The above headling article by Rothfield puts up the following MONDAY BUZZ: Greedy agents must be reined in by the NRL.
As its not possible to read what is written as per usual with the DT, the articly would possibly be a great one to read, if anyone can C&P the article would be great.
I think most here would agree with the sentiments of the article and would depend on how heavy Rothfield comes in on the issue, nothing seems to have changed since the NRL under Greendome and the integrity???? unit, when they were to investigate them following the eels yuka play.
Replies
1) Players have a legal right to representation.
2) More money in the game means that there will be more & bigger sharks in the water looking to feed.
3) Despite the posturing from the NRL, there is precious little the league can do to "reign in" agents.
4) Player agents are an issue in every professional sport the world over. That the NRL has a big enough pie for anyway to care about is actually a good thing.
5) The NRL will learn, as every other professional sport in the world has learnt, that you can't get rid of agents, you can't sideline them, you can't make them irrelevant, you can't bypass them, you can only work with them and include them in the conversation, because they are going to be involved whether you want them to be or not. Give them a seat at the table and bring them in from the shadows.
Crawley also wrote about it about Tallis comments which relate to Matterson saga
i say its Hypocritical to whinge about players and agents when clubs are worse. They are constantly trying to offload and release players , retire them , sign players on large contracts on basis they will release the, final years of contract to keep cap in check .
we were guilty with Norman and Moses , sharks all year trying to offload Moylan and Dugan , tigers. With Reynolds , packer , Matulino , Penrith with half the side .. list goes on.
until the clubs stop trying to offload players hypocritical to blame players
Yep, agree fully with that.
Contracts are binding and in almost all cases will stand up in court.They can only be broken when both parties agree.
Clubs will though let players go because they do not want big dollar players kicking stones in reserve grade. Clubs would rather let the player go and use the cap space to sign someone who wants to be there. Simiarly with players they do not want to stay where they are not wanted. So will often go and seek greener pastures.
I would love for them to find a solution to the problem. However I would have no idea what that solution is.
There was a tweet a few months back from RCG where he said (roughly, not verbatim) Sometimes good clubs do bad things. Then better clubs do great things. He was talking about moving to the Eels.
The solution IMO is to allow clubs to trade players. Now this would require the players uinion to agree to a fundamental restriction of movement change in their work conditions, but I think if you give the players something back in return it could be doable.
But that again is part of a much larger overhaul of the league's entire labour management system.
Without know what Buzz has said in the article, and that is what I would like to see so that a fair comment can be made based on that.
From the replies so far, I cannot disagree with what is said, thing is though and what I am getting at in trying to read what was said is that nothing has come of the so called investigation that was to take place after the salary cap scandal that dragged the eels down and while we have recovered somewhat its still something that was so called promised but what was found never hit the deck, or if it did was in a toilet file and flushed away.
When that issue was covered by all the newspapers and social media expert sites, and nothing from the mouths of the NRL, why wouldn't the game be put in the position it is now? Not just players swapping clubs, and walking mid contracts, but its coaches and other staff as well. I guess RL, under the NRL has learnt nothing as a result of nothing leaders. reading the reports that suggest, well more than suggest that this years GF had the least number of people who watched in on the box that has shown up in years, with the exception probably at the eels this season as we have lifted attendance numbers owing to a good season, most other clubs have seen support drop off in big ways.
Anyway seems a wasted blog to me.
Paste article heading in chrome
KP, don't have chrome, oops I just discovered I do. Have had a look at the article now, and to me the headline of it is misleading, as it directs most of the problems to the players,, and in affect more in regard to Matterson, which has some flaws in it.
Here is the article
One thing was missing from Peter V’landys’ impressive first media conference — but it’s something the NRL desperately needs to fix, writes Phil Rothfield.
We’ll start with the Ryan Matterson case at the Wests Tigers.
He started his career at Parramatta, captaining the under-20s in 2014 and re-signing with them that season on a three-year contract that the club said would keep him in blue and gold “until at least the end of the 2017 season”.
Then in 2016 he signed a two-year deal with the Sydney Roosters.
Unhappy playing off the bench at the Roosters, at the end of last year he switched to the Wests Tigers on a $1 million, three-year contract.
He had an outstanding season, learning under Michael Maguire, and made the NSW State of Origin squad as 18th man.
At the end of the season, he packed up and left. To hell with the contract and the Wests Tigers.
He started his career at Parramatta, captaining the under-20s in 2014 and re-signing with them that season on a three-year contract that the club said would keep him in blue and gold “until at least the end of the 2017 season”.
There were more lucrative opportunities elsewhere.
The NRL just sat back and did nothing about it. Now he’s back at Parramatta and the NRL happily registered his contract for double what he was previously earning.
Unbelievable disloyalty.
So what’s to stop the next disgruntled player doing exactly the same thing?
There is mail around that Josh Addo-Carr wants to return home to Sydney, possibly with the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Never mind that he has two years to run on his contract at the Storm.
Bronson Xerri is apparently being pursued by the Roosters as a long-term replacement for Latrell Mitchell. Can he just get up and go like Matterson did?
What about Tyson Frizell at the Dragons. He has a year to go but what’s to stop him demanding a release to replace Sam Burgess at the Rabbitohs. Matterson got away with it, so why can’t he?
Then in 2016 he signed a two-year deal with the Sydney Roosters.
Unhappy playing off the bench at the Roosters, at the end of last year he switched to the Wests Tigers on a $1 million, three-year contract.
He had an outstanding season, learning under Michael Maguire, and made the NSW State of Origin squad as 18th man.
At the end of the season, he packed up and left. To hell with the contract and the Wests Tigers.
It’s a serious issue that the NRL needs to address, according to outgoing Wests Tigers chairman Barry O’Farrell.
He thinks the disloyalty and disregard for a contract is driven by money-hungry agents.
“Player managers are letting the game down,” O’Farrell said.
“I get it that players have limited career time and need to maximise their earnings.
“However, rugby league is the only business where a contract means bugger all.
“I wish Matto all the best at the Eels but there’s something seriously wrong when, halfway through a contract, he can walk away and the Wests Tigers get no benefit at all.”
O’Farrell believes there should at least be some type of compensation for the clubs.
And that V’landys needs to get tough on the agents who openly encourage players to break contracts.
“It’s heartbreaking for the fans,” O’Farrell said.
“I’m used to the fact when we don’t have many one-club players.
“But other sports don’t seem to have the curse of player managers.
“Unless the commission gets a handle on managers, it’s going to get worse. There needs to be consequences for breaking a contract.
“I hope Peter V’landys has a close look at this. He’s inherited a game that’s in a position to become the No.1 sport.
“It won’t be if contracts mean nothing and players can walk away whenever they feel like it.”
“However, rugby league is the only business where a contract means bugger all.
That statement says everything that is wrong with most people involved in the NRL or rugby league in general.
Firstly, Rugby League is not the only business that contracts mean bugger all, every other professional sport has the same issue.
Secondly, the complete lack of awareness of the real world is breathtaking in rugby league circles, and considering that Barry O'Farrell is an ex politician, it's all the more ridiculous. No one knows more about the flimsiness of common law contracts than politcians.
“But other sports don’t seem to have the curse of player managers.
Is he kidding ?
Every sport has high profile player agents. The AFL has Ricky Nixon who managed Wayne Carey, the NBA has the likes of Rich Paul, the NFL has Tom Condon, MLB has Scott Boras etc. Don't get me started on player agents in the extremely murky world of international soccer.
Why do people in the tiny world of rugby league think this is unique to the NRL ?
Rugby League, welcome to the 21st Century.
Brett, your response is the very reason I put this blog up and thanks to KP for the link to get it posted. You are spot on in what you say, other than that Rothfield seems to have singled out once again the eels and Ryan Matterson is his quest for whatever sensational articles he can put up.
He mentions Frizell as well, but in a different way, and its well publicised that he has looked at leaving the dragons.
I note also on the DT web site this morning there is an article highlighting 3 players by photo's and I could not link into it that has broken contracts in the past, they include SBW & Lyon as the greatest contract deserters, yet have a photo of not just those two but Matto in it as well. We could go back to Tallis as well and how many others over the years?
Speaking of Tallis he has an article in the NRL section on Blunt fix to NRL contract fiasco. I guess he could be exempted in the debate as when he could not get a release from Saints to head to the Broncs he sat out the year, he was as a result a party to the SL war.
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