NRL clubs who chose to study headquarters’ finances in a desperate search for funds after the coronavirus pandemic would have a) found no hidden funds, and b) could have examined the books earlier, given they demanded access to NRL financial records some time ago.

Clubs and the Rugby League Players Association protest about a lack of transparency, yet a simple addition of Rugby League Central’s expenses, as detailed on page 125 of the annual report, dated October 31, 2019, would have shown a total expenditure of $182m.

Admittedly, this is an excessive amount, particularly considering the belt-tightening that now envelopes the entire code.

But, as the NRL’s chief financial officer Tony Crawford points out, annual expenses (excluding broadcast contra) were $498m against a plan of $476m, which is a $22m increase. This compares to actual revenue (excluding contra) of $529m, against a plan of $501m, an increase of $28m. So, as Crawford says, “On a surplus view, the NRL outperformed the plan by $6m”.