Upping salary cap is not the answer
WORCESTER, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 14: Chris Pennell of Worcester Warriors takes on Charlie Atkinson during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby match between Worcester Warriors and Wasps at Sixways Stadium on February 14, 2021 in Worcester, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)
Colin Boag
Last week was when the Premiership chickens started to come home to roost. From a purely rugby perspective, Worcester Warriors have been the league’s basket case for a very long time, but just when they’d finally got themselves a head coach who might turn that around, things started to become clear about how bad things are at Sixways.
As an outsider, it’s always difficult to know how things are at a club, as what we see happening on the field is the bit that’s above the waterline, and there might be all sorts of desperate scrabbling about going on underneath! In Worcester’s case that’s starting to become apparent, and who knows what might be going on elsewhere.
The Wasps situation regarding their bond is well known, although they seem very optimistic that their existence isn’t under threat, and while the other 11 clubs currently seem OK, it wouldn’t be the biggest surprise if some of them, the ones without mega-rich sugar daddies, are also experiencing very tough times.
During the week there was briefly one of the daftest rumours I’ve heard in a long time, which was that if Worcester went into administration, some sort of salary cap accommodation might be put in place to allow their players to be shared out amongst their rivals! It’s hard to think of anything that would help the situation less.
