I find it odd that we've reached a stage where people are signing five-year contracts, and then extra clauses need to be added to ensure that they won't break these contracts for at least three years.

I understand how it's happened. There's nothing to stop RU clubs tapping RL players up throughout these contracts, especially via their agents (to whom RU must be a Godsend since the salary cap kicked in), and all Wigan have done in Sam's case is create a new type of contract wherebye the player will not even talk to RU for three years (let's hope this becomes the norm with other RL players).

But it doesn't say a great deal for the integrity of the players or their agents that this has become a necessity. I know that people should be allowed to change jobs and all that, but the contract system - at least until now - seems to have been weighed very strongly in favour of the players and their agents, at the expense of the clubs and the fans.

No we didn't. The idea we gave him a five year deal because we knew he was leaving is fantasy in my opinion. There was no indication in March this year when he was telling everybody he felt RL players could get lost in the reserves in Union and that he wanted to stay at Wigan to play with his best mates in a great team. This was well after he had signed the contract.

I hope his premonition about getting lost in the reserves comes true so that discourages others following.

As to this from the link said by IL:

""I think you'll see a lot of rugby union players coming back to rugby league because I think ours is a better game to watch and to play."

Sorry but he is living in cloud cuckoo land if that is what he thinks. He has just agreed a new deal with Sam so knows exactly what it takes to keep players here - money, so when he can't offer that to RU players why does he think they will come? If he is referring to cheaper second string players why would we want them?

And as to not paying £100K a season for a middle-grade centre from the NRL if they are better than what we have and are (most likely) better then most centres in SL then that is what needs paying if we can fit them under the cap.

He is never going to entice a top class NRL centre here and if we have none of our own either ready or good enough then if he wants improvement year on year as he says he does and wants Wigan to be in one final at least every year he isn't going to get it this way. He is not helping Wane to achieve this with the players we have recruited at all.

Seeing as it is what the Tomkins do for a living, it's exactly the same, it's their job. How many jobs do you know where you have to stop in your mid-30s and need to find something completely different to do for a living?

No its not. There was no "months notice" built into Joel's contract and I certainly would not expect my employer to get £250K compensation if I left my job. People really need to stop posting this nonsense that a sporting contract is the same as working for a company.

Could this be England RU team in a few years time Edwards Head Coach Farrell defence coach a back line of FB -?
W. Eastmond C. Thornley and Tomkins W. Ashton
HB.- Farrell and Ford (george)

RL is sport thats trying to grow and they all no this and therefore if being treated fairly money wise it should be there duty to help to spread the sport as much as possible and them going to union is like joining the germans. If we offered a public school england union player a good salary to come to wigan they would not entertain it i dont think because they dont like the game with your attitude towards this how did lockyer, Johns, Thurston, Slater, C Smith, B Marshall, Sculthorpe,Radlinski, Cunningham,sinfield,burrows, maguire etc etc all stay at there clubs so long i will tell you because they love Rugby League and they have been treat fairly same as sam is being treated fairly so that leaves no reason to leave unless you dont like RL that much and you think RU is a great game.

Do you reckon Andy Farrell, Jason Robinson and Shaun Edwards didn't like RL then? And going back to my original question - have you ever changed jobs?

Add to that when people change jobs they more often than not go to rival companies from my experience anyway.

Quote Broxy Music="Broxy Music"£100,000-plus-a-year centre but we don't want to do that' Well said IL. www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... acens.html? Apologies if this has been put on here. '" nice quote at the bottom "Good move, lad. Upgrading from Economy to Business Class. It's a game where you have to use your brain a lot more. But i also believe a lot of Rugby players would benefit from playing 1 year of league so it might be a good idea for some crossover. " - T0sser! I want to know whats in this linkup for us, or are we just a feeder club for a mediocre Yawnion club now? Id much rather be a feeder club for the NRL

Quote Broxy Music="Broxy Music"£100,000-plus-a-year centre but we don't want to do that' Well said IL. www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... acens.html? Apologies if this has been put on here. '" nice quote at the bottom "Good move, lad. Upgrading from Economy to Business Class. It's a game where you have to use your brain a lot more. But i also believe a lot of Rugby players would benefit from playing 1 year of league so it might be a good idea for some crossover. " - T0sser! I want to know whats in this linkup for us, or are we just a feeder club for a mediocre Yawnion club now? Id much rather be a feeder club for the NRL

Fans have to realise the social change which has occurred in this country, i can imagine many of Joels friends have gone to University or moved across the country, meeting new people from different backgrounds and experiencing new cultures. As Sam has said, it is not the right time for him to move, but ultimately one day he will want to leave Wigan, the town he has lived in the majority of his life, and its difficult to begrudge someone that opportunity. However i do agree that having signed a 5 year deal, and then sodding off, is a lack of loyalty, but what can you do? I also imagine Joel wanted to step out of his brothers shadow abit and become 'the main man' himself at a different club. It must be hard if the whole town is buzzing about your younger brother, and isn't really interested in you.