It would be £325k more than what Stains got for Eastmond.

Different argument, Joel committed the main part of his career to Wigan. The disruption his loss causes is worth more than the sum of his contract.

I get what you're saying, but its not enough.

we should be taking the pee with huge numbers not settling on dross like 325k..we dont need to sell

If JT's only on 80k a year the club will struggle to argue they'd suffer a big loss if he left. Don't forget in terms of losses that if he left the club would save having to pay out 320k over 4 years. How much would him leaving really cost Wigan? Any court looking at the issue would be unlikely to conclude that a relatively poorly paid professional sportsman leaving could really harm Wigan that much. The SC may artificially depress player salaries but the RL clubs can't have their cake and eat it by claiming that if a player leaves for union they will suffer a big loss - if RL players are cheap to hire because of the SC then RL clubs can't have big losses if they go elsewhere.

Looks like the sting in the tail in this sorry saga will be that the SC will prevent the RL clubs from even getting a decent pay-off from the union clubs, because the RL clubs have driven salaries down to such a low level. (They're down well over 30% in real terms from when the cap was brought in.)

It would be amusing if it weren't a tragedy for the sport.

This is tragic news for RL. Joel Tomkins is a very talented player, but that's not the killer blow. The sucker punch is the fact it is now becoming a trend. We're being drained of our best talent to both NRL and Union - Sam Burgess, Gareth Ellis, James Graham, Joel Tomkins, Kyle Eastmond and youngsters who will never play first grade RL like Ian Thornley and Owen Farrell.

Reading these boards I'm infuriated and perplexed with posters saying "we'll produce more" or "we did it to Rugby Union" and other such fatuous nonsense. I don't want to see the best players leave RL. I want to see Sonny Bill Williams, I want to see Kyle Eastmond, I want to see Joel Tomkins, I want to see Chris Ashton, I want to see players like Ian Thornley develop in League. I want to see Owen Farrell play RL. I also want to see Sam Burgess, Gareth Ellis and James Graham in Super League. This is my competition. I invest my money to watch a product that is declining in standards - dramatically.

RL in this country has some serious issues. Massive issues. The RFL need a big kick up the backside and should wake up and smell the coffee. We don't have the money to keep these players in League and compete with the wages that Union/NRL can offer and we need to address that. However that may be. If that means lowering the number of teams to have a better spread of talent/money then so be it.

How long before Sam Tomkins goes? How long before Jonny Lomax? Josh Charnley? Ben Jones Bishop? Lee Mossop? Tom Briscoe? All these players I predict will leave for the NRL or Rugby Union.

Disillusioned with the sport. Big time. All our best talent are leaving the competition, but who gives one when I can see Wakefield's new signing in Ben Cockayne? Or Matty Ashurst signing for Salford? Or Hull FC's new signing Tony Martin?

Yes I'm ragged off, but that's because I love this sport. It's the best sport in the world. Rugby Union is absolute crap in comparison, but our game is sadly run by absolute morons.

I hate the RFL.

Dummy spit over.

i don't think i could have put it any better

Think this needs to be emailed to the RFL!

You've hit the nail on the head, several times.

Bollox, don't need him or anyone else...









Get Dennis Moran out of retirement and we're in business

And also get David Vaealiki back.... oh wait, even the e players managed to pull off a move to union for big money

The bottom line is cash, they have it we don't.

Sure you ca say drop the salary cap. Some clubs will compete. But this will only result in wage inflation. The players will not become better because they are paid more and eventually 10 years down the line we will have clubs whose chairmen have debted them up to the eye balls left with no benefactor and debts they and the fans cannot afford.

We need to grow our market. That means clubs breaking even, that means rather than a salary cap there is a brealk even cap or minimum profit level. If benefactors want x or y player let them sign them but the club must be able to turn a profit. If the wages are too high then either the player cannot be sign or the benefactor takes on the liability not the club.

We need solvant business' as in the end when the money men get tired and leave, its the fans who have to see their team, break up , get relegated, die.

If you can bring in more money then fair enough sign who ever on what ever, but lets not go pre SL where clubs were all mortgaged to the hilt and ready to sink, because this time there will be no SKY to save us all, as they are already here.

To be fair though have union got the wrong Tomkins. Joel? really. I'd have been surprised if he was picked for england RL.

The problem is a lack of ambition and you see it in the way Warrington are criticised.

Simon Moran is a wealthy bloke who wants to invest money in the sport, he has the contacts and the influence to get people to come over, he turned us from a small time club in the early 2000s to a club who guys like Adrian Morley, Martin Gleeson, Andrew Johns, Matt King and Michael and Joel Monaghan wanted to join.

When we signed Andrew Johns we had other clubs fans bleating about how it was against the spirit of the game to sign a player on a short term deal like that.

When we signed King, Monaghan and co we had other clubs fans bleating about why are Warrington allowed to sign all these players, and pay them all this money etc.

It has to be said that whilst he may be a controversial character, the great Maurice Lindsay never lacked ambition and he would have never criticised Warrington for this. If Maurice was still around he would have argued that the salary cap should be scrapped and clubs allowed to get the best players from all over the world. As John Monie said in his book, Maurice always shopped from the top shelf (well until he started getting old and thinking that O'Neill, Ainscough, Vaealiki were top shelf).

I would like us to go back to the days of the late 1980s and early 1990s when rugby league clubs were signing the best players from all over the world....Wigan went out and got Brett Kenny, Gene Miles and Dean Bell. Leeds went out and got Cliffy Lyons and Saints got Mal Meninga. The famous All Blacks were the best RU team in the world so Wigan went and signed Frano Botica and Inga Tuigimala, Leeds signed John Gallagher and Craig Innes. Wales won the Triple Crown and so Widnes went and signed Jonathan Davies, Warrington signed Allan Bateman, Saints signed Scott Gibbs.

If we scrapped the salary cap and encouraged investment and ambition in league, this world cup could be a big shop window for Super League, it could be the greatest league and the greatest sport in the world.

But now we prefer to have the salary cap and equality and prizes for turning up and finishing 5th in the league.

I blame New Labour and their pc leftists. Rugby league was better in Mrs Thatcher's day.

Not too long ago I used to be in regular touch with Red Hall and SL in relation to ties between them and RLFANS. At the time Richard Lewis was running the show and I can honestly say I felt the game was safe in his hands. Lewis is a very sharp operator. Intelligent. Observant. Willing to accept input from others but knows that ultimately the buck stops with him. In all my dealings with Richard and [isome[/i people at Red Hall I don't think I ever felt disappointed.

Then came Nigel Wood. Here is a guy who was a laughing stock [ibefore[/i he got into Red Hall (the Bluesox fiasco). But Wood must talk a good game because no matter how silly he gets the further he rises. Now he's sat on Mount Olympus and I feel the game has never been under greater threat. I don't know anyone who has any time for him but ATEOTD he's the boss.