Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold has called out the NRL over player welfare after his side played five games in 25 days.
Seibold claimed the NRL “has never been more demanding” and said he does not understand how the NRL comes up with the season schedule.
Manly played the Storm at home, the Sharks in Perth and Dragons back at Brookvale in the past 11 days and lost all three games.
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Seibold said his club will have to play three games in 11 days again during the Origin period and called on the NRL to act ahead of next year.
Other clubs have also copped it, with the Raiders playing in Vegas, Townsville and Darwin in the opening six rounds.
“That’s five games in 25 days. The NRL has never been more demanding and we talk about player welfare and wellbeing and so on and I just don’t understand how… not only five games in 25 days but three in 11 days,” Seibold said after his side’s 20-18 loss to the Dragons on Thursday night.
“I see it’s the same at other clubs, the Raiders, the Sharks… but just look at us for a minute. Three games in 11 days then we lose two days going to Perth, it’s a five-hour trip each way.
“I don’t understand it.
“The competition has never been more demanding, the GPS data is through the roof this year.
“I just don’t understand. It’s something that needs to be looked at. It’s not an excuse for how we played but it’s something that needs to be looked at.
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“I don’t know how you play in Perth on Saturday, fly home Sunday then turn around for a Thursday night game. We had 20 minutes on the field (at training) this entire week.”
Seibold then pointed to the AFL where a five-day turnaround doesn’t exist for clubs and said he expected his protest to fall on deaf ears.
“It’s across the competition and it needs to be looked at,” Seibold said.
“In the AFL they don’t have less than six-day turnarounds and their sport they run a lot more and don’t have the same level of contact.
“Nobody is going to listen to one coach, but I’m just putting it out there. We talk about wellbeing and player welfare… this is just something that needs to be looked at.
“It’s not going to change this year, of course, the draw (is out). We have another three games in 11 days through the Origin period, four if you’re playing Origin.
“It’s not a whinge because it’s not just us… it’s across the board.”
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