LeagueNews.co | Jess Malloy
Melbourne Storm captain Harry Grant has expressed his concerns regarding the new interchange rules set to be implemented in the 2026 NRL competition.
The interchange bench is set to expand from four to six players in the upcoming season, which could result in many players spending significant time on the sidelines as backups for injuries.
Though coaches will have the option of selecting six players during a game, only four can be activated for play.
Grant shared his apprehensions with Nine, noting that he believes a considerable number of players could be sidelined from top-tier matches due to being benched each week.
"I do get a little bit worried for a couple of guys, there could be potentially three guys that sit on the bench, and don't get to play many minutes, or any footy over a long period of time throughout the season," Grant said.
"That's probably one thing that does concern me a little bit, given we're not increasing the interchanges [from eight], there will be a lot of guys that don't get to play much footy during the season."
Match-day squads will increase from 17 to 19 players, meaning some selected each week will go through the routines of captain's run and match-day preparation but may not see any action in the game, and could potentially miss playing in reserve grade depending on the timing of the matches each weekend.
In situations where reserve grade games occur first, players in the 19-man squad might be unlikely to participate at all.
This poses a challenging scenario for rookie players who may not get actual game time but are still involved in the first-grade processes without gaining valuable on-field experience.