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Cooper Cronk’s availability has the Roosters in dire straits, forcing them to apply for a cap concession on money.
With the club already overburdened with elite talent, the halfback’s free agency has left them no choice but to seek relief from the NRL in order to continue stockpiling blue-chip commodities.
The move comes after they approached league bosses to discuss the possibility of signing the star halfback, only to be told there was a salary cap in place.
The Roosters believe the salary cap could unfairly disadvantage their negotiations with Cronk, particularly the way it caps salaries.
As a result of the unforeseen development, the club has applied for a modest 100 per cent concession on wage spending to help make ends meet.
The Roosters believe exempting salaries from their cap will not only prevent the tragedy of Cronk playing somewhere he’s genuinely needed, it will also reduce the risk of undisclosed payments and getting caught.
Rival clubs were stunned by the club’s request, especially after the historic agreement recently struck that would see players paid the highest declared income in the game’s history.
While still awaiting ratification, all 16 CEOs – including from the Roosters – pledged to pretend player salaries would remain capped at $9.4 million from next season.
However, somewhat unbelievably, it seems a rugby league club has put itself first and gone back on its word.
Cronk has been linked to the Roosters since the possibility arose he could be out of contract at some point in his life.
However, Cronk’s mammoth asking price has meant they could only secure his services by selling off something marquee, like Mitchell Pearce, the Coogee Bay Hotel or, for a long-term deal, Coogee.
This has been suggested despite the club building a substantial war chest, banking millions of dollars releasing Shaun Kenny-Dowall and Aiden Guerra and four million rand releasing Martin Kennedy and his iguanas.
The club was almost thrown a lifeline this week when Blake Ferguson was himself; however, he regrettably avoided a contract termination after being found innocent of any wrongdoing.
However, the Roosters remain confident of securing Cronk’s signature should their request be rebuffed.
They believe they can compile a competitive deal by supplementing a base contract with a barrage of lucrative third-party agreements.
This would see the representative playmaker signed for $25,000 per annum and his name changed permanently to ‘City Ford Cronk’.