Smith's a decent prospect and Eastmonds our best looking half back for a while, he's gone pretty much.
2 in a year who would have played for Eng over the coming few years, only 2 but watch them count up

If Eastmond goes it'll be a bit disappointing. Smith is decent but emminently replaceable.

The problem isn't the cap, the problem is money. Union has more because of its cash cow international matches.

In the short-term there isn't much that can be done about it.

hmm but would these players be tempted by even a little top up from the RFL?

Only if it's more then Union is prepared to offer and due to the reasons already identified that would be very unlikely. Spend the money on juniors who want to play League.

The only thing I can think of that would make more money available, without actually making more money, is reducing the matchday squad to 16 and the squad to 24 (actually gives you more depth proportionally over the season, though less during a match).

Would the cash this freed up be used to fend off Union or predate on the NRL?

Actually with limits being placed on imports, cash as well as opportunities should be freed up for British players.

The day we try and compete wih rugby union financially is the day we can kiss our game goodbye. Suicide.

Surely Smith and Eastmond did!

But don’t anymore. Who knows, give it two years and they may decide they want to play League again, all without giving in to agents touting their clients around for the best financial deal for them… err, sorry, their clients. It’s just part of the food chain, League is the poorer relation and will always be outbid by Union and English Union will always be outbid by French RU.

Rather then central contracts their should be an amendment to the SC to only consider 50% of club produced players salary thus enabling the clubs to offer their youngsters a little more (if the are able to).

I've said this before, but

We spent 100 years arguing for a free gangway between the codes, while also arguing that we produce the better players.

Suddenty, RU clubs believe us.


Where's the problem?

Rugby League was FOUNDED on this sh*t!


I wouldn't worry much at all about union looking to steal your players. You have no decent ones to steal!

Your best players write books about how they got one over a club in Wigan and stayed in a club based in St Helens while union players are playing South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, France and the like.


The sad fact is union in Great Britain is so far ahead of Rugby League....I don't think they even know the game exists.

very true.
More peeps play union in England than SA, NZ and OZ combined.

Its not just the numbers though.

Its the quality of the player produced. Its the level, on a world scale, that they compete at. Its the way the RFU and increasingly its clubs are looking at the larger picture and realizing that the strength of their competing clubs is in direct relation to the strength of themselves.

The RFU look at their version of the world cup with the idea of doing what ever it takes to win it.

The RFL....eh....we're really good as it is. We'll win it OUR way.....


Its a disgrace!

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.

But, in reality, how many have that luxury?

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.