NRL player pay rise / salary cap raised

After months of negoiations between leading players and the NRL an agreement has finally been made.

I am particulary pleased that the lesser players or the young lads coming through the ranks have been looked after, with a pay rise of nearly 50% from a minumum of 55K to 75K. I was concerned all the extra money from the last t.v rights deal was going to get divided between the fat-cats already on huge money....below is an article explaining how the money will be divided between all parties...


THE salary cap will reach $7 million, minimum wage players will receive a 40 per cent pay rise and Kangaroo stars contesting next year's World Cup could reap $160,000 in representative bonuses.

Those are the highlights of the proposed new collective bargaining agreement which after months of turbulent negotiations could now be finalised before Christmas.

News Limited yesterday obtained a copy of the draft five-year agreement that was emailed to player representatives from all 16 clubs over the weekend.

As revealed late last week, the ARLC has bowed to pressure to boost next year's salary cap from $4.8 to $5.8 million and also raise the minimum wage from $55,000 to $75,000. The backdown led to a thawing between the parties, who were previously at loggerheads over the ARLC's refusal to erode its $225 million future fund.

A jump in marquee player allowances - from $300,000 to $550,000 - has helped bankroll the cap increase without compromising the future fund.



The cap will rise about $300,000 per year until it hits $7 million in 2017, giving the clubs long-awaited certainty to start negotiating deals with a cast of free agents.

Facing the real prospect of having to release top-line players, Manly and Penrith officials will be rejoicing.

But having only been guaranteed a $7 million grant for next year, all clubs will now want their hand-outs increased commensurate with the incremental cap rises. But the elite players who fronted ARLC heavyweights - Robbie Farah, Johnathan Thurston, Cameron Smith, Michael Crocker and Jason King - were most adamant about securing a fairer deal for their base salary counterparts.

They battled hard for $80,000 next year, but there are provisions for the minimum wage to increase to $85,000 by 2017.

Of more immediate benefit is a huge jump in representative bonuses.

Origin appearance fees have jumped 50 per cent, from $20,000 to $30,000, and international players will receive $20,000 for each one-off Test - more than double the current $9000 mark. With $50,000 also on offer to members of the victorious World Cup squad, an Australian eligible player could earn $160,000 in bonuses next year.

The ALRC has also agreed to scrap the controversial loyalty fund, which withheld 50 per cent of all representative payments until retirement in a bid to stop cross-code defections.

There are also improved conditions with players given a mandatory day off from club commitments each week. They cannot be made to sign more than 350 jerseys, and will be guaranteed four tickets to each match in which they play.

Players who object are also not required to appear in promotions for club sponsors that are aligned to the liquor or gambling industries.

But in return, players will now be strictly prevented from accepting personal sponsorships with betting agencies.

The senior players who negotiated the draft CBA are understood to be encouraging their peers to accept it.

A majority of the NRL's 800-plus players need to vote yes for it to be installed.