CANTERBURY chief executive Raelene Castle is lobbying the NRL to implement a players exit fee for those who recklessly break binding contracts. Castle believes players who walk out on agreements should pay the club they are leaving a fee that equals to about ten percent of their salary. The move, she hopes, will make players think twice about signing contracts and then asking for a release. "When you leave rugby league and go out into the real world and sign contracts people aren’t going to say ‘sure, break that contract and walk away with no implications’, " she told Bulldog’s Bite. "You can’t break contracts and walk away. "Players need to understand that there is a financial implication for them breaking a contract." Castle is currently negotiating an early exit for star Bulldogs fullback Ben Barba. Bulldog: Raelene, where does the Ben Barba issue stand at the moment? Raelene Castle wants to see an exit fee imposed on contract breakers. Picture: Sam Ruttyn Castle: We continue to work on the jigaw puzzle that is Ben Barba. There is no doubt in my early time that it has been an interesting process as to how you deal with a difficult issue which is a player that wants to extract himself from a contract. It has been complicated but I believe we are moving toward an outcome that will see a good resolution for all parties involved. Bulldog: Are you a believer in contracts - you sign one, you honour one? Castle: As part of the NRL salary cap review, I have spoken to the NRL about considering some other elements which might include a player break fee. So, sure players can get out of their contracts but there would be a break fee involved in that process. And perhaps even a player-manager break fee as well. In the same way that if I signed an insurance policy and if I broke that, I would have to perhaps pay back some of the commission that was going to that player manager or that insurance agent. Somewhere there is a middle ground that doesn’t leave the whole financial responsibility just sitting on the shoulders of the clubs. Bulldog: So the player walking away would have to pay the club he is leaving? Castle: The player should make a payment towards the club. I’m not talking about half their contract or a year’s contract, or anything like that. In life, all contracts that we sign as grown-ups, when you break them there are implications. You can’t break contracts and walk away. And I think players need to understand that there is a financial implication for them breaking a contract. Bulldog: I am sure people would support that concept Raelene. What kind of a fee would you be looking at imposing? A percentage? Castle: Like I said, it wouldn’t be half a year’s salary or anything ridiculous like that. I think it needs to be, maybe, ten percent of their salary. Something like that. STEVE TURNER ON BEN BARBA CONTRACT SAGA Bulldog: You have discussed this with the NRL due to Barba situation? Castle: Well, yes, when you come into these jobs there are observations that you make. It’’s not just Barba, it’s (Blake) Ferguson, it’s (Anthony) Milford and some of the other guys around at the moment. I think there is only one side to the discussion at the moment and that is ‘will the clubs release them?’. I think that needs to be a conversation that says will the club release them and is the player prepared to pay the break fee? Bulldog: I agree. If a player breaks a contract, he souldn’t be able to walk away scot-free. Castle: I don’t want it to be an aggressive type of punishment. It’s not about that. It’s about the real world. When you leave rugby league and go out into the real world and sign contracts people aren’t going to say ‘sure, break that contract and walk away with no implications’. We need to be setting guidelines and expectations with players and try and make the NRL negotiations and discussions more like what they face in the real world when they go out and live a life post-rugby league. Bulldog: Did the NRL show support for your proposal? Castle: Absolutely. When I say absolutely, there is a large number of aspects that they are going to be put into the salary cap discussions and that was certainly one they had already thought about. It is one they are going to have some serious debate and discussions about. Bulldog: How are you finding Des Hasler? He is an intense character. Castle: He is. But I said to him on day one that it is about building trust. Having been through some coach-CEO relationships previously, it doesn’t happen on day one. It doesn’t happen in week one, it probably doesn’t happen in month one. It happens because of the things I do as a chief executive to support Des and the things he does as a coach to support me. Those things happen over a period of time. So I expect our relationship to grow and develop. Certainly, the early signs are that we will find a way to have a very positive, working relationship. Castle taking cautious approach RAELENE Castle cannot believe the respect shown to her as the NRL’s only club CEO. Bulldog: You are female in a male-dominated game. Has rugby league shown you respect? Castle: Probably too respectful. If that can be a fair thing to say. I don’t expect people to change their behaviour markedly because I am here. I would like to think I can do the job and be respected for doing that job. I can genuinely say there hasn’t been a single person in any of my dealings so far that have looked sideways at me yet. Bulldog: Six weeks into the job, what have you thought of the NRL? Castle: It has been fantastic. The rugby league family has really made me feel welcome. Bulldog: Have you found there to be pressure, given it is a high-profile sport? Castle: Pressure isn’t the right word. More cautious. The Dogs are an important brand in the NRL and I want to make sure I do a good job and represent them in a way they deserve to be represented. I would say cautious more than anxious. The club is in great shape financially, the board is really sound, the administrative team is really capable and the football staff and team, led by Des, is in really good shape. So I arrived into an organisation that Todd (Greenberg) had left in really good shape. It’s been a really positive handover. Bulldog: Have you found any internal or external politics in the game? Castle: Of course, there is. There are politics at some level with the NRL and the clubs, there is politics with player-managers and the clubs and there are politics within the family that is the Bulldogs. Yes, of course. But none I would say where people aren’t prepared to sit down and work through it. That has been the most positive thing.
Posted on: Tue, 27 Aug 2013 08:51:27 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015