Suncorp Stadium will see the Storm and Broncos face off in the penultimate round of the season, but this Melbourne vs Brisbane game will not be like the rest: it will test out a controversial rule change.
The so-called ‘kick-off rule’, championed by ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys and seven-time premiership winner Wayne Bennett, stipulates that the team that concedes points, whether that’s from a try, a field goal, or a penalty, will have the option of either kicking or receiving the ball from the ensuing start of play.
A version of this is used in the NFL, in which the team that scores kicks off and gives the conceding team possession.
The rule’s supporters contend that it will help deter significant point swings when one of the teams is dominating possession, thus increasing competition and favouring more unexpected results over blowouts.
On the other hand, critics are reluctant to change a rule that has been a part of the game since day one, and are concerned this may change the fabric of the game in a way that’s not justified.
In any case, although there’s been some surprise that the NRL is going ahead with the trial, the Storm vs Broncos game makes sense as a guinea pig, since the teams are out of finals contention and so the result will not impact the finals series.
The proposal first came in the pre-season after a meeting of the top coaches, after which Dave Donaghy urged the NRL not to rush into the change and instead test it out in low stakes games. Of course, now it’s Donaghy’s Bronco’s who will be involved in the first trial.
Both the Broncos and the Storm were only recently eliminated from finals contention, giving the NRL a rare chance of using the previous season’s grand finalists for the trial.
The rule will also be tested in Round 27, when the St George Illawarra Dragons play the Parramatta Eels.
