English salary cap set to entice

 

Premiership clubs will be allowed to recruit an additional marquee player ahead of the 2015-16 season and will have an additional £500,000 available in the salary cap.

 

At present the salary cap is £5m in the Premiership with clubs permitted to sign one marquee player whose wages are outside of that limitation.

 

But The Times claims those rules will change ahead of next season with the salary cap rising to £5.5m – £1m up on where it was two years ago – as the inevitable post-World Cup merry-go-round kicks in.

 

It is hoped the changes will keep English qualified players playing in England up to the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

 

Premiership Rugby say that an increase in revenue through TV and sponsorship has meant the clubs can afford to invest more in their playing squads.

 

The additional marquee player has to be recruited from overseas but could theoretically be English; it could pave the way for Steffon Armitage to return to the Premiership for example.

 

Other clubs have already been linked with high profile recruits for the 2015-16 campaign with Bath rumoured to have agreed a deal to sign Wallabies scrumhalf Will Genia.