy got me thinking about how much "forward thinking"  is being done about the inevitable consequences of the game's development.

Mitchy made some comments that were a commonsense reality, highlighting practicalities. Socioeconomics and realities mean most teams need to recruit and scout from anywhere. You only need to look at our squad.

Someone also highlighted that the Blacktown Workers are a direct feeder club for Manly after their historic partnership back in 2016 as another reality. A seemingly awkward, but necessary marriage: a proud working class, Western Club tied to a glamorous Northern Beaches Silvertails NRL brand.

Yet, I assume we have junior development boundaries for a reason?

So, sure, I too was a little taken aback with the marriage of the Northern Beaches Glamour-Blacktown Workers. But it was not so much for them recruiting from this area, but setting it up as a development project in such a blatant fashion. I wonder how Manly would have liked it for Parra to set up a development project out of the Harboard Nippers development district? 

I suppose we could get boys and girls at 5 years of age, engaged in surfing activities and by the way and sponsoring a touch football comp which the parents can join in as well as the kids. Beach football in the winter! How many kids get seeded with Parra being, at least the second team they may follow. Alternatively we have a junior structure that acts as a feeder in the local comp. I could name the team now as the Freshwater Eels.

Ok, it won't happen. But you get the principle.

Don't forget the reason why Panthers have the biggest catchment in Sydney is because of a population that spread west, and affordability, not unlike Parra had the same setting in the 70's and 80's. The Panthers have the largest junior registrations in Sydney, around 9,000 or so. We have around 5,500 last time I checked. So, it makes sense their juniors might be heavily poached, and they might have more talent to draw from, especially in light of their success.

It's logical and acceptable that poaching will exist for the obvious reasons, and talent will always be recycled in our game. 

However, the NRL needs to foster everything it can because the game has become so dangerous; more and more parents will not let their kids play. Back on Touch footy. That may be a means at the grassroots to overcome the safety aspect of our collision sport.

Part and parcel of the game's future at the grassroots are commercial realities.

Like boxing, Rugby league will become a money-making source outside of mainstream sport, the NRL needs to maintain a catchment with lots of hybrid activities to make sure the kids are exposed to football (NRL) skills. It will work as long as we don't stuff up the game like Rugby Union has by creating too many "stupourfying" rules and inaccessible.

TV rights and the need to be entertained will ensure the future. The game is already proving to be one of the most highly rated sport in Australia, and V'landy's has enough vision to go to the US for the ultimate prize of the "gambling dollar". I don't doubt this objective and the "wowsers" can whinge forever, but we can't run from reality.