NRL considers major rule changes

The NRL is considering the introduction of 100-minute matches played over four quarters, in what would be the most radical changes to the game in rugby league history.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the NRL’s rules and competition committee proposed the revolutionary plans to NRL CEO Dave Smith last week, as well as NRL chairman John Grant, Head of Football Todd Greenberg and Brisbane Broncos head coach Wayne Bennett.

Under the proposals, matches would consist of four quarters of 25 minutes with five-minute breaks in between and 10 minutes at halftime. The changes would reportedly help generate extra revenue from TV networks through quarter-time advertising breaks.

The Daily Telegraph reports that the committee also proposed increasing the interchange bench from four players to eight to avoid more workload on players, as well as expanding the competition to 18 teams.

Initial discussions have reportedly been positive, although any changes, if agreed upon, would take several years to implement.