LeagueNews.co | Cooper McEnroe
Mal Meninga, the inaugural coach of the Perth Bears, has advocated for "reasonable" salary cap concessions to help the newly established NRL team attract players to the western region. However, his request has been met with strong opposition from rival clubs as well as the ARL Commission.
In an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Meninga expressed hopes that the NRL would provide limited incentives like additional flights, accommodation support, and childcare aid to facilitate player relocation for themselves and their families.
"It's more about the families, and how we can keep them happy," Meninga stated. "We're talking to the NRL about some reasonable requests that will help with the transition over here."
Despite Meninga's appeal, ARLC chairman Peter V'landys has dismissed the idea of any salary cap adjustments. He believes that such concessions would be unfair to the competition's existing 17 teams.
"They wanted to come in, they knew the rules - they have to play by the same rules everyone else plays by," V'landys asserted.
Although the Bears have yet to secure a significant player, Meninga insists that minor allowances are essential for the club to remain competitive against more established teams.