Rugby league's refereeing innovation was the most enduring week-to-week talking point of the entire NRL season. Barely a round went past, let alone a game, where the bunker didn't feature heavily in the wash-up.

It's easy to find outrage when you go looking for it, but as it turns out, slowing down the play and letting viewers pick it apart frame-by-frame only sharpens the debate. Referees boss Tony Archer, after another controversial match, went on record as saying the bunker had been correct with 99 per cent of calls.

Until they clean up that one per cent, we suspect the bunker is going to remain a favourite punching bag for fans.

Kieran Foran

The New Zealand international and former Manly star was supposed to be the crown jewel for the Eels in 2016. But much like their horror season, nothing went right for the brilliant but deeply troubled playmaker. He would check himself into rehab for mental health issues in April, find himself linked to controversial gambler and former brothel owner Eddie Hayson and when he returned mid-year, injured his shoulder.

Parramatta would eventually grant him a release from the four-year, $5 million deal that promised so much but ended in heartbreak for all involved. Now he's signed for the Warriors, but still needs clearance from the NRL before he can return in 2017.

Match fixing

With betting and professional sports seemingly joined at the hip these days, there was more disappointment than great surprise as allegations of match fixing cast a shadow over the NRL season. Police began preliminary inquiries in June and a strike force to investigate potential match fixing was announced just days before the start of the finals series.

Fairfax Media has been central to the reporting, revealing that a match between Manly and Parramatta in April was among those being reviewed. With the NSW Crime Commission able to utilise its extraordinary powers, expect no stone to remain unturned.

Back in the NRL: Jarryd Hayne. Photo: Getty Images

Jarryd Hayne.

If Jarryd Hayne's dream involved long walks on the beach, sweeping surf breaks and a boutique stadium near a shopping centre in the Gold Coast suburbs, he should feel right at home at the Titans. We can all thank the Lord that Hayne has returned home from the NFL to join the Titans, mostly because there's no need to speculate on his next move and we can finally see what he has to offer as a rugby league player after some time away from the code.

He helped the Titans sneak into the finals and their roster looks good enough to feature heavily again next year. He may need to reconsider his off-field acquaintances after being snapped with a Hell's Angel bound for a court date for assault.

Parramatta's cap debacle

When all was stripped bare, the Eels were the very picture of dysfunction at the top level and would pay a hefty price, financially and on the NRL ladder. In July, the NRL smashed them with the loss of 12 competition points, a one million fine, the loss of Auckland Nines title and cash ($370,000) and the deregistration of five officials. Fans were rightfully mortified when it was revealed the Eels had broken the cap in five previous seasons, then entered 2016 more than half a million dollars over the limit.

Hidden payments and fake invoices were just part of the madness, while a fire sale saw them offload a number of key players, including hooker Nathan Peats. They plummeted out of finals contention and the year was a write-off before it even really began.

Green machine: Fans and players celebrate Canberra's victory over Penrith. Photo: Elesa Kurtz

The rise of Ricky and the Raiders

It was inevitable Ricky Stuart would eventually find a football club that responded to his particular brand of madness. And at Canberra, he has found his spiritual home. In a sporting town that always tends to feel like the rest of the world is plotting against them, Stuart found his perfect match. Of course, he starred there in the days when the Green Machine were on top of the rugby league world but since then, it has been slim pickings in the nation's capital.

Stuart helped convince his rising stars and bits-and-pieces players to play fast and free, which they did all the way to the top four. It's been a mighty resurgence. And mighty entertaining.

Origin brings the hate

State of Origin cannot be killed. Ever. Forget lop-sided results, this year's series (won again by Queensland) lowered relations between the rival camps to perhaps the lowest level in the history of the concept. The Blues won the dead-rubber game three in Sydney before being labelled as "disrespectful" as they wandered off while Queensland were giving victory speeches and receiving the shield.

Later, Maroons forward Corey Parker would go on radio and say the rival camps simply didn't like each other and relations between the states could be at their worst in years. The Blues may have lost again but game one 2017 can't arrive quickly enough.

Semi failure

The Eels were already at the centre of most rugby league controversies when star winger Semi Radradra added to the misery. Already a controversial selection for Australia after choosing his adopted nation over Fiji thanks to rugby league's flimsy eligibility rules, he would later go AWOL back to his home island for 12 days.

When he returned, he was nabbed by Sydney police at the airport and promptly charged with three counts of domestic violence as alleged by former partner Perina Ting. He would be allowed to return to the field by the Eels some weeks later under the presumption of innocence.

A timeless rivalry

The 2015 grand final was thought by many to be the greatest of all time. But Brisbane and North Queensland weren't done there. They continued their astonishing run of electric games throughout the season, with a field goal separating them on both occasions during the regular season, before extra time was needed in their elimination final.

Anthony Milford did the honours in round four to get Brisbane home 21-20, then Johnathan Thurston returned the favour in round 11 to triumph 19-18. Thurston again had a hand in the final, throwing the final pass for Michael Morgan in a 26-20 classic.

Rugby league has rarely been much better.

Thanks for the memories: Robbie Farah bids farewell at his beloved Leichhardt Oval. Photo: AAP

Robbie Farah

The Wests Tigers great spent much of the year fighting a running battle with his coach, Jason Taylor, only to finally say farewell at the end of the year amid emotional scenes at his beloved Leichhardt Oval. Still considered the best hooker in NSW by Laurie Daley, Farah was dropped to the lower grades by Taylor late in the season and that's where he spent the remainder of the campaign.

He had already relinquished the captaincy and Taylor insisted Farah had been demoted as part of his build for the club's future. South Sydney have snapped him up for 2017.