Australian Rugby League Commissioner John Grant will "return from a successful Four Nations to a National Rugby League at 'flashpoint' as club chairmen demand movement on a raft of key issues during a meeting in Sydney on Wednesday," according to Phil Lutton of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. Grant will face club bosses "left frustrated by a perceived lack of action on funding and new licence agreements, two of the festering issues set to dominate much of the discussion." Hovering on top of that is the Collective Bargaining Agreement with players, while chairs "will also want information on the savings to be passed on from the scrapping of the national under-20s competition." Clubs will present a "united front" to Grant, who has also "taken some fire" for the extended stay in England alongside NRL CEO Todd Greenberg. Club chairs will also communicate their concerns at the "lack of urgency on key projects and issues that are likely to have a major impact on the shape of the game over coming seasons, while clubs are also pushing for constitutional change that allows them to directly appoint representatives on the commission" (SMH, 11/22).
