Ahead of the Middle 8s, is it fair that some clubs have almost double the salary cap to play with? Secondly – does it matter?
If we dismiss the possibility of Hull KR pulling off a stunning turnaround this weekend, the dust is now settled on the composition of the Middle 8. Rovers will be joined in a fight for survival by Widnes, Salford and Wakefield. Leigh, Bradford, Sheffield and Halifax join them in a bid for glory and promotion.
Whilst I applaud the concept I have to question whether there is a level playing field for this stage of the season. The obvious disparity is the salary cap. The Super League clubs theoretically have £1.825m to play with whilst the Championship cap is £1m. I say theoretically because income plays a part in the final calculation and many teams spend nowhere near the limit. However, having almost twice as much to play with must be a big advantage to those clubs – or is it?
All of the clubs involved have strengthened (or at least added to) their squads over recent weeks. None more so than Super League bottom club Wakefield. The Wildcats have made nine signings (assuming I can count that far). This would be a significant turnover in a squad over the winter. To do it mid-season is a huge gamble. As a Bulls fan, and I am sure the Centurions have been the same, the Wildcats have had a mental tick against them all season as the weak member of the herd, ready to be picked off in the battle for promotion. My heart sank a little when Brian Smith was announced as their new coach. We still have fond memories at Odsal of how Smith arrived and transformed the club ready for the Super League era. If anybody can rescue Wakefield it will be Smith but, is such a massive overhaul possible in the space of a few weeks? Rather than gamble everything on short term signings (something that licensing was brought in to eradicate from the game) would a couple of new faces and a solid plan for next season been a better approach?Changing the playing roster rapidly rarely works; ask Salford fans if you are in doubt. The more restrained approach of making a key signing may be a better strategy. Certainly Omari Caro has added some much needed pace to the Bulls back line and, if Warrington pull it off, Chris Sandow would be a huge boost to the Wolves.
Of course, signing players on short term deals at the end of a season is nothing new. The Bulls did it very successfully ten years ago, signing Adrian Morley once his Australian commitments were finished for the year, allowing him to add a Super League Grand Final win to his NRL success. I was uncomfortable at the time that the signing was somehow not fair but got over that when we beat Leeds at Old Trafford!
It is that question of fairness that nags away at me now. For the first time, the game is looking to crash together teams from different competitions, with different salary caps into a playoff system. I think it will be a tremendous spectacle for the sport but a more level playing field should be introduced. It is rare that football’s Premier League considers financial fairness but the transfer window is something that the RFL could adopt. My proposal would be that transfers and new player registrations are allowed up until the Magic Weekend. After that – you play with what you have, avoiding the temptation to gamble everything on end of season signings for the playoffs. If the first team squad isn’t producing the goods, try some younger faces from within the club. This would stop the instant fix of signing Aussies that are surplus to requirements at their clubs or the same old faces that regularly move at this time of year.
In summary, it is probably slightly unfair with two salary caps but the caps are there to protect the clubs from over reaching. Does it matter? My bet is that the teams moulded over a season by Leigh, Bradford and Sheffield will prove too good for a scratch team that have just met in the last couple of weeks.
There is one caveat to all of the above. I am writing this on Wednesday afternoon. I have just seen on Facebook that the Bulls are announcing two new signings this evening. If it turns out to be the Burgess twins or Semi Randrada and Shaun Johnson then all bets are off and fairness can take a hike! One thing is for sure, the Middle 8s will be a fascinating battle. Strap yourselves in – this is going to be exciting.