A Horror NRL Season Looks to Head Out Positively

If you are from New South Wales (and most likely other states), unless you slept under a rock for the entire year, you would have heard about the salary cap scandal involving the Melbourne Storm.
Panic erupted. Blame was laid at every corner possible.
Above all, the game had become tarnished immediately.
Salary cap breaches had happened plenty of times in the past, but not to an extent which warranted a removal of earnings and, more importantly, premierships.
People started pointing the finger at David Gallop. It was a pretty easy escape. Everyone expected him to clean up the mess and put the matter in the past.
So he removed their premierships (rightly so), removed all their points and prevented the earning of any more (again, the right move) but also allowed them to play on for the rest of the season.
This inevitably led to backlash, but Gallop's tenacity shined through.
He couldn't simply tell them to stop playing and sit out the rest of the year. What would the sponsors say? What would club members say about the matches - that they pay hard earned money to see - suddenly cease to be? How could players be judged for representative duties?
Questions arose, and still do.
They had to play, but measures weren't introduced early enough to ensure that other clubs would not lose out with the current system.
The Warriors' finals hopes currently hang in the balance due to point difference.
But their differential took a massive hit with a 40-6 thrashing at the hands of a determined, but illegal, Melbourne Storm side just three days after the breach was announced.
A solution proposed was that sides that lost to the Storm before the breach should receive the two points that would normally be given to the winning team.
This is seemingly a fair idea. But what do you tell the Sea Eagles and Titans who beat this illegal side? Do they get another two points as well? Or do they sit back with no further points added, while losing teams gain valuable points that weren't fought for as hard?
It would have been preferred that any negative differential suffered against Melbourne didn't count, but it's too late now. Any change this late is far too controversial to even be brought to the edge of the NRL's executive minds.
Like I've said, no-one wins now.
But now to a bit of more positive news, courtesy of page 2 of today's Daily Telegraph.
Plans to create a massive week of Grand Final celebrations around Sydney Harbour have been announced, and is sure to add a much-needed lift to a game that's suffered this year.
Possible ideas include massive projections of footage onto the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge, chances for fans to see their favourite players and a countdown of the greatest plays of the year to name a few.
This proposal could breathe a bit of life back into the injured code, which never seems to have any moment without controversy.
The Telegraph described the move as one that could rival the celebrations around the AFL Grand Final.
Personally, I see it as cover by the NRL board for what has possibly been the worst year the code has ever seen. There's never an end to the woes in League, so perhaps this idea could brighten the back end of the season.
By the way, I heard there was meant to be an independent commission, or was I hearing things?