Valued Shark Ava Seumanafagai facing unlucky Shire exit to keep club under salary cap
Unheralded Cronulla forward Ava Seumanafagai has emerged as the Sharks most unlikely saviour after the club were hit with a $353,000 salary cap impost by the NRL on Friday.
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Unheralded Cronulla forward Ava Seumanafagai has emerged as the Sharks most unlikely saviour.
In a race against time to ensure they’re salary cap compliant before round one in 13 days, Cronulla management are waiting to learn if the 114kg prop has decided to accept an approach from Leeds in the UK Super League.
The Sharks were hit with a $353,000 salary cap impost by the NRL on Friday for both the 2019 and 2020 seasons after CEO Barry Russell self-reported cap discrepancies dating back to 2013.
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While stung by the impact the penalty will have on their 2019 ambitions, the Sharks believe they are equipped to ensure they won’t lose a marquee player.
Behind the scenes, Cronulla have long been preparing for Friday’s announcement.
As a result of the prolonged nature of the nine-month investigation, Cronulla management began preparing their 2019 salary cap late last year for any potential penalty from the NRL.
The footy department deliberately refused to spend their full cap.
It’s why as of Friday, the Sharks still had just under $200,000 left to spend - in addition to one roster spot to fill inside their top 30.
Prior to signing James Segeyaro for $120,000 last Monday, Cronulla had 28 of 30 spots filled.
What remains is a final roster spot, which is typically reserved for the late pre-season promotion of a player into the full-time squad on the minimum wage of $80,000.
Seumanafagai is believed to have joined Cronulla from the Wests Tigers in 2017 on a per-season deal worth just under $300,000.
He is off-contract at Cronulla this season.
Highly-respected and valued by his Cronulla teammates for his work-ethic, Seumanafagai is determined to continue his NRL career by working inside one of the most experienced packs in the NRL.
However, the 118-gamer is also aware that having featured in just 13 NRL games last season - mostly from the interchange bench and on limited minutes last season - his opportunities will again be restricted in 2019.
The Sharks also have a host of young forwards pushing for weekly selection in the NRL including Jack Williams, Braden Uele, Cruz Topai-Aveai and Billy Magoulias.
If the Seumanafagai deal with Leeds fails to eventuate, undoubtedly the yet-to-be registered contract of hooker James Segeyaro will become a focus.
NRL chief operating officer Nick Weeks was deliberate in stating on Friday the Sharks would need to be cap compliant before round one.
He also clarified the “last in-first out” rule which enabled the NRL salary cap auditor to reject the registration of a contract from the last player signed by a club, in this case, Segeyaro.
“That rule is only applicable if the club doesn’t take steps first and we’re confident take steps to get itself compliant by round one,’’ Weeks said.
“They’ll (Cronulla) need to adjust their roster before the first round.
The game has never allowed clubs to play over the cap, so the salary cap auditor has powers available to him to change that roster for them.
“But we’re confident the club will do that in advance of the auditor having to step in.’’
Russell will spend Friday night working with former NRL salary cap auditor and Cronulla’s current salary cap manager Jamie L’Oste Brown on a number of outcomes to bring the club under the cap, including the possible departure of Seumanafagai.
“In relation to the 2019-2020 Salary Cap sanction, management and coaching staff, with guidance from our salary cap and recruitment managers, will come together to ensure we are fully compliant as stipulated by the NRL before our round one game on March 15,’’ Russell said in a club statement.
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