The FFA are totally taking the piss with this "prove you're not a liability" line.
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The only way you could possibly call the Nix a liability is if you very specifically frame the question in terms of maximising the potential amount of TV money that the broadcaster is willing to pay, and that is driven by ratings.
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Their attack on the Nix is an ill-conceived, slightly desperate, knee-jerk reaction by them to an overall ratings plunge in the league, which the FFA themselves are accountable for and which they don't seem to know what to do about.
The good news is that quite a few people, including club owners and media, seem to have seen straight through this. The FFA won't back down completely but I'm hopeful that Welnix may now be able to take up a 4 year extension on much more agreeable terms if they are also willing to compromise.
I think, after the flurry of opinions, articles, blogs etc., that this is one part of the equation, with the other being the entry of the third Sydney team at the expense of the Nix - which means that the FFA doesn't have to change it's cost structure until the new TV deal with Fox is renegotiated.
As everyone has noted - massively short-term in thinking and as you have pointed out, extremely tenuous logic to cover over incompetency/dishonesty.
But when you call out a bully for being a liar and a scumbag, but can't actually do anything to nullify the bully, it would take a complete change of thinking on the bully's part to back down.
4/5 more years seems likely but will be a pretty strained relationship from here on in.
"Phoenix till they lose"
Posting 97% bollox, 8% lies and 3.658% genuine opinion.
Genuine opinion: FTFFA