Quote: rover49 "The problem is that there is no restrictions on what the RFU clubs can pay, while RL clubs are limited (even if they have the cash in the bank). In effect, we are shooting ourselves in the foot by trying to make our sport more competitive, if we start to lose our best youngsters because of salary cap restraints, how is that going to get us closer to the Aussies at international level.'"
There are limits on what English RU clubs can pay. That's a big part of why they are losing players in turn to French RU.
Letting Leeds and Wigan sign up all the best British players might stop a few leaving (it is hardly a flood at the moment and a decent proportion seem to regret it), but then you've just swapped one problem (an unbalanced SL) for the
possibility of solving another. Because we are kidding ourselves that we'd be significantly closer to Australia if Smith and Eastmond stayed - especially if they were playing weak opponents week in, week out. RL is much bigger in Eastern Australia - they were better even when we were taking players [ifrom[/i Union. Some problems don't have solutions.
Out of interest - do people think their club is sustainably capable of paying out say £2M in wages (a roughly 25% increase, but still half the Guiness Premiership cap; though they do have bigger squads, of course)? I'll start - very much doubt it.
