Warriors agree to ‘monumental’ pay cuts
Club boss Cameron George tells Matt Brown how the NRL franchise plans to weather storm
The NRL and Rugby League Players’ Association have come to an agreement over player pay with NRL players set to sacrifice five months’ pay if the game doesn’t restart this year.
NRL boss Todd Greenberg and players’ association CEO Clint Newton met with some of the NRL’s biggest stars to seal the deal, where players will receive a combined $24.6 million to last until the end of the normal contract cycle in November, with just over three-quarters of it coming from club grants.
The rest will come from the liquidation of the injury hardship fund, while players will also have early access to the retirement account if they hit financial troubles.
“We just got to get the competition going again for everyone’s sake,” said Warriors CEO Cameron George.
“We’re doing our best to weather the storm but the important thing for me is to take a deep breath and make sure we look after our staff in the meantime and make the right decision with the model going forward.”
George said he thinks all the NRL clubs can survive under the new financial model.
“I can only talk on behalf of our club, we’re very committed to getting through it. We’re going to have to make some very difficult decisions but we can achieve everything we have to over next three months and make sure we’re still around. I have no doubt we’ll get through it, the other clubs have different scenarios they have to weigh up.”
Speaking on Fox League Live, NRL champion and former Storm and Roosters star Cooper Cronk said it was a big bite out of the pay packets.
“It’s a big sacrifice and big decision. We aren’t a part of the discussions but rugby league and players have copped their whacks and rightly so. But this is a monumental selfless act, in my opinion,” he said.
“The first of July is the target date to start the competition, that’s all we know at this point about how it might look,” Cronk added.
Roosters captain Boyd Cordner said he knew it would be a big salary sacrifice for the NRL stars but added having it finally confirmed would take a bit weight off the players’ minds.
Fox League commentator and pundit Braith Anasta said it was “bigger than I thought”.
The former Roosters and Bulldogs star also hoped the rest of the league would do what the back to back premiers were doing and helping the players on the smaller contracts to survive the tough times.
“If the top tier guys look after the lower tier, you’ll get rewarded in terms of performance,” Anasta said. “When you’re in a team and sacrifice for each other, it galvanises teams and you can use it as a positive to bring the team closer together.”
Canberra co-captain
Jarrod Croker was in the meeting and said it was a relief to have finalised the deal.
“It’s obviously been a difficult time there for everyone. I know how hard the RLPA have been working. They’re bent over backwards for everyone really. It’s nice to have something finalised,” he said.
Greenberg will also face the same cuts. He had been under fire for not taking a major pay cut.
“This is a difficult time for our game and the wider community and the challenges we face are immense, and unprecedented,” he said.
“The players understand the severity of the circumstances we face and have demonstrated their willingness to work with us to secure the best possible outcome to protect the long-term future of our game.”
As part of the deal, the NRL will also resource wellbeing and education at each club to ensure players have any support required.
The deal comes after the NRL and the 16 clubs agreed to a combined $40 million package on Monday which would help keep sides viable while matches are not being played.
But there are also reports that a team led by Wayne Pearce is trying to get the players back on the field within eight weeks.
The NRL have already said July 1 is the intended restart date.
We just got to get the competition going again for everyone’s sake. Cameron George