League: Cap controlled but debts remain

The warriors might talk of a rosy future now they have dealt with the salary cap debacle but the impact will stretch beyond this year.

The club have managed to get under the salary cap for this season by deferring payments to some players until 2007. However, this will have a profound impact on their ability to recruit and retain players next season.

The deferred payments amount to about $400,000 in total, which were due to a handful of players in November but will now be paid next season.

This figure will be added to next season's balance sheet and means, in effect, the recruitment of a nonexistent marquee player. This amounts to paying for a Steve Price or Ruben Wiki, who both command salaries of about $400,000, but having them sit out the season.

With as many as seven players off contract at the end of the season - Brent Webb, Clinton Toopi, Tony Martin, Sione Faumuina, Awen Guttenbeil, Evarn Tuimavave and Epalahame Lauaki - it's also unlikely the club will be able to hold on to all of these if they wanted to.

"Deferrals aren't unusual and we'd rather have none so it's certainly not ideal but it's manageable," Warriors chief executive Wayne Scurrah said. "The issues we face for the 2006 and 2007 seasons are significantly lower than the issues we faced for the past breaches. We feel it's very manageable.

"In terms of re-signing players, it's pretty much business as usual. We will re-sign them on their merits - their form, their desire to stay with the club and whether the coaching staff wants them."

The club were found to have exceeded the salary cap by as much as A$830,000 in 2004 and 2005 and docked four points and fined A$430,000 for the breach. Although the club believe the docked points are unfair, especially in light of the fact they are under the cap for this season, they will not appeal any further after the NRL rejected yesterday the club's initial appeal.

In many respects, it could have been a lot worse. There were suggestions the NRL were seriously considering docking 10 points as well as stripping them of any titles they might have won in 2004 and 2005.

"It could have been much worse," Scurrah admitted. "We have mitigated it to two losses and I think it's put the club in good shape.

"We will use this to our advantage in the future because we now have a better understanding of how the cap works."

Many within league are pushing for the salary cap, which presently stands at A$3.36 million, to be increased to A$4.2 million next year and A$5 million in 2008 when the full value of a new TV deal kicks in.

For the time being, however, the Warriors have to be content with playing catch-up.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY