The NRL’s controversial kick-off trial is set to return this week despite receiving largely negative feedback following its debut in Brisbane last Thursday night.

Flashscore understands that NRL headquarters is expected to approve Thursday night’s clash between the Canterbury Bulldogs and Brisbane Broncos, as well as Sunday afternoon’s meeting between the St George Illawarra Dragons and Parramatta Eels, as the next two matches to feature the experimental rule.

Neither game will have an impact on the NRL top eight, with all four teams already eliminated from the finals race.

The league made its intentions clear earlier this year, planning to use late-season “dead rubber” matches to test the proposed rule in competitive conditions. Under the trial, the team that concedes points is given the choice of whether to kick off or receive possession at the restart.

The rule was originally proposed for the 2026 NRL season in February but was unanimously rejected by all 17 clubs, who argued that it was confusing and unnecessary.

South Sydney coaching great Wayne Bennett is the only active NRL head coach to have publicly backed the trial. Bennett believes the change offers several benefits and argues that teams who do not want to use the option can simply choose to kick off as normal.

“If you don’t want to use the benefits, well just do what you always did, because you’ve got a choice,” Bennett said.

Under the existing rules, the team that concedes a try is required to kick off. Some within NRL headquarters believe the change could help reduce the number of heavy blowouts and one-sided scorelines in the competition.

The trial was first introduced during the Melbourne Storm’s Round 26 clash with Brisbane, a 46-20 victory for Melbourne at Suncorp Stadium. Despite 12 tries being scored during the match, the option to receive the restart was used just three times — all after half-time.

On two of those three occasions, the Storm went on to extend their lead despite being required to kick off at the restart.

The trial quickly drew criticism from several players. Storm captain Harry Grant, vice-captain Cameron Munster and veteran Broncos halfback Ben Hunt all questioned the need for the change following the match.

Grant described it as “a rule to counteract the rules we’ve brought in” and urged the NRL Commission to focus on simplifying the game rather than adding further complexity.

Hunt was similarly critical, saying there was “no need to tinker” with a competition he believes is already in excellent shape.

Grant also took particular issue with the timing of the decision-making process. Under the trial, teams must nominate whether they want to kick off or receive before the conversion is taken.

The Storm skipper questioned what would happen if a team made its decision expecting a two-point conversion to be missed, only for the kick to go over.

“If it’s a draw and a team choose to kick-off or receive and then they go and kick the two points, your decision might be void,” Grant said.

“There’s no real reward for it and I’m pretty strong on that.”

His concerns were echoed by Broncos stand-in captain Patrick Carrigan, who argued that on-field captains should be allowed to make the decision after the conversion has been taken.

Munster also questioned whether the NRL had done enough to consult players before introducing such a significant rule change.

“Sometimes you need to talk to the players as well — we’re not robots,” Munster said.

“We’re all about growing the game and developing it, but it would be nice if we sometimes talk to the players’ association.

“Maybe in trials next year you could experiment with it. It hurts and it stings a little bit because we’re not playing finals, so we’re pretty much guinea pigs tonight.”