Re "I don't understand hating on 9 because they paid a big amount of $$$$ for a significant amount of broadcast rights. "
If you saw Gyngells kerry packer impersonation in the press conference and his arrogant claims about owning the game you might understand.
ITs worth considering just how outrageous the advantage handed to the Broncos with the regular 7 day turnaround is. There are very few sporting competitions in the world - amateur included, that don't adhere strictly to the fundamental sporting principal of a level playing field. Without that your competition is corrupted. And that is what is occurring.
To hell with the commercial imperatives of nine, if the Broncos win the premiership with this massive advantage a lot of people, including myself will be mightily p'd off. THe AFL seem to be able to impose certain non-negotiables when putting together broadcast deals (day GF,s high quotas of live free to air etc)- the ARL just appear to be whores for the dollar sum they can wave around . Ultimately however these decisions will impact on the financial health of the game down the track.