Call to limit rep players
PART TWO OF SPECIAL INVESTIGATION INTO JUNIOR LEAGUE
A representative player cap to break up junior rugby league ‘super teams’ is the radical proposal a top North Queensland coach believes can begin to correct the grassroots imbalance threatening the Cowboys talent catchment.
In the first part of a Bulletin special investigation into the shortcomings of Townsville junior rugby league, veteran Ignatius Park College coach Steve Lansley issued a “wakeup call” to officials over the talent stacking of certain junior clubs that robbed players of hardened weekly opposition.
Lansley said the loss of opportunity to play outside the region was compounding the issue, leaving Townsville players as big fish in a little regional pond – only to be exposed when playing city teams toughened by constant competition.
In part two of the investigation, Lansley outlined his solutions to keep the Cowboys talent pathway firing.
Chief among them is the introduction of a representative player limit per team, which the Northern under-18 representative coach believes is what it will take to create an environment where players are tested every week.
“We need a stronger club competition,” Lansley said.
“We need more than just a couple of strong clubs or schools because when there are only a couple of hard teams, you only play a hard game every six or eight weeks and that just isn’t enough.
“I know at a school level you can’t, but at a junior rugby league level they need to start having a certain amount of rep kids per club.”
Townsville Rugby League chairman Roger Whyte said the rep cap proposal was already under consideration.
“However, in recent times, the RLTD consider that this is best addressed through a tiered competition approach,” Whyte said. “This is a work in progress, however further strategies are currently being explored.
“The development of junior rugby league is a high priority of the RLTD.”
Whyte said the return of City v Country representative games was being explored for 2024.
Lansley called on junior coaches to reduce the level of structured attack in their teams, declaring that mimicking the attack ‘shape’ of NRL sides had no place in junior league.
“Structured rugby league is for A-grade, the Blackhawks and the NRL,” Lansley said.
“The structure that the Cowboys are playing should not be a big part of junior development. It should all be fundamental skills which I think, based on this (Queensland School Sport U16-18 Championships) we are evidently down on. Skills should be 60-70 per cent of what our kids do at training.”
Finally, Lansley said restoring the NQ Marlins junior rep teams to tour south would add more competitive fixtures to a junior calendar crying out for more difficult matches.