Rumor has it that Meli's contract at Salford is eye-watering. If he even gets 1/2 of the figure mentioned Salford are paying well over the odds.

To be fair there have been plenty fans on your board getting way ahead of themselves. One asked whether anyone could not see you making at least a final within 5 years and no one disagreed. Another said your side would give any team in the country a run for their money. I could go on. We're all pleased you have a couple of decent players but I do feel a major reality check is on the way for a lot of Salford fans. Nicky might have put it a little harshly but he's basically on the money. You should make the 8, then it's a matter of rebuilding again when the players you just bought retire.

So the moral of this tale is, cheating (allegedly) is Ok so long as the governing body is gaining from it?

Much of it will come down to the ability to prove anything.

If 'Marwan Koukash Dubai Ltd' (for example) legally pays Sonny Bill Williams £3 million for "racehorse management fees" - how can the RFL prove it? and if they can do that, how can they prove what the salary cap value is?

Can 'Marwan Koukash Dubai Ltd' be legally compelled by the RFL to open their books and reveal what all their staff are being paid? Can Sonny Bill Williams be legally compelled by the RFL to open all his bank accounts to them?

yes they can. If sonny bill williams spends more than 6 months in the country in one year he is liable to pay tax on any earnings.

Someone should tell that to Amazon and Google!!

Grimmy,


You are right of course, we have some madcaps boasting about us taking the world on now but the vast, vast majority are of the same opinion that we are pushing for 8th.

The thread you have just posted on shows some of the madness. Someone suggesting we rotate and not even play our first choice halfbacks in the first game against Wakey. Some crazy talk going on but you can spot the sane from the crazy quite easily.

Shouldn't this thread be titled 'What will the RFL do if any super league chairman breaks the salary cap?'?

No. Next.....

But why would that necessitate him opening his bank accounts the RFL?

Regardless, Sonny Bill Williams could open a company called SBW ltd based in BVI and is paid £3m a year by Marwan Koucash (dubai) Ltd for Sports consultancy fees. SBW doesnt draw down on that money until he leaves the UK. The tax man likely would never be aware, the RFL certainly wouldnt.

He would pay tax on his UK earnings i.e. his Salford Red Devils salary, which would be his salary cap value, say £200k. The other £3m would be a foreign company paying a foreign national for consultancy services, which HMRC would have no legal interest in.

No-one would be breaking the law in any way in the situation that I described, and the RFL would have no ability to keep track of it.

As long as the salary cap still applies to the normal running of the club, does it matter what offshore things happen as long as we get the best players in the world, who cares, as long as the club is not liable for any offshore activities.

I'd let him off, but only if he bought London Broncos too...

Good luck to Salford and the doc, I just wish the RFL could find another half a dozen like him.
Hopefully in a season or two, Salford v Wigan will be pulling in a 10,000+ crowd.

That's the issue really isn't it. The only way reds will be able to bankroll all this is to get a decent crowd at Barton. What's the current state of their season ticket sales, does anyone have an idea? If they can't generate interest with all the hoopla that's been going on in the off-season, then what hope for walk-up or away sales?