Morning:
20°c
Andrew Flintoff claims crucial wicket of opener Phillip Hughes after a brilliant rearguard action by England's tail but Ponting and Katich combine to raise tourists' spirits
More...
Contract ultimatum sparks Wasps crisis
Sam Peters17.12.08
LONDON WASPS are on a collision course with several of their leading players over the club's increasingly desperate attempts to close out contract talks before the end of the year.
England stars Danny Cipriani, Tom Rees, James Haskell, Phil Vickery and 15 other members of the first-team squad will be free agents at the end of the season, leaving the cash-strapped club facing a potentially devastating exodus in the summer.
Chief executive Tony Copsey said on Monday that he wanted all negotiations to be completed before 1 January, when players are free to talk to other interested parties.
Wasps new chairman Steve Hayes is also understood to have made it clear the new deals are non-negotiable after assuming immediate charge of contractual issues following his appointment last week.
Hayes is believed to be pushing for all the players to sign by tomorrow or the offers will be withdrawn.
Cipriani and his colleagues are believed to have been presented with the deals as a fait accompli and, although none has made any demands from the Wasps hierarchy or yet rejected the contracts, their is a mood of great unhappiness.
One player told Standard Sport: "Tony Copsey needs to know when to shut up. Talking publicly about contracts does not help anyone. Don't expect any decisions to be taken any time soon."
Hayes has his hands tied to an extent because Wasps are already at the limit of the salary cap despite having the smallest squad in the Premiership. With Haskell, Cipriani and Rees
currently on pay deals agreed before they became established England internationals, Hayes appears to have little room for manoeuvre.
Director of rugby Ian McGeechan yesterday insisted negotiations are on track and laughed off reports that Cipriani has turned down an initial pay offer.
“Steve has come in with good direction and the negotiations are moving on. I'm happy with the way it is shaping up,” he said.
Vickery, one of the few Wasps players who looks sure to re-sign, is optimistic about the club's future. He said: “The two-and-a-half years I have had at this club have been fantastic. You are treated like an adult and looked after and valued.
“I don't know what price individuals can put on that but I would put a very, very heavy price on it.”
At least things are beginning to pick up for McGeechan's team on the pitch, after Sunday's Heineken Cup triumph over Edinburgh made it three wins on the bounce following a dismal start to the season which sees them lying ninth in the table.
Wasps host Saracens at Adams Park this Saturday, and McGeechan said. “It just feels like it is all coming together.”
Reader views (2)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
As a wasp fan I gree with you John it would be crazy for Rugby to follow football, lets hope sense and loyalty prevail
- Billy Hirst, Tbilisi Georgia
I write as a London Irish supporter, and simply say that Wasps must reject these demands lest they set off a chhain of claims that send rugby in the same direction as football(which now wishes it had a salary cap).
On a specific note to Cipriani, perhaps he might consider behaving less like a petulant youth and concentrate on fulfilling his potential as a player a Wasps before making these financial demands. He has just returned from serious injury and needs a solid season to re-establish himself after a dismal international series. He will only achieve that by settling into the Wasps and building on the talent he has.
- John Bloomfield, Twickenham
