Desperate to curb the usual off-season controversies, the NRL have created a new competition for vulnerable players.
Tenuously named The Summer NRL Cup, a hand-picked team of 17 players, known as ‘the Bad Boys’, will play three 40-minute practice games a week (with two 20-minute halves) in suburban Sydney against emerging nations and junior sides. the games will start in early December and finish after the Australia Day weekend. Former Raider, Rooster, and Shark Todd Carney will coach the team.
“After the year we’ve had, we can’t afford players letting loose and making idiots of themselves, so we’ve decided to put this comp in place,” said NRL CEO Andrew Abdo. “While there’s no premiership, the Bad Boys will receive a trophy if they win more games than they lose. We decided to halve the game length to keep the boys fresh and fit in as many matches as possible. It’s the best way to keep those vulnerable players out of trouble.’
As arguably the game’s most famous troublemaker, Todd Carney is happy to be involved. “I made a few mistakes in my career, so if I can lead these boys and give them a positive distraction, then I’ll be happy.”
The team will have a strict 10pm curfew, are only allowed two drinks after games, and won’t be allowed to leave their training facility.
“We’ve spared no expense to keep the boys entertained: we’ve got XBoxs, Playstations, Switchs, a massive pool, a boxing gym, and a big TV with every streaming service imaginable, including Kayo, so there’s no reason to leave their facilities,” said Abdo. “Anyone who breaks the curfew will be dropped, regardless of reputation; we’ve got plenty of bad boys to choose from.”
The NRL are in talks with Sportsbet to sponsor the competition.
