Warriors ready for takeoff
Negotiations continue as travel deadline looms but chief executive remains optimistic
The Warriors still hope to leave for Australia on Sunday despite the ongoing uncertainty over the proposed NRL restart on May 28. The Herald understands the club has booked a chartered Air New Zealand flight on Sunday afternoon although there are still some concerns over the lack of concrete answers and information from NRL headquarters in Sydney.
As reported by the Herald on Wednesday, one of the main issues was the players’ remuneration as the club wasn’t prepared to relocate the squad for potentially five months without knowing their employment conditions.
The Warriors' squad has since been provided with a baseline figure, along with the rest of the teams in the competition.
However, negotiations are ongoing between the Rugby League Players’ Association and the NRL after the Sydney Morning Herald reported yesterday the players might have to take a 50 per cent pay cut for the final five months of the season (June to October) due to the expected drop in broadcast revenue.
The players in other teams have sided with the Warriors, whose concerns were reportedly led by captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, saying they won't begin training on May 4 (as per the NRL guidelines) until the salaries are finalised for all clubs.
And the Warriors are still waiting for some other answers.
The Herald understands:
● The club is still yet to receive any form of written confirmation from the Australia Border Force Commission that it will be granted an exemption to enter New South Wales. An application has been made for 41 players and staff to cross the Tasman. The NRL told the Warriors approval should be confirmed today, despite the Australian Rugby League Commission claiming on Tuesday the exemption was approved.
● The Warriors are also waiting on their approval to be able to train while in the 14-day quarantine period after they arrive in Australia.
● It's believed the RLPA has also mooted that players from clubs that need to relocate (the Warriors, as well as potentially the three Queensland teams and the Melbourne Storm) should be given five days’ notice, which would mean a departure in the middle of next week. That detail has yet to be confirmed.
Everything will hinge on the ongoing negotiations between the RLPA and the
NRL over salary levels, which aren’t expected to end until today.
However, Warriors chief executive Cameron George remains optimistic. He said the club had sent gear to Australia yesterday and were still working towards a weekend departure.
“There are a lot of things to work out but hopefully we’ll get there. Everyone is working really hard behind the scenes and we have to be positive. We are waiting on a few more answers and hopefully they will come soon but it’s hard to predict,” he said.
The NRL announced on Tuesday it would run a 20-round competition in 2020 (two rounds have been played), with an 18-week season to start on Thursday, May 28 after the earlier suspension in mid-March due to the Covid-19 outbreak.