Beefed-up salary cap concessions for long-serving players could be the magic wand which delivers Mark Gasnier back to St George Illawarra and the NRL.
The Dragons are deep in negotiations with their former skipper on a deal which would see the 28-year-old resume his rugby league career following an 18-month hiatus which included a stint in French rugby union.
Confirmation of Gasnier’s return would be a major boost for the NRL following Israel Folau’s defection to the AFL this week.
The sticking point in Gasnier’s proposed $1.4 million three-year deal appears to be the formalisation of third party deals for the final two years of the contract, but it is believed the NRL is considering tripling the current $100,000 salary cap extension for long-serving players from next season.
The increase is one of several proposals being considered by the NRL as it looks to revamp the salary cap, but having an extra $200,000 a season to work with could be just the tonic to get Gasnier back in the `red V’.
“Extending the concessions for long-serving players has a lot of merit and that’s a way of lifting the cap without necessarily widening the gap between the cap and the grant,” NRL chief executive David Gallop said on Wednesday.
“Some recognition that loyalty should be rewarded is the reason why the current concession exists and if you extend it, I think fans are looking for some recognition for long serving players.
“No decision’s been made on the extent to which either the cap or the grant will go up but we need to be conscious of the goal of closing the gap rather than widening it and also allowing enough money to be left over to increase rep payments which I think is something everyone supports.”
Gasnier would begin his tenth season with the Dragons if he linked up this year, and a $300,000 exemption for long-serving players would no doubt help St George Illawarra bring him back to the club while also holding onto the roster which has propelled them to the top of the NRL ladder.
Third-party deals falling through were a significant factor in Gasnier turning his back on the Dragons mid-contract in 2008 and signing with Stade Francais, but salary cap relief would allow at least some of the third party payments to be guaranteed by the club.
Confusion as to exactly how much clubs will have to spend in 2011 caused the NRL on Wednesday to push back the date from which player contracts with new clubs can be registered.
Clubs would have been able to register contracts with new players following this weekend’s matches, but will now have to wait until after July 6 to formalise new deals.
“There are a number of unusual circumstances which are creating a level of uncertainty and we think that the extension is a reasonable course of action,” Gallop said.
“We are looking at a number of salary cap issues at the moment and it is important that we provide as much certainty as is practical for players and clubs alike.
“We expect those issues will be clarified prior to the end of round 17.”
Dan Wighton
Roar Guru
That is definitely possible (losing younger players coming through), and is out of step with the Dragons usual approach of fostering its great nursery rather than spending big on players. However, the circumstances here are special - he is a local junior who never wanted to leave the club. Third party deals can be found and negotiated by the club, but cannot be guaranteed in the event they dont eventuate - clubs like the Roosters and Broncos have benefited from having friends in high places who can do this. I have to disagree re: rorting - I dont think this leads to rorting of the cap and brown paper bags etc - as far as the NRL is concerned, backending contracts is legal and well within the Cap rules. It is just a way to ensure that Gas isnt sitting on the sidelines until March next year - he can be back in the NRL asap - but wont earn the kind of money he is worth until 2011.
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
I understand that 3rd Party contracts can't be guarenteed, this is what lead to Craig Wing and Gasnier leaving. Currently the rules say they must be included in the cap. Though I did note Doust talking about assisting in an article, and ensuring it had some sort of guarantee. I wonder how that will all pan out. As I said, I think this sort of situation is just wrong, it leads to rorting. Though it will push a few players out of the club next season if Gasnier gets the sort of money he should.
Dan Wighton
Roar Guru
3rd party deals can be arranged by the club, just not secured or guaranteed by the club - this is the big reason Thurston's contract took so long to finalise (according to Peter Parr he agreed just after the Indigenous All Star match, but couldnt put pen to paper until the 3rd parties came through). The Gasnier circumstance is unique - he could be earning more overseas or possibly even in Melbourne, but wants to come back to Sydney due to reasons of family illness. Peter Doust is working within the rules to make this happen - it would normally happen in the off season, but this is a unique situation as the French have just wrapped up their season. I did address the fairness issue - while Gasnier will still be well paid, he would receive more at Easts or Newcastle, but wants to come back to his old club for a variety of reasons - money is not the only one. I admit that I am definitely a biased Dragons fan, but I would not object if the same happened with SBW if he were to return to the Dogs next week (he would possibly qualify as a long serving player, having been in the Canterbury system since 2002). Even if this meant the Dogs would dominate this years premiership, I would rather have a player of SBW's calibre in the NRL than not, as with Gasnier.
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
You skipped the fair part of the equation. It shouldn't be about how much money he is getting under the cap, because the guy is worth a lot more than that. This leads to suggestions that he is getting money from elsewhere (brown paper bags anyone?). Those 3rd party deals apparently not arranged by the club? Yeah, I think I just saw some flying pigs outside the window too.
Dan Wighton
Roar Guru
But that would be Gasnier's decision to make, and he would end up making less money at St George than at the Knights, but he has stated his wish to return to the area and hopefully win a premiership (as well as being coached by Bennett). I think that as long as its within the current rules, that it should be allowed. Complete fairness will never be acheived, and Gasnier's return would be more a product of the strong and successful culture that is being built at the Dragons than the money he would receive on a back ended deal. Newcastle for a long period of time attracted quality players who took less money to be part of the club, which had a successful culture and players had a greater chance at rep football and finals success. This has now changed, and Newcastle are experiencing a poor run of things on and off the field, however these changes are cyclical and Newcastle will be strong once more.
The man
Guest
The sooner the better. Shimmy shimmy whoosh!!!
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
Different circumstances. The Dogs in fact had a reduced salary cap in 2004 (due to the 2002 issues), and lost a lot of players. Why I have a problem with this is that it opens up a new way to rort the cap. Lets say Gasnier signs for 4 years (including this year), he is put on the books for 50K this year, and 400K for each of the rest. What if he decides to leave after 2 years (like he did last time). The Dragons could have an agreement on the side that ensures he is paid what he is owed for the 50K season, but that amount is not included in the cap. As well there are other clubs who don't need to defer payments, who could do with him right now like Newcastle. How is the market fair when things like this are allowed? Terry Lamb was one of the players under the old salary cap (pre-Super League), who has his contracted figure under the salary cap upped so that it reflected his true worth to the club. A similar situation should exist for Gasnier, otherwise it just shows rules for one club, which don't apply to others.
oikee
Guest
1st off, good, Gas is back. Second, can someone tell me how Manly do it, Matai, Kite, Watmouh, Lyons, Stewert, Stewert, Perry, Foran, 8 internationals, plus there regular guys, and somehow, somehow still under the cap. Now to top it all off, Hodkinson has been offered 800 thousand for 3 years to move to the Doggies, but Manly say they can keep him. ?????? Hello, anybody out there, sign up the Manly high rarky. They are masters at cooking, they could even be best sellers "cook-books" for sale. P.S Broncos are soon to be in the market for superstars, having freed up over 1 million dollars by bringing juniors through, and losing Folou. Any good AFL players around. ;) Pay them millions and leave them on the sidelines to watch. :)
mushi
Roar Guru
Was it a rort when players took a pay cut in order to stay on and win a grand final after the dogs defrauded the competition…
Gareth
Guest
Hah. There's a delicious irony in the idea of pushing a good portion of a payment intended to reward long term loyalty across the table toward a pea-hearted prima donna like Mark Gasnier.
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
It's a rort if the Dragons are allowed to put him on the books for $50K this year. He should at least have to go on the books for $150K or so.
Ken
Guest
As a Dragons supporter not sure if I want Gasnier back or not. No question that he's an elite player and would add something to the side but how many up and comers will we lose over the next few years when his backloaded contract starts to bite? That said all this mock outrage about the Dragons getting him back on a backloaded contract is silly. While this would be an extreme case these types of contracts are commonplace and completely within the current rules. Over the course of 3 years (or whatever) they're still going to have spent a huge chunk of money on him that they can't spend elsewhere.