Alfie Barbery and Zach Mercer will be looking to impress at their new clubs. Photo: Getty Images
Team building is a skill that deserves wider recognition, especially in competitions like the Premier League where there are salary caps. Clubs will need to be smart and resourceful in the upcoming Championship campaign, which begins on Friday when Bristol Bears host Leicester Tigers. In a difficult financial situation, there is a strong focus on things like tactical clarity, coaching and youth development; not to mention recruitment.
Broadly speaking, the cap will remain at £5m this season. Each club is entitled to an additional £400,000 to cover injuries, as well as £600,000 in domestic loans and a further £400,000 — up to £80,000 per player — to compensate for the absence of international players. One player per club is allowed to be excluded from the salary cap, unless the two excluded players already have contracts signed before June 2020. This is one of the tangible benefits of forward planning.
Although this is somewhat inconvenient. If we stop there, clubs with the solvency — and cap space — could sign contracts with Worcester Warriors, Wasps and London Irish. Players disappointed with Jersey are already finding work in the Premier League.
This year, by club, several trends can be identified:
- Mass welcome to Argentina and Wales players.
- Some clubs will have to rebuild after cuts costs and recalibration.
- Others maintain momentum during periods of stability, usually thanks to fruitful academies.
- Check the linebackers, props and back play. -rowers are still valuable.
- Although some England players have gone to France, others have returned.
- The Premier League includes both high-paying and flat pay structures.< /li>
<р>The salary cap will rise again to £6.4 million in 2024/25, with one player being exempted, which will change the situation for next season. However, one senior figure connected with the club expects squad size to be «significantly reduced» due to the Premier League being cut to 10 teams. Fewer clashes between marquee domestic matches and Tests in November, February and March could change spending habits. «I think we'll spend the same amount of money, just on fewer players,» they explained. «The final effect of this is that you can spend money on quality.»
There are two important stories worth considering. Although players can only be selected for the England squad after playing in the Premier League, the personality of the England manager influences the league's ability to retain talent. Another source suggested players are hoping Steve Borthwick will provide more consistency and clarity than during the Eddie Jones era. Then again, the ongoing Professional Gaming Partnership (PGP) negotiations, which are discussing hybrid contracts, could change all that. A certain degree of uncertainty remains for everyone, which is difficult for players when big decisions need to be made.
In this part, we rate the first five clubs, from Bath to Harlequins.
Bath
Eliminated Player:Finn Russell
Although the Scottish wizard was praised as a million-pound man when rumors of his move from Racing 92 to the Premier League first emerged, it is understood that Russell will earn around £750,000 a year as Bath's cut-out player. It is clear that this is still a tidy sum. And there are other big numbers on the West Country wage bill.
Thomas du Toit, the rugged South African mainstay, is another high-profile arrival. Ben Spencer, Cameron Redpath, Charlie Ewels, Joe Cocanasiga, Sam Underhill and Will Stewart also make good money. The final six people's combined pay would remain unchanged, if at all, by £2 million.
It is understood that backdated deals allowed Bath to secure three key assets from Wasps and Worcester Warriors — Alfie Barbery, Ollie Lawrence and Ted Hill. This means a player could have a contract worth £10,000 for the first six months and then receive £290,000 for each of the next two seasons. This trick requires flexible administration.
Ted Hill fights for Bath in the Premier League Cup Photo: Getty Images
In short, Bath faces a period of recalibration. Jonathan Joseph went to Biarritz last summer among many departures. Cokanasiga, Ewels, Underhill and Stewart, as well as Tom de Glanville and Will Muir, are all out of contract at the end of the season, and some may only be able to stay on concessional terms. Stewart is believed to have met Gloucester before the World Cup and he too has a top 14 suitor.
One insider has suggested that a «huge turnover of playing staff» is needed to clean up a wage structure that has become a «mess» and Bath's current predicament is a classic example of what can — and did — happen at Leicester Tigers. – during coaching work. teams are not allowed to reach a consensus, and spending continues without a coherent strategy.
Despite this, there is optimism that «for the first time in a long time, they have a lot of good people in good jobs.» Lee Blackett joined Johann van Graan to oversee the attack, while Rob Burgess, a former agent with vast experience, arrived from the Dragons in September as head of recruitment. Burgess was named «their best assignment» of the summer.
Among his top priorities, sources indicate, will be finding a front three player with outstanding gas — Henry Arundell would fit the bill. , you can imagine — and an elite castle.
Bristol Bears
Possible excluded player:Kyle Sinclair
Pat Lam has been running the top group for some time now and that won't change despite the departure of two Ashton Gate Galacticos players in Charles Piutau and Semi Radrara. Both of these two were dropped from the squad last season and follow Luke Morahan, who left in January, as well as others including Joe Joyce and Andy Uren.
Kyle Sinclair has signed an intriguing one-year deal that will see him he will remain in Bristol after the World Cup. Even if he turned down his original contract, worth around £475,000 a year, he is doing well. It is believed that 14 top clubs will be interested in his services from 2024.
Stephen Luatua was another influential figure to extend his time under Pat Lam, while Chris Wui, Ellis Genge, Magnus Bradbury and AJ McGinty were also at the top. salary scales. McGinty is in the second year of a three-year contract worth around £475,000 a season. Harry Thacker has been renewed for this season.
Kieran Marmion, the England-qualified and Republic of Ireland-qualified scrum-half, is another former Connacht player to arrive, while Max Malins, ready to spend more playing time in his favored full-back role, is a Bear again after his spell at for rent between 2020 and 2021. The latter's salary was increased. Saracens are believed to have offered around £275,000 but failed to match Bristol's mark of close to £360,000.
Max Malins had an exceptional performance in the Premier League final, his last game for Saracens. Photo: Getty Images
To his credit, Malins has proven himself to be an excellent goalscorer and a versatile, intuitive player over the years. The 26-year-old was exceptional in the Premier League final four months ago. Benhard van Rensburg, the former London Irish center, and former Wasps hooker Gabriel Ogre, who also represented Leicester Tigers and Union Bordeaux-Begles last season, are capable players. Van Rensburg has been one of the tournament's best defenders over the past two years, and Ogre has caught the eye in the knockout stage of the top 14 defenders.
Building a strong squad has critics who question the harmony in the dressing room, but this the approach may be suitable for a small 10-team Premier League fixture list and the promise of fewer clashes with internationals in the future.
Cap space must be at a premium, but Virimi Vakatawa won't break the bank because his cardiac problems, which Bristol have tested with the help of a panel of independent doctors, prevent him from playing in France and the explosive center is eager to kick-start his career. career. Santiago Grondona's unfortunate cruciate ligament injury suffered in Argentina's last warm-up match against Spain provides grounds for injury compensation.
Having acquired tackle-forward Kaleveti Ravvu from Fijian Drua, the next priority for Gethin Watts, Bristol's head of player personnel, is to strengthen the squad. Fitz Harding has recently signed a long-term contract and the Bears have inquired about a pair of versatile back-fives who represented England last year.
Exeter Chiefs
Likely ruled out: Henry Slade< /p>
After the almighty outcome comes restoration. Rob Baxter relied heavily on league-wide Covid distributions, meaning only 75 per cent of contracts counted against the salary cap to retain the majority of his double-winning squad. Retention has always been difficult, and the drip that began in 2022 with the losses of Jonny Hill, Sam Skinner and Tom O'Flaherty has become a torrent flowing out of the Sandy Park gates.
Ben Moon, Dave Evers, Harry Williams, Ian Whitten, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jack Maunder, Jack Nowell, Jannes Kirsten, Joe and Sam Simmonds, Stuart Hogg; The list of departures is staggering and is joined by relatively recent arrivals, including Reuben van Heerden, who returned to South Africa in January, and Solomona Kata.
Sources have suggested that this transfer leaves Exeter without spending on the current one. season, but re-signed with a group that includes Jack Yeandle and Ollie Woodburn, as well as a younger team that includes Tom Cairns, Tom Wyatt and Will Becconsall. . There were signs that the Chiefs would get back to the cap soon enough.
The Premier League Cup results were promising with Ross Vincent, a former Italy Under-20 international who joined from the University of Exeter, showing impressive pace as No. 8 scored a hat-trick against the London Scottish side to secure a place in the semi-finals.
Chiefs had hoped the Ospreys would attract Ethan Roots, a fighting rower from Auckland, and Joe Hawkins. The presence of the latter and Henry Slade, both irreplaceable playmakers, will be present throughout much of the pre-season.
Henry Slade's contract expires at the end of the season and he will have to wait before making a decision. Photo: Getty Images
Will Haydon-Wood, the former England Under-20s midfielder who developed well at Newcastle Falcons before an ill-fated move to Wasps, could find a second wind at Devon via Massey in the French second division . Sale Sharks' Matt Postlethwaite is a tough lock that will graft and graft.
Slade will be at the center of discussions around recruitment and retention in 2024-25. The centre, Exeter's only player ruled out since Hogg's departure, is out of contract at the end of the current season. It is understood he will need time to evaluate his options, with England's continued involvement under Steve Borthwick now in doubt. The 30-year-old will have no shortage of admirers.
Gloucester
Possible player eliminated:Fraser Balmain, Adam Hastings or Zach Mercer
Insiders at Kingsholm told Telegraph Sport a year ago that the identities of the excluded players were a closely guarded secret, with even the men themselves unaware of their status. The situation may have changed during this time, given significant behind-the-scenes movements that saw Alex Brown succeed Lance Bradley as CEO and Alex James arrive from London Irish to assist George Skivington with recruitment and retention.
Either way, Zac Mercer joins Adam Hastings, Fraser Balmain, Ruan Ackermann and Albert Tuis as one of the club's highest-paid players. The back-rower, who returned to the West Country from Montpellier to fight for a place in the England squad, earns around £400,000. One source suggested the final fee for the four-year deal with Mercer could rise to £475,000.
Gloucester academy products have usually had to be patient to secure lucrative contracts, and that brings us to Louis Rees-Zammit. The Welsh striker's contract expires next summer and his salary is believed to be around £225,000. He will have no difficulty in finding a better deal, and Gloucester can allow one young airman to acquire another in Henry Arundell.
Will Louis Rees-Zammit stay at Gloucester beyond next season? Photo: Reuters
It will continue the strong theme of acquiring former exiles, with James Lightfoot-Brown, formerly an academy coach at London Irish, now overseeing the attack. Afolabi Fasogbon, a promising England U20 international, leads a group of London Irish youngsters heading to Cherry and White.
High hopes are placed on lanky center Max Llewellyn, who joined from Cardiff, while Billy Twelvetrees has joined Ealing Trailfinders. Ackermann's move beyond the upcoming season also seemed important.
Fasogbon would be a tempting long-term prospect for Trevor Woodman, although Gloucester suffered injury last season and are targeting another senior player to back up Fraser Balmain, who has been ruled out in the past. The club are believed to have met with Will Stewart ahead of the World Cup. Hastings is another player out of contract, forcing Gloucester to look for both a forward and scrum-half.
Harlequins
Possible player ruled out:Marcus Smith
It is understood that a regular England international at Harlequins can expect to earn around £325,000, a figure that remains relatively stable given the bonuses members of the elite squad of players receive from the Rugby Football Union and the time they spend , is likely to remain unavailable for a job at the club.
Marcus Smith was likely commanding something big even before he signed a contract extension with Harlequins when the Racing 92 deal was valued at around at £500,000 per season, fell through. Remember that the midfielder was closely linked with Bath before signing his previous contract.
Retaining Smith capped an impressive year for Ed Spokes, Harlequins' head of recruitment, because there was a real sense of logic and succession planning across the board. Joe Lawnbury, who chose the Twickenham Stoop via Japan over Racing 92, has replenished the lock stock that was depleted in 2022 due to the departure of Hugh Tizard.
Joe Lawnbury chose Harlequins after a stint in Japan. Photo: Getty Images
Will Porter, another former Wasps player, is seen as Danny Care's long-term replacement in the scrum-half. Dillon Lewis and Jarrod Evans crossed the Severn Bridge from Cardiff following the departures of Wilco Law and Tommaso Allan, and Harlequins were opportunists and focused on the decline of the London Irish. You couldn't ask for a player to fill the hole left by Joe Marchant more tightly than Will Joseph, and Harlequins will save money on this trade-off.
Chandler Cunningham-South is understood to have been brought in as injury cover for James Chisholm, while Lovejoy Chawatama was acquired as a result of Simon Kerrod's sacking following ankle surgery. Both former exiles will be looking to prove themselves and earn a longer stay.
Regarded as a very effective player in Irish wrestling, Chavatama has attracted interest from Australia, Wales and France. He turned down more money to keep his family in Walton-on-Thames. With Castre believed to be closing in on Will Collier, Chawatama could make a more permanent home at Harlequins.
Roma Zheng, who put together a stunning highlight reel at Cardiff Metropolitan University, may have looked like a wildcard. But two graduates of the same institution, Alex Dombrandt and Luke Northmore, excelled at Harlequins. Zheng, a low-slung striker, scored on his debut against Hartpury in the Premier League Cup.
The concept of tactical identity often seems bland and vacuous, but Harlequins have made it tangible. This helps their recruitment because preferred positional profiles seem clearly defined. Josh Bellamy, for example, is an energetic midfielder progressing through the academy. Smith appears to be a suitable role model.
Part two, covering Leicester Tigers, Newcastle Falcons, Northampton Saints, Sale Sharks and Saracens, will be published on Wednesday.
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