Talking Footy

Rabbitohs boss points to AFL model as lesson about bums on seats
Date April 13, 2013
Steve Mascord
Rugby league columnist

South Sydney chief executive Shane Richardson has claimed rugby league doesn't care enough about crowds and should follow the AFL's lead by making attendance figures the top priority.

Speaking as his side prepares to play the Melbourne Storm at ANZ Stadium on Saturday night, Richardson said his club had received little help from the NRL in promoting the showdown between the competition's two unbeaten teams.

''The No.1 KPI [key performance indicator] for AFL employees is crowds - we have to start worrying about getting bums on seats too,'' Richardson said.

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/leag ... 2hquz.html

THE NRL, by all reports, are planning to set up a system where players and officials can dob in the cheats.

Can the NRL dob in themselves?

Because as Ricky Stuart points out today, the decision makers at the NRL are clearly cheating every fan of the game.

Privately, A-League officials can't believe the free kick they're receiving from the NRL who allow clubs to close ranks, ban media, limit access to players and ignore fans.

They wonder why only 23,000 attended the Roosters-Bulldogs match last Friday night.

Remember, this was an all-Sydney affair.

A similar AFL clash in Melbourne would have attracted over 80,000.

Don't think Stuart is alone in his confusion at some decisions emanating from League Central.

Robbie Farah is a highly respected figure in the game. A captain of his club, Wests Tigers, level-headed and experienced, Farah had this to say about the NRL's "dibber dobber" hotline: "They are asking us to do their job for them. It goes against the culture of not just rugby league but the country we live in to dob on people. I wouldn't dob in anyone, whether it be a teammate or a guy from another side."

So bewildered was League Immortal Bob Fulton that he rang this desk to ask what it all meant. Greg Alexander, John Gibbs, both former internationals, were equally damning on their 2UE program last week.

When the NRL released a press statement about an alteration to the ruling of the shoulder charge, Andrew Johns, who commentates on Triple M, was so miffed that he pretended he was asleep live on-air.

If the likes of Stuart, Farah, Alexander, Gibbs, Fulton and Johns can't make sense of what's going on at the NRL, then what chance does the fan have? The NRL need to get serious. Because as Sonny Bill Williams has shown, loyalty only lasts for so long.