Canberra Raiders chief executive Don Furner says critics should consider the brevity of NRL players' careers before judging their pay demands.
The players have knocked back the ARL commission's massive $1.32 billion pay deal - the biggest in the NRL's history.
It would see the average NRL salary jump from $325,000 to $400,000 - a 23 per cent increase - and well above the average wage in Australia.
Those discussions have dragged on to such an extent there's still no salary cap for next season - despite the financial year officially starting on November 1.
