Fitzgerald proposes trading window - Sports News - Fanatics - the world's biggest events

Fitzgerald proposes trading window

By Daniel Pace 14/07/2004 08:04:27 PM Comments (0)

Parramatta chief executive Denis Fitzgerald has proposed a one-month "trading window" as a solution to the debate over the controversial June 30 anti-tampering deadline.

But NRL chief executive David Gallop said he doubted it would solve the problem of fans discovering whether their favourite players would be wearing the colours of another club before the current season had ended.

Fitzgerald has called for players to be free to negotiate contracts from July 1 to July 31 in a scheme similar to European soccer's January transfer window.

Any players who fail to secure a new contract in that period must wait until the day after the NRL grand final to re-enter contract talks with other clubs.

"It means there's added pressure on players, if they want to leave, to get their affairs in order in July," said Fitzgerald.

"That's four weeks before the semis start so you don't have any negotiating during the semi-final period and we know it's all over and done with by July."

Gallop said the stumbling block to Fitzgerald's idea was the disenchantment of fans who knew in July that a player wouldn't be at their club next year.

"Fans connect with the game by saying `that's my team'. They don't connect with the game by saying `that was my team' in July," said Gallop.

"That's what's causing distress for fans.

"I've been in Canberra today and they're quite distressed down there (with Ruben Wiki, Joel Monaghan and Luke Davico leaving at the end of this season)."

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