How long has it been since the salary cap was altered? Have we had no inflation since then? Have club's incomes not increased since then? We need to raise the cap if we want to be able to compete with the money sloshing around in yawnion.

How much cash are the Saints gonna get for him

If the new TV deal can be negotiated at an increase then we may be able to bump it up from next year, but I'm not holding my breath given the current financial climate.

Unless the cap was doubled (which we clearly can't afford as a sport), we still wouldn't be competing.

The reason our best players consider RU is that their international game is a cash cow and the players are handsomely rewarded for playing lots and lots of internationals each year.

Even if we offered Kyle a five years deal on £200k, he'd still be a fair way down on what he could end up being paid in RU, and that's before we even consider his earning potential post retirement as a yawnion pin-up rather than a little known league player. I wouldn't be surprised if players like Ashton trouser £50k each for a 6 Nations tournament alone.

Can't blame him at all really, especially seeing how well Chris Ashton's doing at the minute.

Piling on the pounds?

Has he shown you his bank account too?

If it is the draw of the international game that is causing rugby players to go to union, then we really only have ourselves to blame. Union get 80,000 for an international on a Friday night, whereas we struggle to fill Doncaster's tiny ground for some of our internationals. We need to get bums on seats, and create the prospect of playing in front of huge crowds when you pull on the national jersey.

No, but I've seen him make the step up from the odd trip to Burger King to regular trips to Gourmet Burger Kitchen.

press conference at sale tomorrow 7.45 am. /www.salesharks.com/news/dimes-set-to-announce-his-first-signing

Luke McCallister apparently

TBF we are hampered by a ltd amount of Int teams that are competitve and the main focus being on club RL. Aside from Ashes tests and the odd WC final against Oz have Int's drawn decent crowds (40k+) in the last 40 years?

It would be interesting to knwo how many people at Twickenham games are season ticket hoders of a RU club, not many I suspect as it is more a social occasion (like the boat race) more than to follow the sport imo.

International RU tickets are distributed through organisations like amature clubs and schools.

this should be on other sport it don't belong here..

as jb said, takes you guys ages to produce a good one and then union poach him

their is no easy solution in the short run so if union wants to pay lots of money, best for them to go

many will come back anyway bored in union, and even the ones that dont will still love the game

once its in your blood its got you

Well it seems we still don't know. Sale's big signing this morning was Irish player Tony Buckley. So Where is Kyle headed then? Still Sale, Bath? The seeming impossibility that he might stay with Saints?

Nothing.. he's off contract

Shame, first decent half in years and years, has all the attributes and he's off to 'that' sport. Dont blame the guy really, just wish he'd at least end up in the NRL or something, weakens saints and hes still available for England

If he goes now we will get some cash, i'd expect any RU team would want the lad for at very least a full preseason, and probably longer to get used to the game so if he goes, i'd expect him to go straight away

You wont get hardly anything for a lad going off contract in 8 months. If Saints try and ask for a fee, they'll just say no, we'll wait. Hes probably more valuable staying for this season than receiving a small fee tbh

Around half of England RU tickets are sold to corporate clients. In other words, people on a jolly being paid for by their business.

The remainder are sold through the amateur clubs, but with a proviso. If a club fails to sell it's allocation for a particular game then they don't get any the next time it's their turn. This means if you get tickets for a game against Canada you have to sell them or you won't get tickets for a big game against New Zealand. So it's in their interests to make sure people from within the club buy them.

Half the people at Twickenham don't have a clue what's going on on the pitch. They only go because it's an image thing.

Thats better

[urlhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_league/super_league/st_helens/9396308.stm[/url

Looks like if he is going, it won't be till the end of the season.

Clubs choose to sell their tickets they cannot flog directly to hospitality agencies certified by the RFU, offloading those tickets usually is not a problem.

It may have changed since but I remember very clearly reading the details direct from the RFU about four years ago. Half the tickets went to corporates.

You've misunderstood the second part. Amateur clubs are allocated tickets on a rota basis, and are expected to sell them all via their membership. If they don't sell them all then the RFU don't give them tickets the next time it's their turn.