If we manage to fit Bateman and a ‘wow’ half back under the cap for next year it’s some impressive salary cap wizardry.

Who have we got coming off? Drinkwater and Nicholson?

Presumably we've created room for Bateman already
and as you say Drinkwater and Nicholson leaving would hopefully leave us the space for a replacement half.

Kassiano Bullock Russell Dudson Nicholson, perhaps Drinkwater.
King counts as £50k plus we were around £100k under cap in 2024 at the start of the season.

I think there is some margin within the cap for 3 players and drafting up academy players.

If true, this is the only bit I really care about…

Plus Dudson, Russell, Bullock ?, has Wood done enough to be retained ?, then a few small salaries as we will part ways with some of the following ; Bardsley -Rowe, Hartill, Lynch, Jake Thewliss possibly, Green, Whitehead ?. We will have to make room of course for the promising U18's like Taylor Wrey but I don't see as many coming through to the first team next year.

It must be a very complicated jigsaw to piece together but I suspect that if we really wanted to keep Bateman we could do it.

Would keep Whitehead and Wood.

Skimming the rules re salary cap I believe that players under 21 and earning <£30k pa don't count towards the cap. If that's the case, and of course I don't know how much individual players are on, then Wood may fall as under 21 but not Whitehead, which would count against him.

I go back to what Sam Burgess said about him wanting to retain Drinkwater but that cap space was tight for next year. We definitely need another experienced half, be that Drinkwater or AN Other, and a lack of space would suggest that we have another significant signing in mind that would account for the combined salary of Drinkwater and Nicholson. There was also no mention of not having an overseas quota spot for Drinkwater. The tealeaves are telling me a non-overseas half, but I haven't a clue who it is (please, not Lomax).

Well was talk of a wow signing at half so it can’t be Lomax he is gone now. Also he is not a 7

Agree about Whitehead and Wood.

I would also retain Ben Hartill, he needs to work on building some more muscle on his physique but looks to like a very promising hooker.

We need some cover for an injury to Walker/Powell and his wage wouldn`t seriously affect our Salary Cap.

Mikey lewis

Like him but not sure he compliments Williams.

He wouldn’t ‘wow’ me in the slightest

Lewis is entertaining every time, but not game controlliing. I don’t think he’s what we need alongside Williams, but then Burgess seems to know what works and what doesn’t. Or Gleeson does anyway.

Do we know how the salary cap rules would work regards Bateman? So for example his current deal is rumoured to be £350k per year. Let’s say Wests were prepared to pay £200k per year for his remaining 2 years. Would his cap value to us be £150k or £350k? Not including any use of marquee allowances etc.

There would be no point in Wests contributing to his salary, unless it counted on our Salary Cap and not on theirs.

Wests want him off their books, we won’t be prepared to pay £350k per year for him ( nor will any side in SL I expect). If Wests move him on any payment they make to us will not be on the salary cap. So they would have $700k AUD of space on their cap. I’m just not sure how it works from our side.

Yes, I understand that Wests want him shut of him and are prepared to pay a portion of his salary.

His new club (If he leaves them) would have all his wages loaded onto their Salary Cap.

He is however Federation Trained, so as a Marquee Player there is a reduction in the Salary Cap loading, compared to a Non-Federation Trained player.

Someone posted on here, that Dufty has been recently deselected as a Marquee Player for this season, and now Bateman has replaced him as a Marquee Player, which gives us more room on the Cap.

Hence Bateman`s wage, would only count on the Salary Cap, for a Federation Trained Marquee Player.

Bateman might not work out any way. But if he does and Tigers really want him gone, he doesn't really have much leverage wage wise unless someone is daft enough to pay that for him. He might have to take a pay cut with no choice, i doubt we'd pay that wage for him unless he came over and was absolutely superb and a massive game changer for us. But i just can't see it, but you never know.

He is contracted to Wests for a further two seasons after this.

He has more leverage than they have because he knows they don`t want him back.

Firstly, when it comes to cap value, the figure is 'agreed' with the RFL. This is to stop you paying a player a lower wage then topping up by paying his partner to work for the club.

If a player is loaned out it doesn't matter who actually pays the money into their account, the cap value goes against the club for whom they are now playing for. It's also calculated on a weekly basis, so you can't build up credit then sign players in the latter part of the season.

Up to three Marquees. Club trained (i.e. King) count £50k towards cap, Fed trained (i.e. Williams, and now Bateman) £75k and overseas (i.e. Duffty) £150k.

King, Williams and Dufty would have a combined cap value of £275. King, Williams and Bateman would be £200k plus whatever Dufty's full value is.

Jackson Hastings rumoured to be signIng for Leeds, that would have been a wow signing for me, even if he hasn't lit up the NRL.
He shown what he could do over here and was really impressive, i hope our wow signing actually is a wow and not an oh signing.

Hastings is an amazing player........provided he gets what he wants and is centre of attention. He got away with his narcissitic behaviour at Salford because he was the big fish in a small pond, but has since stunk out behind the scenes at each club he's been at. A toxic personality who creates a toxic playing enviroment.

Not the signing Leeds should be looking at in my humble opinion or one for Wire.

Absolutely made up (if true) Leeds have him and not us, fantastic bit of business by all concerned at wire

He's not going to Leeds, the rumour has been quashed already.

Love Rugby League are reporting Burgess has signed a one year extension, I'm not sure how long Gleeson and Marshall are signed up for but i hope they stick together through these three years. This season is the first time in a long time i have looked forward to watching us play and altho every game hasn't been a win the ups far outweigh the downs, the progression the squad have made must be credited to themselves for the hard work each one of them put in but also to ALL of the coaching staff