Independent Rugby League Commission Now!

Want a game the fans own? A game that will be owned and administered by a non-profit company? A game where all profits in the future are retained for rugby league? Well sign the petition.

Independent Rugby League Commission Now Believes:
- That the word Independent is the key.
- That any jobs for mate’s scenario in the Commission - will be detrimental to the future of rugby league.
- That each authority needs to have an evenly weighted representation.
- That the focus is not only on the NRL but on continued game development and the survival of country rugby league.
- That the lesser state leagues in SA, WA, Vic, NT and Tas be heard.

Key people in Rugby League circles have for too long been saying “we have a great product” or “we are the best TV sport”. This means nothing if from the grass roots level to the elite level we don’t have a strategic plan. A plan to encourage kids to play, keep them in the game and show them that there is a path to professionalism that is not farcical and worth taking, a plan that shows a future and builds immunity from other sports. A great product and TV sport also means nothing if the games organisational structure and major bodies look like and work together like water and oil…. they just don’t mix. There’s the NRL, ARL, NSWRL, CRL, QRL, VRL, TRL, SARL, NTRL and WARL all pulling against each other in different directions up against entities like the “AFL Commission” who are heading full steam down their own strategic paths.

Rugby league supporters should not only be worried about their own clubs survival in today’s tough market but should be even more concerned about their games future. Rugby League and the NRL in particular are not just names or brands to us they are our social, sporting and daily grind/mental relief on life. I watched a great interview of the famous Australian surfer Mark Occhilupo. He said that Jack McCoy once told him that in life "You only need three things," he said, "someone to love, something to look forward to something to do." I bet those words sit true for Rugby League fans and their feeling about the game.

Before the 2010 NRL season all NRL clubs and Rugby League bodies agreed in principle to form an Independent Commission. It is now mid season and talk of an Independent Commission has stalled, gone silent, mouths shut etc and the silence is deafening.

I say lets get off our behinds and let the current bodies of our great game know that we as their customers are not happy. Let’s tell them that we want action, we want change and that we want the sleeping giant that is Rugby League to once again wake up and stand proud and tall. Let them know that we want an Independent Rugby League Commission!