Will become a big block of flats in the next few years, and provide a bigger return to the club in that form than it was as a trading entity. No dramas with the Two Blues venture, more dramas imo with pouring money down a soccer funnel that went nowhere and has nothing to show for it...
I actually liked that Fitzy in this instance took a lead position on behalf of the game as a whole (not just parra) in putting forward the statement against endless salary cap raises. That cannot be the solution, unless the game (as a whole) is getting the type of income (through TV rights etc) to rival what Union has, which comes back to the deals with channel 9 and foxtel, and the conflict of interest on the NRL board which ties Gallop's hands somewhat.
No change to the salary cap will deal with the international economic reality that see players head to the UK to cash in. They are not being forced out - they are making choices based on their greed and expectations of ongoing high salaries, because that it what is more important to them than playing in NRL or with their club on reduced deals as better youngsters come through.
I'm sick of hearing players whinging that the salary cap forced them out - they should just be honest and admit the reality of them wanting to stay on the same or ever increasing amount throughout their career right up to retirement means that they have to go to England, full stop. We shouldn't break the game and clubs financially just to accommodate greedy f**ks who can't invest what they've got sensibly enough.
I hope Denis' comment at least sets a tone to many players and officials (in the game as a whole, including media whores like Phil Gould) that the days of ever increasing revenue for our game (as dreamed of during Superleague by some) have not come to fruition, and the game as a whole has to get real. If we lose some greedy stars from time to time, so be it, there will be more and no-one (not even Joey) proves irreplaceable.
