Quote ="Chris B"The problem is that if you reduce the salary cap you do run the risk of reducing the quality of the league. I think this has been noticeable in this division.
You also run the risk of losing your better players to the NRL or Union.
The answer is to increase the salary cap but to somehow increase the funding to the lower leagues also.'"
Not at all. The current Salary cap is £1.65m of which roughly £1.2m comes from Sky TV money (Sky Deal 3 years at £50, £1.19m). So the clubs still had to find the extra £450,000 to spend on the salary cap. Plus all other expenses regarding the running of the clubs.
The revenue streams available to rugby are limited in regards to bigger and more popular sports. You have to be realistic and grow the brand before you grow the cap. Once you have found ways to increase the revenue streams then you can talk about increasing the caps.
By reducing the cap you are allowing other teams to have a chance rather then the better teams hogging them. Thus allowing for a more competitive league and then giving the teams a better chance to use the money to develop through a youth system. Instead of allowing Leeds, Saints, Wigan et al to just round up as many younsters as they want for their youth systems. Thus stopping other teams actually developing.
The closer the whole division is a better specticle it becomes and a better chance of increasing those revenue streams.
There will always be a gulf between a top division and it's next level because the better players play in the top division. That's life. You need to level the field in the top division so that as teams progress they stand a better chance of survival. A newly promoted team is not going to instantly have high enough revenue streams to support a higher cap that you wish. Where will this money come from?
