Premiership financial issues

[fivepointer]

Wasps have 10 working days to save the club after filing a second notice of intent to appoint an administrator.
This extends the period of protection after HMRC called in a tax bill believed to be £2m, buying the club time to find a rescue package.
Wasps say potential new investors/funders have come forward.
They say that talks are "at an advanced stage" and the club are hopeful of securing a deal - the same language used when filing for the first notice on Sept 21.

[Mellsblue]

[Peej]

IF (and it is a planet sized if) Wasps can be saved, will PRL relegate two teams this year, and just promote one to bring it back to a 12-team league?

I think a lot of Wasps fans are deluded. I personally think we're fucked, and just prolonging the inevitable.

[Which Tyler]

IF (and it is a planet sized if) Wasps can be saved, will PRL relegate two teams this year, and just promote one to bring it back to a 12-team league?

I think a lot of Wasps fans are deluded. I personally think we're fucked, and just prolonging the inevitable.

Hopefully relegate both + the bottom placed extant team, and move to a 10-team league

[Mellsblue]

[Puja]

No representation in court. Fuck the owners.

I'm so sorry for the fans and hope all the players are able to find new employment swiftly.

Puja

[Danno]

That's negligent. All you have to do is turn up and promise to negotiate and you'll secure an adjournment. Goldring and the other arsehole just don't care.

[Which Tyler]

Jebus! not even turning up?

[Puja]

That's negligent. All you have to do is turn up and promise to negotiate and you'll secure an adjournment. Goldring and the other arsehole just don't care.

To their minds, getting rid of the players and staff is a feature, not a bug. Not like they were going to pay them anyway and they were just going to hang around complaining. The arseholes have got what they want out of the club, so why bother prolonging the death throes.

Fuckers.

Puja

[Puja]

On a side note, I wonder how that affect's Bath's loan deal for Hill, Lawrence, Morozov, and Lee-Warner, given that they presumably are loaning them from an entity that no longer exists. Do they have to re-sign all four on permanent deals? Can they afford to within the cap?

I would imagine there's possibly an undignified midlands scrap going on to pick up the best of the academy lads, considering the quality of Worcester's youth development pathways, as well as Northampton, Leicester, and Gloucester wondering what the dignified period of time would be to wait before petitioning the RFU to take over their catchment area.

Puja

[FKAS]

I suspect the RFU will be happy to adjust the Wasps catchment area because it was starting to infringe on the traditional Tigers heartland. For instance I think it was Hinckley having ties to both clubs, Hinckley producing the likes of Dan Cole and Sam Harrison in recent years. Being able to move it to a more established location and step on less toes might help.

The scrap for development level talent I suspect will take off shortly. Those lads may already be homeless and out of pocket so there won't be any potentially bad PR from stepping in and signing them up. There'll be a flood of players leaving once the first one goes as well but the PRL might have to agree a temporary salary cap increase before that can happen.

[Oakboy]

I've said all along that the league, the RFU and the other clubs should do more. Would a rise in the salary cap not be in everyone's best interest, for example? Restrict it to acquisition of Worcester players in the first instance

[Puja]

I've said all along that the league, the RFU and the other clubs should do more. Would a rise in the salary cap not be in everyone's best interest, for example? Restrict it to acquisition of Worcester players in the first instance

At a time where one Premiership club has gone bust and another is at death's door, would it be particularly good optics to be increasing the salary cap?

Not necessarily disagreeing with you that it ought to be done, but think it might not get done for fear of seeming impolitic.

Puja

[Mellsblue]

I've said all along that the league, the RFU and the other clubs should do more. Would a rise in the salary cap not be in everyone's best interest, for example? Restrict it to acquisition of Worcester players in the first instance

At a time where one Premiership club has gone bust and another is at death's door, would it be particularly good optics to be increasing the salary cap?

Not necessarily disagreeing with you that it ought to be done, but think it might not get done for fear of seeming impolitic.

Puja

Clubs don’t have to spend up to the salary cap, but it would enable ex-Wuss players to find employment at clubs that can afford it that otherwise wouldn’t be there.

[Gloskarlos]

There’s going to be a lot of academy prospects falling into a chasm in Warwickshire and surrounding counties if both Worc and Wasps DPP go south. Too far geographically for most to relocate. I already know some players trying to move from Worc to Wasps at u15 and u16 preempting the inevitable. It’ll be a crying shame, particularly as the rfu banned any other kind of developmental training.....

[I R Geech]

Central contracts for the top 50 players. Lessens the burden on the clubs for stars that are terrible value for money. All of this is down to that massive arsehole Dudley Wood, so this is the time for the RFU to start undoing it. The game has to be more affordable and less reliant on benefactors while keeping talent here.

[FKAS]

The first vulture has landed and Edinburgh have picked up Duhan van der Merwe. The team manager has already given an interview saying he expects more announcements of player movement tonight and tomorrow morning.

[Scrumhead]

Is it really fair to call them vultures if they’re employing the players?

[Banquo]

Is it really fair to call them vultures if they’re employing the players?

....exactly my first thought.

[I R Geech]

Is it really fair to call them vultures if they’re employing the players?

At their old club too

[FKAS]

Is it really fair to call them vultures if they’re employing the players?

Yeah perhaps a bit harsh but I did think that announcing with a bit of fanfare his return on the same day that Wuss fans were in mourning and staff were left without a job was a little tasteless. Either make the announcement low key or wait a day to formally announce it.

[Puja]

Worcester are now officially banned from the rest of the season instead of suspended and confirmed to be relegated from the Premiership.

I hope the Prem does look at the opportunity to rearrange the fixtures for the back half of the season to get a weekend back instead of the bye-weeks, especially if that means losing a week of overlap with the 6N.

Puja

[FKAS]

Having a free weekend for all clubs during the 6N would be a good thing. I bet if they do reschedule everything to free up a weekend they'll plonk the PRC in it though.

[Mellsblue]

I hope the Prem does look at the opportunity to rearrange the fixtures for the back half of the season to get a weekend back instead of the bye-weeks, especially if that means losing a week of overlap with the 6N.

Puja

It would be the logical thing to do…

[Puja]

Having a free weekend for all clubs during the 6N would be a good thing. I bet if they do reschedule everything to free up a weekend they'll plonk the PRC in it though.

Eh, I'd take that. No-one much cares about the PRC anyway, so it's not like it's important.

Puja