So guys it was $1.7 mill over 5 years with 700,000 of that being in 2010.

So that equates to $250k over per year for the previous 4 years which is about 6% of the salary cap which equates to one average-good NRL player i.e. Quinn. IMO we could have still won the titles in 2007 & 2009 without rorting the system, but we'll never know.

I don't believe we're being stripped of the WCC.

Fair enough we cheated and deserve to be punished, but this may see the end of RL in Melbourne. We have no points this year and even if we win games we don't accrue any points. We have nothing to play for this year. Basically it puts RL in Victoria of the brink of extinction, which I hope none of you true RL fans would wish for.

UC the majority of the players you mention were either recruited as unknowns or juniors.

Michael Crocker was probably the biggest name signing in the storm history and he came because he was unwanted by any other club due to his history.

We have the best coach in the RL world. Under the Storm coaching staff many of those players have been converted from no-names who couldn't get a run out with teams to rep players.

Matt King - bin man who couldn't get a game at Cronulla to Australian Rep
Slater, Smith, Johnson - unwanted by Brisbane - not good enough as youngsters
White - couldn't get a game at St George - NSW and Australian Rep
Newton, Finch - unwanted by their clubs half way through , signed by Storm for minimum pay as there contracts were paid by the Newcastle and Parramatta respectively.

I could go on, but hopefully you get the idea. It wasn't like we had the Australian team playing for us. We just took loads of average players and helped them reach their potential.

We have look at all the players Storm have lost since 2005

Geyer
Webster
King
Folau
Chambers
Hill
Orford
Kafusi
Friend
Cross
Newton
Crocker
Johnson

A pretty decent team I think you'd agree.

Anyway just don't kick a team (our understanding is that the coach and players had no knowledge the cap was being rorted) or it's fans when it's down.

It happens too much in this great sport of ours.

I became used to as a fax fan, but now Storm as well. It's too much.

Its always the fans and the players that suffer! That barsteward Waldron should be fined and made to pay the Storm some money back. Also Time in Prison and a ban for him ever to be involved in running any Sports Club should be brought in. No doubt there are others who knew who should also be sacked and made to pay a fine to the Storm.
I believe the Penalty had to be Harsh as it was so blatant. The Doggies suffered a similar penalty a couple of years ago. However I think not allowing Melbourne Storm to pick up any points is a step to far. And as you say could easily destroy the Club and the game in Victoria. The Sports of Rugby Union and AFL would never have done this and sometimes our sport shoots itself in the foot and causes more damage than needed.

To be honest I think Melbourne will ride this and come out the other side, although not unscathed. I notice sponsors are deserting in droves, which if they had any b@lls they would sit back and think about before reacting. Sure nobody wants negative publicity, but if they just sat tight for now then made a big deal about being part of a new, fresh and honest storm I am sure they would be better thought of.

Waldron seems to be behind much of this according to the press and he deserves what he gets. Only worry is what will happen to some of the innocents. I heard Ray Warren saying this morning that it is most likely the fringe and lower paid players who will suffer rather than the superstars. With that in mind, I hope Gareth Widdop is okay in the fallout. Sure he could find another club, but I reckon he still needs to continue his apprenticeship at the Storm before he moves on.

What of their future? many will turn their back on the club for the rest of this season at least, with there being nothing to play for, compunding the financial implications massively.

Melbourne is already an AFL city by some stretch, this could increase it by a few inches at least

There's no room under other clubs salary caps to take on the superstars, so the only route would be SL or RU. Even then I think there would be limited take up. This will really show which players wear the badge with pride and are willing to tough it out. We already know Cooper Cronk does, so lets see which other ones come out fighting. The ones who dont then good riddance.

the decision not to allow them to pick up any points for the rest of season is stupid. how can fans and players be motivated to go watch or play. think a certain way to get the club to fold.

Gus Gould was saying on the rugby this morning that the Storm should pick however many players it takes & pay them off to get under the salary cap, then let the rest of them play on obtaining points etc for the rest of the season starting from this weekend.

Maybe we can get a few on dual contracts??

I'd be very surprised and shall carefully word this but the main point and whether its bad luck is that 'they got caught' and others must be checking their books very carefully now, it sounds harsh, maybe it is, maybe its NRL actually stamping down on this, clubs should be encouraged to play by the rules set down and agreed with their knowledge, i dont think its anything new.
I was really disapointed when the SL franchises were dished out and the first thing some of the luckier clubs did was go out and sign a load of Aussies, not quite what they were told to do i.e. invest in Stadia and youth development.
I would encourage our buffoons to sit up and take notice and act accordingly if irregularities are found in our game, our games not as strong as theirs though so i doubt we would. Sometimes you do wonder how clubs make salary caps with lower attendances, granted theirs sponsors and sugar daddies and other mechanisms, it should be about Rugby and not money though, so i applaud the NRL for putting the dignity of the game in the long term first.

I may have got it wrong, but I'm sure I read somewhere that they would not be awarded any points at all this season.

you r right there mate, they will be bottom of league on a big fat zero come end of the season,