Cameron Smith contract: Salary cap cops set $500K minimum figure
NRL salary cap auditors have laid down the law to the two clubs racing for the coveted signature of Storm legend Cameron Smith.
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The NRL will refuse to register any new deal for Cameron Smith unless the Broncos or Titans pay at least $500,000 to secure the Storm champion’s services.
The Courier-Mail can reveal the NRL’s salary-cap team have privately contacted Broncos and Titans chiefs to advise the Queensland rivals there will be no salary-cap concessions or cut-price contracts if they move to formally sign the 430-game legend.
The salary-cap cops did not discuss specific figures with the Broncos and Titans but it is understood the NRL will not rubberstamp any playing deal for Smith this season worth less than $500,000.
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NRL auditors have the power to assess the notional value of a player’s contract before deciding whether to register it.
As revealed by News Corp, the Broncos have formally approached Smith, with coach Kevin Walters revealing Brisbane have the salary-cap room to accommodate the 37-year-old hooker for the 2021 season.
But if Smith decides to play on — and the Broncos or Titans or any other club tables a formal offer — there will be no fiscal free-kicks from the NRL.
It is not unusual for the NRL’s auditing team to contact the code’s 16 clubs to spell out specific conditions of the salary cap if a team is linked with signing a particular player.
At this stage, the governing body has not received any paperwork from any club wishing to register Smith for 2021, nor have the Broncos or Titans contacted the NRL seeking to sign him.
But the incessant speculation linking Smith to the Titans and Broncos has prompted NRL salary-cap chiefs to get on the front foot with the former Storm skipper’s potential employers.
The Broncos and Titans have been informed they will not be able to claim salary-cap exemptions if they seek to provide a ‘career-transition payment’ for Smith should he sign a 12-month playing deal with a view to a post-football job at Brisbane or the Gold Coast.
Had Smith remained at Melbourne this year, the Storm would have received salary-cap dispensation for a portion of his $1 million wage for any ambassadorial work due to his long-service status at the club.
But if the Broncos or Titans sign Smith, they will not be able to pay him any money outside the salary cap as part of a post-football transition into club employment for 2022 and beyond.
Ostensibly, the NRL will not allow the Broncos or Titans to buy Smith at a bargain rate.
The former Queensland and Test skipper was on around $1 million at the Storm last season.
Based on that figure, Smith would be given a notional value of around $580,000 should he choose to join an NRL club this year for the next seven months of the code’s annual contracting period which starts on November 1.
The Broncos have around $600,000 left in their salary cap this season, while the Titans are believed to have similar scope in their payment ceiling if Smith becomes available.
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Originally published as Cameron Smith contract: Salary cap cops set $500K minimum figure
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