The problem with the Rays wasn't so much the injuries, but that in the cause of balancing players from all 4 SS clubs, the combined entity ending up being weaker than the sum of its parts.
Randwick, Easts and Uni should be in the one JV, leaving country free to be a country team.
2 big problems there. Been there, done that - the Fleet did not work. Where would Country source their players from?
IMO there is a lot of negativity on the Stars that is a hang over from the last decade of Uni dominance rather than for sound reasons. The Stars were severeley impacted by injuries - Dennis, Carter, Latu, Winton, etc etc. They also saw less of Betham, Willan, Clunies-Ross, Roberts, Skelton and Hickey than they might have otherwise expected. If the NRC had been played in 2013, they would have had Phipps and Foley at 9 and 10. The lesson for them is that they need better injury cover for their squad if they wish to be a 1 team NRC club.
One of the big positives for the Stars is that they have the most precious commodity in this comp, money. As a result, they must be retained. Are we sure that one of the other NSW clubs won't fall over financially before next season?
However the Stars must build a better fan base. Their crowds were not good.