The NRL yesterday bowed to pressure over player burnout by tweaking the draw for the 2008 season.
The main change is the re-introduction of a second bye for all teams plus a small reduction of the Monday night schedule.
The changes to Monday night will see the City-Countrymatch revert to Friday evening, with no Monday night games preceding either City-Country or the mid-season test.
Club chief executives agreed that the extra byes should be scheduled after each game of the State Of Origin series to ensure that representative players are guaranteed a week's rest before the finals.
The three post-Origin byes will be scheduled to give maximum relief to those clubs who bear the greatest Origin load and could result in their stars playing one match - being an Origin game - in 24 days.
"This is an issue we have been working on for some time with our broadcasters Fox Sports and Channel Nine," NRL chief executive David Gallop said. "We entered some new territory this year with an extra team and a Monday night schedule, both of which have been highly successful for the game. We also gave a commitment from the start that we would monitor the effects of the changes."
Injured test captain Darren Lockyer, who will miss the rest of 2007 following a knee reconstruction, fully supported the changes.
"From my personal experience as a player you really look forward to the bye," he said. "In today's environment, with every player so fit and strong, the game is getting more and more demanding."
