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Message: [QUOTE="Foordy, post: 2831627, member: 1769"] [SIZE=6][B]Cowboys coach Paul Green turns up heat on NRL over scheduling[/B][/SIZE] Peter Badel, The Courier-MailMay 2, 2017 8:00pm COWBOYS coach Paul Green has called for a radical overhaul of State of Origin as the NRL confirmed the Anzac Test is headed for the scrapheap. Green has turned up the heat on the NRL over scheduling, calling for the code’s showpiece event — State of Origin — to be played in October after the grand final. As part of his representative blueprint, Green also wants the NRL to consider compensation if his star Cowboy, Johnathan Thurston, is injured in Friday night’s Anzac Test. The NRL’s representative weekend has turned farcical with more than 50 players rejecting the opportunity to play in the final instalment of the City-Country Origin clash. Meanwhile, the Kangaroos’ preparations for the Anzac Test have been turbulent, with Shannon Boyd succumbing to injury and Thurston racing the clock with a calf complaint. Green says the Anzac Test is only one danger to NRL players and clubs, claiming the six-week Origin series has now become too brutal to be held mid-season. “We should play Origin after the grand final,” he said. “The NRL comp should run from start to finish. Then they should have a rep season with State of Origin and then the Test matches after that. “I know the history of Origin and how it’s come to become a midweek thing. But it’s grown into such a huge beast that the quality of the NRL suffers during that period. The season goes on hold. “The quality of the game wouldn’t be diminished if it was played after the grand final. You would still see the best players. That’s the drawcard. As a code we have to trust in how good the game is going to be.” The ARL Commission was considering retaining the Anzac Test as part of the code’s $1.8 billion broadcasting deal, which begins from next season. But Friday night’s clash will be the final instalment of the mid-season Anzac Test. An Australia-New Zealand showdown next year will be rebranded and staged after the NRL grand final. An NRL spokesman confirmed the trans-Tasman shake-up but insisted the ARL Commission would not be relegating Origin to a post-season series. “State of Origin usually makes up the top three rating shows of the year — it is a showpiece for rugby league,” the spokesman said. “We will not be tinkering with the timing. “The NRL regains more control of the draw from 2018 and we will be moving the Test between Australia and New Zealand to the end of the season. “So, again, there will be less pressure on the top players during the premiership.” [SIZE=4][B][/B][/SIZE] Green is sweating on the welfare of Cowboys champion Thurston and believes clubs should be entitled to salary-cap assistance if a star player is injured in the representative arena. “At the end of the day, the clubs pay players’ wages — we hold all the risk,” Green said. “There’s lots of things the NRL can do. If the NRL says they value international football, but if a player is injured, well perhaps they can make their wage exempt under the salary cap. “At the moment, there’s none of that — we (the NRL clubs) have to foot the bill for guys who injure themselves in rep games. “If you lose a big-name rep player in these games, as a club it makes it very difficult to win the comp. “Someone needs to take charge. Where does the NRL value the NRL comp? Where does the NRL value the clubs and how they run their business and how does the NRL value rep footy?” [URL]http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/cowboys-coach-paul-green-turns-up-heat-on-nrl-over-scheduling/news-story/dcb3df1eb9385b2a657c6e803d58c731[/URL] [/QUOTE]

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