The cap hasn't stopped clubs going broke, it was supposed to do that but never has. Why anyone thought it would is beyond me. With all the costs a club has just limiting the players' salaries never seemed to be enough. Real costs controls over all club activities has to be put in place and enforced. As the SC has failed for so many years in it objective I simply don't see the point in continuing with it.

The wealthy club backers want success but equally don't want to pump very large sums into their clubs as it may foster wage inflation throughout the game. The good Dr at Salford maybe the exception to this at present.

I would favour a method of increasing the supply of players into the game. Some clubs are good at it some not. A player ratings system maybe one way and I'm sure there are others but something has to change if we are to get the improvements we all seek.

Take our own club, IL has put money in but almost from day one he said he wanted a fully financially stable and self sufficient Wigan RL. That he's achieved.

Why not only have overseas player on the salary cap, then that would be an incentive for clubs to produce young players



Another thing why is the coaching staff in the salary cap?

They're not - Unless they play as well.



(At least last time I checked. Don't think the rules have changed since)

:9d7zncuw



[url:9d7zncuwhttp://www.sportinglife.com/rugby-league/news/article/480/8541941/koukash-wants-salary-cap-increase[/url:9d7zncuw



The 'spokesman' must be new at Red HallA spokesman for the Rugby Football League said: "Salary-cap limits are agreed upon by the clubs and have played an important role in helping clubs manage their resources by discouraging overspending and creating a more stable environment for club development.'"

It didn't take him long to poke the hornet's nest at Red Hall

Thought the good Dr was a bit restrained, after all there's no salary cap in horse racing. Once he got stuck in I expected him to call for the SC's abolition.

Ok then

the Dr is obviously an intelligent and wealthy man

but he is showing a real naivety with his comments about the cap



surely he more than anyone must understand one of the reasons why it is in place. at the end of the day it was only 5 weeks ago the Salford nearly didnt exist because they had no money, owed (and still do) various debtors and could barely muster a playing squad to fulfil its fixtures



now 5 weeks later he is talking about raising a cap from 1.7 to 3.5m so we can compete with the aussies



I have posted elsewhere that it is good for Salford and good for the game if we can get wealthy owners in like Dr Koukash, but at the same time lets take things one step at a time, he needs to try and get his own house in order (which i believe he will), before trying to change everything else

The point is that the SC failed to stop Salford becoming insolvent. It is ineffective as a financial control measure.

I like some of his comments in that article. Blunt but honest views about the weaknesses and failings of the Cap won't do any harm.



Okay, talk is cheap, but he's not become a multi-millionaire just by talking.



If he can inject some of that belligerence into Salford and bring them up to high SL standard, it will help the British game immensely. It will also be good to have another adversarial chairman in charge of a powerful club who is prepared to bang on the table at Red Hall.



Though I favour some kind of cap, the current one is flawed. We need to change in order to survive in this new RL climate.

You can't help but think that the Doctor should consider becoming competitive with London Broncos a more pressing matter than worrying about Melbourne Storm?

Koukash is stating the obvious about the disparity between the salary caps of the SL and the NRL and while he is the first high profile figure in the game to state it so publicly (certainly recently) it surely isn't news to anyone at Red Hall or anywhere else.



It's no use raising the cap unless the money is there to spend. He clearly has the money and is clearly willing to spend it but the rest of the league simply doesn't have it.



In RU the deal with BT Vision to take the sport away from Sky is what is funding their ambition to pay players more money. They want to pay the level of soccers fist division clubs to attract the talent but the key point is they are getting the money into the sport in general and dividing it up. Not relying on sugar daddies to provide the cash.



If Koukash wants the cap raised he needs to suggest ways to increase revenue for the sport as a whole. A few more bums on seats because clubs sign a few high profile players simply will not fund the kind of money required.



So IMO his contribution to the debate is very limited because while I am all for paying players more (I think its essential for the sport to do so) it needs to be properly funded.

When you say the rest of the league doesn't have it, do you mean [isome[/i of the league doesn't have it?



You're not telling me that if the salary cap was raised, the likes of Moran, Lenegan, Pearson and a few others wouldn't spend more to entice top players to SL. And for those that can't afford it, tough , that's sport. They need to work harder to increase their own revenues.