NRL News - Nocturnal NRL why are most games under lights?
NRL News today examines why so many NRL matches are played at night. With the expansion to 16 teams in 2007, meaning 8 games per weekend, a staggering 75% of all games are now played at night.
Friday night football has been an institution for quite some time now, however the old Saturday day games are no more and we now only see Saturday action at night. Sunday remains the only day where NRL is played under sunlight.
The new Monday fixture for this year is of course at night - why is this? Is it an indication of modern lifestyle? Do people prefer to go out for a 'nightly' attraction? Or is it to do with TV scheduling? Does the night programming suit free to air and pay providers?
This trend looks set to continue, just last week the Wests Tigers announced local government in the Campbelltown area is set to spend approx. 10 million on upgraded lighting at the Campbelltown Sports Ground in an effort to attract more Tigers games.
This scenario also seems to favour some teams; teams that are fitter and play dynamic, carefree football are much more suited to the day games. During a day game, they are able to deal with the hotter conditions better and also receive better handling through dryer conditions and a grippier ball. Teams such as Melbourne and the Cowboys revel in the daytime environment.
On the flipside teams such as Parramatta and Canberra who struggled with consistency last season, we are able to slug it out in night matches and the differing conditions at night allowed them to compete on a more even keel. The slippery ball, the slightly slower gamespeed through softer underfoot conditions may have helped them slightly. This is also true of course for rainy conditions regardless of night or day, where both teams are restricted to simple football.
Why ARE so many games played at night? NRL News would like to hear your opinion.
Source NRL News
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