Focus turns to safety as NRL's spat with refs gets nasty
Already at odds over the legal and financial implications of a move to a single whistle-blower, the battleground between the NRL and the referees has shifted to the issue of player safety.
The referees union has slammed the NRL as “arrogant” and claimed any cost savings would be “peanuts” on the eve of an arbitration hearing at the Fair Work Commission starting on Saturday. In an inflammatory press release, the Professional Rugby League Match Officials added that player safety would be compromised as concussions and illegal play would be harder to identify.
That drew a strong rebuke from ARLC chairman Peter V’landys, who believes the game will be safer under the proposed protocols.
“What we’re doing for that middle referee is putting two full-time referees as touch judges to improve officiating by getting better advice to the main referee,” V’landys said.
“They will then have a roving commission to assist that centre referee. The thing the association is saying lacks so much credibility because it will actually make it safer for players because you’re going to get better officiating with better officials.
“You actually have an additional one because the pocket referee is going to be used on the touchlines and there are going to be two of them. How is having two pocket referees not safer than one?”
ARL Commission chairman Peter V'landys has fired back at the referees union.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer
The parties will enter the two-day hearing opposed on every major issue. The NRL believes going back to one referee will save the game $2 million; the union claims the figure is closer to $500,000. The ARLC claims it carefully considered the union’s submission before ratifying the move; the union claims a lack of consultation constitutes a breach of their enterprise bargaining agreement. Both believe their solution will reduce wrestling and make for a more attractive spectacle.
“The league bosses were simply arrogant with this one-ref decision,” the PRLMO statement said.
“They were like a bull in a china shop. They ignored the unanimous view of a Project Apollo discussion panel held on 11 May, 2020. Representatives there included players, coaches and clubs, all of whom agreed that the two-referee model was superior. They were just ignored.”
The impasse is a source of frustration for V’landys. The Racing NSW boss has deftly got all stakeholders - including players, clubs, governments and broadcasters - on board for the May 28 resumption. However, the referees continue to dig in, although they have ruled out strike action if they are unsuccessful. V'landys has already indicated they will appeal if the decision goes against them.
“We should be putting all of our resources and energy into getting the game started and what are we doing? We’re spending two days of the weekend before it before a commission,” V’landys said.
“How is it helping the game? Like it or not, the game is regulated by the commission, not an association. We should be able to make policies and rules that maximise revenues to the game.
“All of the other participant groups, through having a relationship, have got what they wanted. This association, through their confrontational and aggressive approach … is not doing any favours to their members in the long term.”
The NRL has resolved to keep all 22 full-time squad members on the payroll for this year and next despite the financial impacts of the coronavirus outbreak.
The case, set to be heard on Saturday and Sunday, is one of the first involving the JobKeeper amendments and could have important consequences for other workplaces.