Greedy clubs ruin it for rest
NO club should be allowed to win a premiership on the strength of a chequebook but that risk threatens to torpedo the entire 2020 Rugby League Gold Coast A Grade season.
If clubs cannot trust each other to refrain from player poaching in the toughest financial times in memory then something must be done to eliminate that threat.
Some, led most vocally by Runaway Bay coach Nick Gleeson, say the best solution is to scrap the season and look towards 2021. But scuttling a ship because its sailors can’t agree on the direction forward seems excessive.
Any potential solution must combat the root cause of the problem, which is that some clubs are in stronger financial positions than others.
Having the backing of wealthy sponsors or a vibrant leagues club should never be punished but neither can it be allowed to sway the competition in one’s favour.
Nor should players with the good fortune to represent clubs who can afford them be cut off from an income stream because a neighbouring club has – equality does not equal equity.
A bold solution to level the playing field without punishing players is to scrap the finals.
With no crown to play for predatory clubs gain nothing from scooping up the competition’s most desperate talents.
If normalcy returns in 2021 players who have jumped ship can return to their original clubs and salaries and life would go on.
Losing the finals doesn’t have to mean a loss of postseason football. A competition-wide
A BOLD SOLUTION TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD WITHOUT PUNISHING PLAYERS IS TO SCRAP THE FINALS.
Magic Round, hosted by Burleigh or even CBUS Super Stadium, could pit the top six sides against each other for an informal finals day.
For a curtain raiser the competition’s wooden spooners could take on a composite B Grade side featuring the best talents from the lower grades.
It wouldn’t be for a title but this plan would see park footy return to the Gold Coast in the spirit it was always intended.
For fun, for pride and bragging rights over the blokes down the road, never for greed.