They won't have to if the contract is torn apart due to breach of contract on Wigan's behalf.

Here's an interview he did with the Guardian - he doesn't sound too mithed.

rlhttps://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/20/jackson-hastings-salford-farewell-wigan-moverl

When was that interview?

2 weeks after the signing was made public.

On his impeding move to the Warriors, Hastings said: “Although I am looking forward to an exciting new chapter in my move to Wigan in 2020, I intend to finish my term on a good note with the Salford Red Devils, including all members and fans - many of whom have become friends of mine who I appreciate greatly.” Read more at https://www.wiganwarriors.com/news/2019 ... d1lcIdd.99 Why would someone claim Wigan breached the contract not to release the info until the end of the season then give a quote like the one above? If Wigan made the quote up, why wasn't the breach flagged up earlier? Think we can safely put that breach rumour to bed.

On his impeding move to the Warriors, Hastings said: “Although I am looking forward to an exciting new chapter in my move to Wigan in 2020, I intend to finish my term on a good note with the Salford Red Devils, including all members and fans - many of whom have become friends of mine who I appreciate greatly.” Read more at https://www.wiganwarriors.com/news/2019 ... d1lcIdd.99 Why would someone claim Wigan breached the contract not to release the info until the end of the season then give a quote like the one above? If Wigan made the quote up, why wasn't the breach flagged up earlier? Think we can safely put that breach rumour to bed.

I suspect things have changed since then. But I see your point and agree with you. Seems that Jackson possibly could be using 'loopholes' to get him out of the contract now others are interested in him.

If Wigan didn't make the quote up he was part of the PR announcing the deal. His people can't say Wigan were in breach of contract announcing the deal when he was part of the announcement.

Let him rot in Aus. He cant play for anyone as he is contracted to Wigan. If he's not here then he's in breach of contract and we have no obligation to pay him £5K a week.

We hold all the aces - assuming IL learned from the Edwards fiasco and actually got a signature on the contract.

Don't think it's that simple.

Then we screw ourselves in the process having a marquee contract taken up by someone who's not even playing for us.

Longer term we screw ourselves even more if we just let this slide.

I agree with your sentiments. But how to deal with it must have an emphasis on what's is the best course of action for the club moving forward. I don't see how tying a marquee spot to a player who doesn't play benefits the club.

I honestly see your point. But from what I can gather, if Hastings is looking to 'rip up his contract' his people must find grounds in there to do so. Then the club need to decide what they want. I personally wouldn't want him anywhere near us if he doesn't want to play for us. I can't see a drastically unhappy player playing to the best of their ability. Sooner free up the cap and go after someone who wants to represent Wigan correctly.
Other option could be a lengthy costly court case.

I can see it being a mutual agreement to let Hastings go.

Unfortunately, I think Hastings holds the aces in this case.
Wigan can’t actually stop him from signing for someone else. If he signed for another SL club, the RFL could refuse to register him. But it wouldn’t be Wigan’s decision. Similarly, the NRL might refuse to register him to play for an NRL club, but again that’s not up to Wigan.
The best option Wigan have is to take legal action against Hastings for BoC. But they’ll need to prove a quantifiable financial loss, which they can’t do. He’s also in Australia, and therefore it’s complex to take action through an ET. You can’t even go after any future club, unless you can prove they induced him into a BoC.
Put simply, Wigan can’t force him to work for them. Sure, they can appeal to the RFL and NRL not to allow him to register elsewhere, but that might not hold sway if Hastings himself claims a BoC by Wigan. He could then take action against the RFL/NRL for a restraint of trade.
And on the matter of payment, as soon as Wigan don’t pay him, he’s no longer and employee and can do whatever he wants. Wigan have nowhere to go here. If he doesn’t want to work for Wigan, the club can’t make him. They could try to stop him signing elsewhere and sue him for BoC, but both are likely to fail.

Good post.
Which basically means if Hastings doesn't want to play for Wigan, Wigan's best bet is to cut ties and free up the marquee spot until someone worthy becomes available. It's a sad state of affairs yet again for our club.