www.thisishullandeastriding.co.u ... ticle.html Dobson could of put his hand up and asked for this to help the squad out. But if he hasn't that's bad from Hull KR. Mason is a good signing but not this good. Hull Kr must be confident that Mason's Tongan passport won't be held up by more 'red tape'. Its a risk. Anyone with a chunk of available cap space (Wakefield after selling a number of first teamers before takeover) could knock on Dobsons door, offer big bucks and leave Hull KR a bit red faced.

www.thisishullandeastriding.co.u ... ticle.html Dobson could of put his hand up and asked for this to help the squad out. But if he hasn't that's bad from Hull KR. Mason is a good signing but not this good. Hull Kr must be confident that Mason's Tongan passport won't be held up by more 'red tape'. Its a risk. Anyone with a chunk of available cap space (Wakefield after selling a number of first teamers before takeover) could knock on Dobsons door, offer big bucks and leave Hull KR a bit red faced.

On the FC Forum (as you'd expect!) they're saying they've found a clause which stops him being re-registered in the same season.

Which would be funny to say the least.

Here's the rule.

RE-REGISTRATION OF AN OVERSEAS PLAYER
C1:4:7 An "overseas Player" who is removed from a Club Register during the Season cannot then be placed back on that Club's Register in that same Season save with the permission of the Board.

He could of, and I'm sure he would of, but the question is whether he should of?

So he can be placed back on the Club's Register in the same season he was removed then.

That's the key line. Surely HKR will have sought said permission BEFORE attempting it. Otherwise they're just idiots.

Funny how all RLF clauses appear to have been drafted by David Cameron these days.

Did Brian McDermott win his arm wrestle with Royce Simmons then?

But according to the link in the first post to the Hull Daily Mail article, they haven't had permission.

"When asked if Rovers already had such permission, the spokeswoman said they did not."

Hee hee. I of no doubt have that ! !

This is salient. If correct it means there will be a contact in place (not a playing contact), which might restrain Dobson from signing elsewhere. How enforceable that will be depends upon whether Leeds or Bradford's lawyers were involved



I wonder how any payment to Dobson to get him to agree to de-register and not sign for anyone else might affect salary cap regs? Surely it must count?

It's the first time I've heard of this scenario so I wouldn't be surprised if the SC rules didn't take this into account.

Maybe HKR will be charged with "breaking the spirit of the cap"? If they aren't will it get under the skin of our Wigan supporting friends?

I'd have thought if Dobson has had his contract settled, that would come under the salary cap calculations for this season (as will Willie Mason's contract for 2011) and if Dobson is subsequently allowed to re-register with Rovers this year that will also have to fit within the cap.

Perhaps Hull KR have room for manoeuvre.

That is the interesting bit! It sounds like Dobson might have signed some sort of compromise agreement, which of course are common place in the UK when people 'leave' employers (usually by mutual agreement) and can restrict you going to work for a competing company for a set length of time... however, they normally give you a compromise payment of some kind to make up for this!!!

Normally, if they restrict you working for a competitor they cover people's full salary for that period, so if six months, you get a payment of at least this amount of money and often a little more.

Now, they must have done this because one assumes that Dobson would not take too kindly to not being paid his basic salary or he would have told them to bog-off. So, if we assume that Hull KR don't have much room on their cap, if any, then I think they have got themselves into a right pickle. I suspect the salary cap rules will not cover compromise payments, because you would normally just be paying someone off to get rid of them but HKR are trying to get around various rules here. If a compromise payment was made and it takes them over the cap 'in theory' then I think the RFL board will have no choice but to turn down Hull KR re-registering Dobson at HKR as if they they would be complicit in HRK breaking 'the spirit' of the salary cap.

The only way they could have done this is if this 'payment' does not take them over the cap for the year, which it might not have done given they were signing Mason anyway. If it does, they and Dobson are screwed. They must have worked this out before doing this surely?

Of course, the RFL board could still refuse to allow Dobson to re-register anyway as HKR are also breaking the spirit of the quota system by trying to play Mason before he officially able to register off the quota... actually, I think HKR and Dobson are screwed!!!! If I was a club CEO or chairman I would be lobbying the RFL to turn-down Dobson's re-registration...

What a mess!

It's a 'live' salary cap.

If there is room under it for Dobson to return later in the season (and if the RFL sanction his return) then I'm sure that's what will happen.

If there isn't room then it won't. Where's the drama here?

Errr, because HKR are trying to exploit a loop-hole to get them around the 'quota' rules. When Dobson re-registers then the RFL will have no-choice but to add any payments made to Dobson on the cap to stay within it's spirit surely! Now, if they have just paid or are paying Dobson his normal basic, then the chances are if they had made room for Mason then they will remain under the cap value.

However, do you think the RFL should allow players to be effectively leave the employment of a member club (even if injured... in fact more so if injured) as a simple way to get around the quota rules. I am thinking the RFL will indeed not allow Dobson to re-register if HKR play Mason this weekend. If I were HRK I would now not play Mason, apologise to the RFL board for breaking the spirit of the rules, ask to be allowed to re-register Dobson with immediate effect and not play Mason until such time he has the required paperwork. I would however allow HKR to at least pay Mason (now he is here) as long as it does not take them over the cap.

I am a little surprised by your take on this!

The drama is we can de-register Kylie or Delaney for a month or so and borrow Dobson!



Edit - Just realised Dobson is injured too, thus the whole situation. Sorry!! It's been a VERY rough day.

I'm limiting my comments to the salary cap aspect. It's 'live', all contracts are lodged with the RFL, if there is room for Dobson to return later in the season, if the RFL sanction his return, then that is what I expect to happen.

Do you really want to hear my views on the quota regulations as they have been applied to Willie Mason.



Permanently?

I don't see the big fuss

As far as I read it's nothing to do with the salary cap but purely getting around Mason not receiving his Tongan passport yet?, they de-register an injured quota player (Dobson) so Mason can take his quota spot using his australian passport until he gets his Tongan one then Dobson can retake his quota spot.

HKR should have factored both Mason & Dobsons wage into their salary cap budget before the season started and
problems with Dobsons injury or Masons passport were even considered.

I would like to see the reaction if we had done something similar to get Huaraki playing.

No biggie for mine

Ditto. maybe a slight tweaking of the "spirit of the cap" guff but hey-ho.

Aye. But in the rules it says a de-registered player cannot be re-registered in the same season, this is where the confusion is for me.

The drama I alluded to, which was fully explained by IA, is any potential payment to Dobson in return for him agreeing to be deregistered and not thereafter sign for another team.

I very much doubt Dobson will have forgone his contract salary. I am sure he will still be paid that whilst deregistered. I am sure that will count on the cap.

HKR will have, I am guessing, had to make an additional payment over and above his salary, in return for him agreeing not to move elsewhere, whilst deregistered. It is that additional payment, a payment not due under his contract, I was wondering about. There's no drama, we were discussing theoreticals. Is that OK?

Agree, Dobson must be getting his wages paid and/or some sort of payment for going ahead with this in the first place. That just has to count on the salary cap. Unless this is a classic salary cap loop hole.

When JP got injured back in Aug 2010(?) was there anything to stop Leeds from de-registering JP, signing a prop on a short term 3 month contract, pay JP his wages in the mean time - not on playing staff but as a club shop assistant

, then resign JP before the season kicks off again.

I'm not sure how the "injured reserve" process works in the NFL but do we need something similar here if the salary cap of the club involved has sufficient slack to permit it?

I doubt the salary cap will be an issue here, but the re-registration under quota rules might be. Surely this is just the sort of swizz the "except with the permission of the board" clause will have been written to cover?

If Mason's Tongan passport approval is "days away" as Rovers said, this seems, on the face of it, a rather silly risk. I could be wrong though. Obviously.