salford city reds

Quote: Mr Northstander "This is not good for the game as a whole no matter what are where you are in the world of RL.

A number of clubs including our goodselves have ridden a very difficult finacial passage over the years. I am sorry to say this but one day soon a club is going to fold to the cost of every RL club and supporter of our wonderful game.

The RFL has to get its head from up its own backside and realise they are the biggest culprit along with Sky sports forcing clubs down a route of finacial ruin. The game of RL does not have the financial support or capacity to sustain its self in its current form or format.

Clubs at all levels cannnot afford to pay what they are paying for players, wage bills and ongoing cost as recent events of clubs entering administration proves.

Its going to take a number of clubs/chairmen to say enough is enough we are not paying or carrying on with this financial madness/suicide it has to stop for the good of the game and the future of our wonderful sport.

Both the RFL and Sky sports have the biggest responsibilty to ending this madness firstly by re introducing P & R and making it an even playing field for all clubs financially.

Its what every supporter wants so why is it the RFL can't or don't want to see it? They have made the game so boring with nothing to play for unless your in the top 10% of clubs. Even then its getting stale at best.

Unless things change soon I am afraid to say RL has only one outcome and its not good.

So if anyone from the RFL or Sky sports read this its time for you to wake up, smell the coffee and be counted!

Hey and that means Eddie, Stevo, Phil Clarke and the other pundits who claim week in week out they know our wonderful game, prove to us how much you really do know!'"

The problem is that clubs are always going to spend as close to the Salary Cap as they can. Clubs like Bradford, Salford and Wakefield have all hit problems in the last few years as a result of this.
But what is the solution? Lower the Salary Cap? This might force Salford, Bradford etc to lower their wage bills and run things at a more affordable level which might help with their financial stability.
But the Salary Cap has stayed at the same level for a few years now whilst the Cap in the NRL has gone up and up. Look at w*gan as an example. In the last couple of years they have lost the likes of Hoffman, Finch, Leuluai, Joel Tomkins, Jeff Lima to the NRL and Union and got players like Luaki, Matty Smith, and Blake Green in. Now, as a Leigh fan that makes great reading but as a RL fan you have to ask which players would people rather watch on sky at the weekend? Hoffman or Luaki? Finch or Blake Green? Tommy Leuluai or Matty Smith? Rumours of Gareth Hock leaving for the NRL now too. How long before Saints/Leeds/Wire start to lose their best players/promising youngsters to the NRL clubs with more money to spend than ever.

If we want to keep our top quality players in SL from going to the NRL/Union then we need to raise the Salary Cap or the competition will be weakened. But far too many clubs are struggling financially at the current cap level so I just can't see it happening.

IMO the RFL will keep the cap level the same to protect the lower SL clubs and we will see a real decrease in quality in SL over the next few years as the best players leave for Australia and Union.

I don't really see any way to stop this from happening. Super League is getting less and less 'Super' by the year.