Quote: cjhatesunion "It is still a worry though,it's like the situation at my club where Kyle Eastmond has another year left on his contract.
There are still rumours going around that he will be going to Sale Sharks in the future.
The RFL have to do something about our talent going to union.'"
Interesting. This is the first ever comment of this sort that I've seen from a St Helens fan, and it seems to have coincided with Wigan replacing them as tops dogs in the UK.
No disrespect intended to you, mate - and I fully agree with your sentiment. But we have many times been berated on this message board, primarily by Saints fans whose team was enjoying a period of dominance, for expressing concern about our loss of young talent to Union. It's funny how, when everything's going your way, other people's problems (even if they have potentially far reaching consequences) don't matter too much. But when you're down among the also-rans, those problems suddenly look very real.
For what it's worth, unless the RFL take action to help us keep our top youngsters, I expect that both Eastmond and probably Sam Tomkins, maybe Joel too, will be Union in about five years. Unless the RU cap starts to be policed effectively, the financial enticements will eventually overcome home club loyalties.
The cap needs to be moderated, to help us hang onto our home grown talent. That's all there is to it. I'm not talking about doing away with the cap. Just altering it so that our Academy signings are discounted.