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Writing in this masthead on Monday, columnist Neil Breen argued the game’s talent pool was not deep enough to sustain the additional teams the NRL has committed to establishing, pointing out that a dearth of quality halves had resulted in teams paying big money to ageing or substandard playmakers.
Reece Walsh scored a try in Brisbane’s big win over the Sydney Roosters.Credit: Getty Images
“There won’t be enough quality players for 18 or 19 or, heaven forbid, 20 teams,” Breen wrote.
But V’landys said it was unfair to shoot down the merits of expansion based on one round of rugby league.
“You can’t take one weekend and say there’s a shortage of players,” V’landys said. “For a start, the clubs get the same salary cap, so it’s not like any of them have an unfair advantage.
“I don’t agree that it’s not time to expand. People said the same thing before the Dolphins came into the competition, that there wasn’t enough talent, but they have been more than competitive since they’ve come into the NRL.
“The next franchise does not come into the NRL until 2028. It’s still a few years away.
“One factor people fail to appreciate is there are ten million to 18 million people in Papua New Guinea. The game is an absolute passion there, it’s easy to attract new players – we just need to have the expertise to turn them into elite players by having the best pathways model. A lot of the money we receive [from the PNG government] will be spent on junior development.
“Their schoolboys side also drew with the Australian Schoolboys side last year, and that’s always been a powerful side that has had a lot of players go on and play first grade. We have plans up our sleeve to assist PNG, including expediting their local talent so they can play in Australia.”
Existing NRL clubs have already been forced to ask the NRL for special exemptions to field players, including the Eels, who needed a clearance for train-and-trialist Ronald Volkman to cover their halves crisis, while South Sydney are expected to ask head office for permission to call on NSW Cup winger Bayleigh Bentley-Hape because of injuries.
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The Broncos could have beaten the Roosters by more had it been a dry deck on Thursday, while Manly thumped North Queensland 42-12 in a game that was over after ten minutes on Saturday night before the Storm led the Eels 46-6 at half-time on Sunday before taking the foot off the throttle to salute 56-18.
According to the bookies, only three teams – the Storm, Panthers and Broncos – are under double-figure odds to win the premiership, but six clubs – Parramatta, Wests Tigers, the Dolphins, Dragons, Titans and Warriors – are less than $10to finish with the wooden spoon.
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Michael Chammas and Andrew “Joey” Johns dissect the upcoming NRL round, plus the latest footy news, results and analysis. Sign up for the Sin Bin newsletter.
Writing in this masthead on Monday, columnist Neil Breen argued the game’s talent pool was not deep enough to sustain the additional teams the NRL has committed to establishing, pointing out that a dearth of quality halves had resulted in teams paying big money to ageing or substandard playmakers.
Reece Walsh scored a try in Brisbane’s big win over the Sydney Roosters.Credit: Getty Images
“There won’t be enough quality players for 18 or 19 or, heaven forbid, 20 teams,” Breen wrote.
But V’landys said it was unfair to shoot down the merits of expansion based on one round of rugby league.
“You can’t take one weekend and say there’s a shortage of players,” V’landys said. “For a start, the clubs get the same salary cap, so it’s not like any of them have an unfair advantage.
“I don’t agree that it’s not time to expand. People said the same thing before the Dolphins came into the competition, that there wasn’t enough talent, but they have been more than competitive since they’ve come into the NRL.
“The next franchise does not come into the NRL until 2028. It’s still a few years away.
“One factor people fail to appreciate is there are ten million to 18 million people in Papua New Guinea. The game is an absolute passion there, it’s easy to attract new players – we just need to have the expertise to turn them into elite players by having the best pathways model. A lot of the money we receive [from the PNG government] will be spent on junior development.
“Their schoolboys side also drew with the Australian Schoolboys side last year, and that’s always been a powerful side that has had a lot of players go on and play first grade. We have plans up our sleeve to assist PNG, including expediting their local talent so they can play in Australia.”
Existing NRL clubs have already been forced to ask the NRL for special exemptions to field players, including the Eels, who needed a clearance for train-and-trialist Ronald Volkman to cover their halves crisis, while South Sydney are expected to ask head office for permission to call on NSW Cup winger Bayleigh Bentley-Hape because of injuries.
Loading
The Broncos could have beaten the Roosters by more had it been a dry deck on Thursday, while Manly thumped North Queensland 42-12 in a game that was over after ten minutes on Saturday night before the Storm led the Eels 46-6 at half-time on Sunday before taking the foot off the throttle to salute 56-18.
According to the bookies, only three teams – the Storm, Panthers and Broncos – are under double-figure odds to win the premiership, but six clubs – Parramatta, Wests Tigers, the Dolphins, Dragons, Titans and Warriors – are less than $10to finish with the wooden spoon.
NRL is Live and Free on Channel 9 & 9Now
Michael Chammas and Andrew “Joey” Johns dissect the upcoming NRL round, plus the latest footy news, results and analysis. Sign up for the Sin Bin newsletter.
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