I have some worse news for you guys....

[The Eagle]

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/ ... 5862803511

JUST when you thought it could not possibly get any worse for the Melbourne Storm, think again.

The disgraced club's salary cap could be slashed to about $3.5 million over the next few years, The Daily Telegraph can reveal.

It would be the tightest cap of any club in the NRL competition - a whopping $600,000 below that of any of its rivals.

As it stands, Melbourne spent $5 million on their 2010 playing roster - $900,000 above the NRL's $4.1 million salary cap.

Aside from shedding up to three players to reduce the amount of their rorting, Melbourne will also be forced to absorb the difference in contract payments for players who leave.

The contracts are law-abiding deals - albeit illegal with the NRL.

"It's not unusual for termination payments to be carried in the cap," NRL chief executive David Gallop told The Daily Telegraph last night.


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"It will certainly present some challenges for Melbourne. These issues are still being discussed with the new management at the Storm."

The latest developments will add further strain to a club in complete turmoil and could have a long-term negative effect.

There is now little doubt the Melbourne side will be torn apart and replaced by a team that, on paper, would look mediocre in comparison.

One source said: "They might have to get rid of three players.

"Say, for example, Greg Inglis is on $600,000 and leaves, another club may only be able to offer him $400,000 a year.

"That means Melbourne must put that $200,000 in their salary cap.

"It's the same for someone like Ryan Hoffman. If he's on $450,000 and leaves for $200,000, Melbourne have to put that extra $250,000 in their salary cap. They could be playing with a cap of $3.5 million for the next couple of years."

The salary cap reduction would also ensure the club could not possibly attract any new players.

"It was the same with Willie Mason at the Roosters," the source said. "He was on big money at the Roosters but only got a quarter of that amount from the Cowboys.

"That meant a huge chunk of money had to be put onto the Roosters' salary cap because of Mason leaving."

The investigation into Melbourne's systematic and deliberate salary cap rorting should be completed in just over a week.

The word holy lima lima lima duck comes to mind....

[bula]

Yep, this will really hurt. Atleast it should keep the whingers quite, to some extent.

[KingHoweofIsrael]

That brings me back to the whole 'why can't they just take pay cuts' (assuming they want to). As has been pointed out before, the team was never "assembled illegally" as gallop says  -  i know i'm beating a dead horse, but any other fan of any other team would want the same thing.

If this goes ahead, i cringe to think just how many established (and well loved) players are in their last season.

KHoI  

[The Eagle]

Illegally assembled is a rubbish claim from a clown
Big buys? I personally giggle and get a yearly kick in the pants at laughing at your recruits!!!
like name one in the last....10 years?

Brett Finch and Matt Orford (Departed at the start of this debacle and reportedly signed for peanuts)???

No other 2 players who were established stars come to mind
What other signing have you guys honestly seen signed and went "lima lima lima duck YEAH!!!"?

Even in my own club ive said only that 3 times (Kennedy,Orford and Lyon,im 28 and refused to watch the Beagles)

The only question i have is where do you go from here? Back to Back Spoons (Highly unlikely)?
$600k lower with no downgraded contracts,Gallop has signed a Death Warrant here.....and should be fired immediately
if he allows this complete nonsense to happen....seriously his just a cricket player!

Is he taking orders from the ACB? Surely News wouldnt allow this to fly,forgiveness is the 1st step to solving an issue of
such a great magnitude,not beating a dead horse with more cruel and unusual punishments!!!

The punishment already handed down was waaay to heavy handed and thats from my eyes which says alot!

[Clancy]

On a slight tangent to the initial topic, but, what is to stop a 3rd party from saying to a player that if they play out their career with the Storm for $X, the 3rd party will give them a handout of $X after they retire? This handout would/should be outside the salary cap as it could be wriiten up as employment after playing career. This would provide the player with financial security (along the lines of an English stint late in the career) and could also keep the club under the cap. The player could still get $200k/year which is still plenty for a high quality of life for now, and peace of mind knowing loyalty will result in future security.
I imagine this would be addressed somewhere but I am unsure.

[bula]

Illegally assembled is a rubbish claim from a clown
Big buys? I personally giggle and get a yearly kick in the pants at laughing at your recruits!!!
like name one in the last....10 years?

Brett Finch and Matt Orford (Departed at the start of this debacle and reportedly signed for peanuts)???

No other 2 players who were established stars come to mind
What other signing have you guys honestly seen signed and went "*LIMA LIMA LIMA DUCK!* YEAH!!!"?

Even in my own club ive said only that 3 times (Kennedy,Orford and Lyon,im 28 and refused to watch the Beagles)

The only question i have is where do you go from here? Back to Back Spoons (Highly unlikely)?
$600k lower with no downgraded contracts,Gallop has signed a Death Warrant here.....and should be fired immediately
if he allows this complete nonsense to happen....seriously his just a cricket player!

Is he taking orders from the ACB? Surely News wouldnt allow this to fly,forgiveness is the 1st step to solving an issue of
such a great magnitude,not beating a dead horse with more cruel and unusual punishments!!!

The punishment already handed down was waaay to heavy handed and thats from my eyes which says alot!

You sure your not a Storm supporter? lol
Anyway, Michael Crockeis another.

[Storm Spirit]

It's all relative to the amount that the Storm are OVER the salary cap in 2011 and beyond...not what they are over the cap this year.

Yes ...based on $900k over this year...they would be screwed.

However it was reported that Hanson had reeled the cap over spend back to $230k for 2011 (if true).

Shedding $230k from the cap and carrying any portion of the contract not picked up by another club is VASTLY different at this amount compared to the 2010 scenario.

[Tempest]

Storm either trained their players from junior level or bought off-casts and rejects from other clubs. How often did you see a headline like "Storm throws [player name] a lifeline"?

Mick Crocker - when we signed him, even some Storm supporters went "WHAT? He's a thug!" Then the same guy offered to cut his own contract so his mate Clint could come back. Yeah, that's how 'money-grubbing' the Storm culture is.

They are out to get us. I know we've said that for 10 years, and maybe this whole thing started inside Storm's own offices, but the NRL really are out to get us. I just hope that if the boys can't beat 'em and stay together they change codes or go overseas, just to f*ck Gallop up.

[Storm Spirit]

HANG ON JUST A *LIMA LIMA LIMA DUCK*ing MOMENT....

On 27th April...Daily Telegraph wrote this.........

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/ ... 5858550782

Now 9 days later...they are saying that Storm need to shed 3 - 4 players.....shed $900k...carry parts of contracts that will reduce their salary cap to 3.5m in 2011.

They are getting as incompetent as the journos at the SMH.

Matt Hanson either worked feverishly to reduce the cap overspend to $230k in 2011 or he didn't....WHICH ONE IS IT ??????????????????????????????????????????????

I think that we all need to take a deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep breath and count to 10.

I fully understand that if we had to come under the cap in 2010 then Storm would be dead in the water.

2011 and beyond theoretically (at least in what's been reported)....might be very different.

[Mattpoet]

While not BIG names, Quinn, Newton, Lowrie and Stanley were all established at the point which they signed with the storm (Stanley was a NZ rep).

[waveydavey]

I think they’ve realised that they’ve stuffed up allowing us to play this year with an over cap squad that will have effects on the outcome of the comp, and so they are penalising next year us for their mistake this year. 

I think it’s about keeping the other 15 clubs onside and in agreement with the NRL than as a warning of what will happen if you’re caught!!  Wasn't that evident earlier in the week when the CEO's met to discuss the cap?!!!

It’s about ensuring that Melbourne Storm will not be competitive over the next 5 years or so.  And, for all the assurances from News Limited about the security of the club, if these further penalties are applied, then it will be the death of Rugby League in Victoria, and certainly the Melbourne Storm. 

You can’t keep imposing, or increasing penalties. 

I think News Limited won’t take this to court, for the obvious reasons.  It will be up to the players themselves, and possibly the RLPA, to take legal action with regards to restraint of trade.  You would tend to think that they would have an argument, because I believe everybody else can renegotiate their contract up or down?

[Storm Spirit]

All of that news Report is hypothetical.....it is based on Melbourne Storm still being $900k over the cap next year and having to enter a fire sale to get rid of contracts.

BOTTOM LINE...if Storm have reduced the TPP down to $230k for 2011 (which is entirely possible based on previous reports)...then the worst case scenario outlined in the article will never happen.

Storm aren't being given a 3.5m cap next year...that will only happen if they have to include money from contracts paid out to shed players.

Their cap will be 4.1m like everyone else.....it's how far they are projected over for 2011 which is the key figure.

[absentee]

Storm aren't being given a 3.5m cap next year...that will only happen if they have to include money from contracts paid out to shed players.

Their cap will be 4.1m like everyone else.....it's how far they are projected over for 2011 which is the key figure.

Exactly.  The club will only have less to spend for players on their roster if they have to top up a departing player's salary to match their Storm contract.  That's what happened when Finch joined us, right?  We paid him a certain amount and Parramatta paid the rest.  Although, in saying that, what would stop a player from saying that they don't want any extra money from the Storm?

[your kettle is black]

That brings me back to the whole 'why can't they just take pay cuts' (assuming they want to). As has been pointed out before, the team was never "assembled illegally" as gallop says   

All too true - they were legally assembled due to astute talent scouting, mainly by O'Sullivan I believe.

It's the retention practices that were carried out by Waldron and co. that are the problem. If any other club is caught doing this, who knows what the NRL could do? Not much in terms of premierships being stripped. The subsequently reduced salary cap seems like another afterthought that would be an excellent punishment on other clubs caught breaking the cap.

[Play the ball]

dont go slashing your wrists yet,

wait and see what unfolds first ,

I'm always skeptical of articles that say stuff like , A source said " blah blah blah      ",

If you cant put a name to the quote , you should not be allowed to use inverted commas IMO.