Former NRL flyer turned pundit Denan Kemp has called for an overhaul of the Dally M Medal voting system, with the nature of suspensions in the modern game having evolved.
In recent years, the NRL has cracked down on high tackles and dangerous contact, which has seen a rise in the amount of suspensions across the competition.
Current rules state that any player who spends two games or more sidelined due to suspension are immediately ineligible for the Dally M Medal or selection in the Team of the Year.
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But for Kemp, that system is out of date.
“These rules about suspension were brought in when the game was totally different,” Kemp said on SEN.
“These rules were brought in when you could shoulder charge a bloke in the head and everyone would cheer.
“Now if you touch a blokes head, or you accidentally land on someone’s ankle, it is not an intentional hip drop… and you are out for two or more weeks, you can’t win a Dally M.
“Or a Dally M position, we have to change those rules. It is crazy to me a guy can fall on someone’s heel in Round 1 and then he misses out on the opportunity of a lifetime.
“We have become so much more precautious in our punishments, why doesn’t our rules reflect that? Why doesn’t the Dally M system reflect that?
“You are much more likely to be suspended now, so we have to make it much more lenient.”
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Harry Grant and Joseph Tapine are both not eligible for any Dally M Awards, with both top contenders to take out their respective positions in the Team of the Year.
And while those players were punished for four play, their suspensions don’t warrant them being rubbed out according to Kemp.
The former Broncos winger called for a higher threshold, in line with the way dangerous contact is officiated in the modern game.
“If you get suspended for four or six weeks, then it’s fair enough, that’s foul play,” he said.
“But if it’s really innocuous stuff… that’s just apart of the game. The more aggressive you are, the less likely you are to win a Dally M.
“If there’s a suspension and it’s bad, 100 per cent, stuff like that they don’t deserve (the honour).”
James Tedesco is the heavy favourite to take out the 2025 Dally M Medal, while Luke Metcalf led the voting when it went behind closed doors after Round 12.
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As for how the voting works, Ahead of the 2023 season the NRL made several changes to the process, with two independent judges handing out six points each on a 3-2-1 basis.
It could mean that a player who is five votes behind in the final round of the NRL regular season could overtake the leader if they manage to pull in six votes.
So, players can receive a maximum of six votes a game or poll anywhere between zero and five votes for one game.
Meanwhile, when it comes to the Team of the Year, judges cote at regular intervals throughout the season on who has been the best players in their respective position.
However, if a player comes in the top three of the overall leaderboard, they automatically earn selection in their respective position.
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