The Roosters are searching for wage cap aid for Angus Crichton who has been sidelined on account of psychological sickness — and the NRL360 panel butted heads over the Tricolours’ transfer.
The gun backrower will be unable to coach for a minimum of 10 weeks, earlier than an evaluation on his wellbeing shall be carried out.
Crichton’s father final week revealed why his son was taking time away from rugby league, revealing: “I can confirm today that Angus is under appropriate professional support and treatment for medically diagnosed bipolar disorder which he has been dealing with for some time”.
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Roosters powerbrokers are actually searching for cap aid for Crichton’s reported $750,000 wage, nevertheless The Daily Telegraph’s Paul Crawley believes the transfer units a “dangerous precedent”.
“I can’t believe that the NRL is even contemplating giving cap relief for a mental health issue, and that’s not that the Roosters shouldn’t look after Angus in his current situation,” Crawley stated on NRL360.
“Or the game shouldn’t stand beside him, but when you are dealing with a salary cap this would set a dangerous precedent.
“It hasn’t happened before, that dispensation is designed for injured players… the rule with injuries was always did you suffer that new injury after you signed a new contract, that was the stipulation.
“All the clubs are sitting there and watching on with interest… I don’t think the NRL can even allow it.”
Traditionally, wage cap aid has been granted when gamers have suffered career-ending accidents or have been stood down below the NRL’s No Fault Stand Down coverage.
Any aid granted isn’t handed to golf equipment for that season, as a substitute it’s positioned on high of the next 12 months’s wage cap in accordance with The Daily Telegraph’s David Riccio.
“I think the NRL are going to have an issue, my phone lit up this morning with rival club CEOs questioning how could this unfold,” Riccio stated.
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“They could have anarchy within the ranks if they do tick off that it is a mental health salary cap dispensation.
“But just to clarify, it is not salary cap dispensation for this season, whatever Angus Crichton is being paid this year goes on to the Roosters’ salary cap, it would be for next year.
“It would open up around $700,000 of their cap for 2024 if he doesn’t come back.
“The Rabbitohs are a good example, they had to go through it with Ethan Lowe and Greg Inglis, in both cases they had to pay out those contracts and that sat on the cap.
“That will be the case with Angus, it will sit there this year, but they can’t go out and get a replacement player if Angus doesn’t play this year.”
While return dates for many accidents are unclear, a definitive return date for an individual struggling psychological sickness can’t be decided.
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Both NRL360 co-host Paul Kent and Riccio agreed, the Roosters are proper in asking the query — however imagine the NRL gained’t wish to open a “can of worms”.
“The issue is too with mental illness, unlike an ACL where we have very clear ideas about how long that injury takes to recuperate,” Kent stated.
“Or second to that if the injury is beyond fixing and therefore you have to retire, but with mental illness, no one knows, he could be back in six months, he might be back in three, he may not be back at all.
“That’s why I can’t blame the Roosters for asking the question, and there’s currently no rules around it” Riccio stated.
“I think the NRL will say no, that’s where I think it will land,” Kent stated.
“One thing the Roosters will be doing, which is what they do better than most, is they are extremely thorough in their presentation to the NRL in why this should be the case.
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“But I still think the NRL will just say ‘it is a can of worms if we go down this road’.
“But again, we might look back in five years’ time, and if Angus Crichton, lets all hope he does recover, and we do all want that.
“If he does not come back to the game, we might be saying in five years’ time ‘maybe the Roosters should have been given dispensation’.
“If he’s out for beyond the duration of his current contract, you can reasonably argue that they should have got dispensation, but no one knows.
“The safe answer for the NRL is to just say ‘we accept your submission, but we can’t say okay’.
Neither signings have been confirmed, however the Roosters are set to announce both Dominic Young and Spencer Leniu will join the club for the 2024 season.
And if their request for relief is granted, Crawley believes other clubs will be “nervous” the Tricolours may poach their gamers.
“Where rival clubs will be nervous, if they get $700,000 to go chase a player who wants to take unders to go there,” Crawley stated.
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