Equalisation: Ongoing battle to police country footy salary cap

Victorian country footy clubs have little faith the salary cap is stopping under the table deals for big name players, despite the best efforts of some to curb spending.

Country footy’s salary cap is being widely derided as a way of putting a handbrake on player payments, with demands of big bucks and other difficult to trace third-party deals by players still rife.

A lack of faith in properly policing the cap is raging across the state despite a season when Wangaratta was stripped of its 2022 premiership for a cap breach.

First-time audits of every club that played in grand finals this year are ongoing.

Many club and league officials have told this masthead that upfront, sign-on cash payments remain one of the most common ways to avoid reporting the true amount players get paid.

The salary cap and player points system were introduced by AFL Victoria in 2016 to combat out-of-control payments with some clubs shelling out $350,000 per season on players.

Wangaratta Magpies were stripped of the 2022 Ovens and Murray league premiership for a salary cap breach. Picture: Yuri Kouzmin

Next year salary caps range from $30,000 in the Omeo District league to $130,000 in the Goulburn Valley and Ovens and Murray leagues.

For the Omeo District league, one of the most remote in the state with players travelling long distances to play, this equates to a maximum of $2000 per game per club, which averages out to less than $100 per player.

In the O & M and GV, which have dozens of ex-AFL players at clubs, the weekly average amount available for clubs to stay under the cap is around $7000.

This equates to an average of $318 per player.

POLL: What is the most effective way to achieve equalisation in country footy? @theweeklytimes@ctryfootyscores

— David Johnston (@david_johnston5) November 2, 2023

Gippsland club official Michael Henderson wrote to AFL Victoria 12 months ago with concerns player payments were “spiralling out of control” again.

“It’s not hard to get an understanding of what certain players are paid,” he said.

“We all compete for the same recruits and get a guide on what their respective market value is.

“The original catalyst for the player points and salary cap was clubs spending unsustainable amounts on players.

“It is time for a line to be drawn in the sand and a message sent by AFL Victoria that salary cap enforcement will be taken seriously.”

AFL Victoria community football manager John O'Donohue.

AFL Victoria community football manager John O’Donohue said a team of compliance officers had been recruited to complete the grand final teams reviews and will remain in their roles into the new year “to ensure all clubs are supported and compliant with the program”.

The AFL’s former salary cap cop Ken Wood has been appointed to oversee the audits and the compliance and integrity teams.

“Ken is the former AFL salary cap manager and comes with extensive experience in the management of player payments and adds significant credibility to the program,” Mr O’Donohue said.

Ken Wood has been recruited to oversee compliance with the country footy salary cap. Picture: Michael Klein

Mr O’Donohue said there was no plan to dump the salary cap and leave the player points system as the sole means to achieve equalisation across all leagues.

“Evidence and feedback received suggests that the two programs are most effective working in conjunction,” he said.

“There are many scenarios where points can be low, salary cap high and vice-a-versa.

“The objective of capping and restricting the top team from getting further ahead is best served with both.

“Player points and salary caps are designed to help volunteers and local community clubs as they are often responsible for raising funds and this puts pressure on the system and transfers to volunteers, who are the lifeblood of clubs.

“An issue local clubs and competitions were facing was not retaining or engaging quality people to clubs as they were being expected to volunteer to raise money to pay players.”

2024 COUNTRY FOOTY SALARY CAPS

BARWON

Bellarine $80,000

Colac District $60,000

Geelong $100,000

Geelong District $70,000

CENTRAL VICTORIA

Central Murray $105,000-135,000

Golden Rivers $95,000-115,000

Bendigo $125,000

Heathcote District $106,600

Loddon Valley $106,600

North Central $106,600

GIPPSLAND

East Gippsland $64,000

Ellinbank District $72,000

Gippsland $125,000

Mid Gippsland $64,000

North Gippsland $64,000

Omeo District $30,000

West Gippsland $100,000

GOLDFIELDS

Ballarat $100,000-110,000

Central Highlands $90,000-95,000

Maryborough Castlemaine District $80,000-85,000

GOULBURN MURRAY

Goulburn Valley $130,000

Kyabram District $75,000

Murray $105,000

Picola District $95,000

NORTH EAST BORDER

Hume $80,000

*Ovens & Murray $130,000 (Corowa-Rutherglen $155,000 due to 2023 season in recess)

Ovens & King $55,000

Tallangatta District $72,500

Upper Murray $37,500

SUNRAYSIA

Millewa $42,000-47,500

Sunraysia $105,000-126,000

SOUTH WEST

Hampden $110,000

Mininera District $75,000

South West District $75,000

Warrnambool District $80,000

WIMMERA

Wimmera $108,000-118,000

Horsham District $88,000-105,000