Mat Rogers calls for NRL to move Grand Final back to afternoon kick-off

SEN’s Mat Rogers has made a desperate plea to the NRL to return the Grand Final to its traditional afternoon kick-off slot after the wildly successful AFL decider last week.

The NRL ditched a nearly century-old tradition in 2001 when the kick-off was moved from 3pm to 8pm. The game’s organisers maneuvered between a few different start times before settling on the 7:30pm slot in 2013.

The debate over the decider’s start time rages on every year, with traditionalists like Rogers referring to the AFL’s continued success with the afternoon kick-off.

“Jeez, it (AFL Grand Final) was good during the day,” Rogers said on SEN 1170 Sportsday.

“Make it happen NRL, why not, it’s going to rate the house down anyway.”

The 2024 AFL decider racked in a national total TV audience 4.024 million whilst the NRL Grand Final in 2023 drew 3.52 million viewers.

“1:30 kick-off or 2:30 kick-off, who cares, just do it during the day,” Rogers added.

“It gives you time to celebrate afterwards, chat with your mates and hang out… reminisce and do the full game post-mortem, what was good what was bad.

“The game finishes now and everyone’s exhausted and people head home, it’s silly.”