The Dragons, meanwhile, would receive only $15,000 after notching the lowest “Net Player Supply” score over the corresponding period.
“Unsurprisingly, the main gripe amongst fans is also the high quantity of player transfers,” Haidar’s document states.
“When new recruits enter a roster, that team’s identity gets somewhat diluted. As clubs shuffle through more imported talent, their rosters become just one generic blend of footballers …
Sam Walker, right, and Joseph Suaalii would be considered Roosters rookies under the proposal.Credit:Getty
“Concerningly, seven out of the 16 clubs had a team purity below 50 per cent in season 2021. The overall NRL average was just 58.4 per cent reflecting exactly how often players are shuffling from one club to another. The unintended consequence of this is diminished opportunities for new talent to debut. Imported players fill roster spots and often take selection priority.
Clearly, too many teams develop too few of their own. They lack the organic flavour that fans crave, making it difficult to sell the team as authentic.”
Haidar declined to comment when contacted by the Herald.
Under his plan, a player does not have to be a local junior to be defined as a rookie. For instance, Sam Walker and Joseph Suaalii would count as Roosters rookies because they made their first-grade debut for the Tricolours, despite spending time in other junior systems. It’s why clubs such as the Roosters and the Storm, with only a small catchment of local juniors, aren’t disadvantaged. Like the other sides, they would be incentivised to promote those already within their system rather than simply buying over the top of them.
Modelling off the past decade reveals the entire strategy would have cost only an additional $49,687 per club, a relatively small price to pay to promote from within and slow the constant churn of players across the competition.
“The root source of team identity is the blooding of rookies,” the document states. “So, when teams recruit high quantities of players, they inadvertently block pathways for their internal rookies. It is an unintended consequence but has long-term implications on the purity of their roster …
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“Across the last decade, 766 existing first-graders were recruited. Yet in the same period only 666 rookies were debuted. The deficit of 100, indicative of a dependent culture whereby some clubs prefer to import the finished product rather than offer opportunities to their own … Ultimately, the selection of debutants benefits the entire NRL regardless of their origin.”
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The salary-cap proposal that could revolutionise the game
Source: Philippines Alive
