Playmakers are now a protected species. It's making rugby league boring

The Age

4 days ago

For years, I've been a loud voice when it comes to protecting playmakers in the NRL.
It's been on two fronts, especially. Halves and playmakers getting smashed in the back after they've passed, and kick chasers diving at the legs of a player when they kick long.
Now I think we've gone too far. In 2025, halfbacks can now play the game wearing a koala suit – they've officially become a protected species.
Rugby league is built on the contest and competing as hard as you can. We can't take that out of the game just because that is naturally going to lead to some accidents.
Kicking games have never been more important, but under the current rules, all the advantage is with a playmaker and an attacking kicker, to the point that there is no longer a reward for a good defensive set.
Think about a good defensive set from 10 or 20 years ago. If a defensive team were on top, you would see a kicker having to sit 10-15 metres behind the advantage line, or even having to run sideways to get their kick away. That was the reward.
Under the current rules, kickers are happy to sit up closer to the defensive line and hammer a long kick because they know defenders can't touch them.
Mitchell Moses played out of his skin in Origin II last year, but we saw exactly this early in the game. A solid Queensland defensive set had them win each play-the-ball, and Moses was kicking from his own 40-metre line.