CATALANS DRAGONS keep pulling out all the stops in terms of signings for 2025 and beyond.
The French club have already signed the likes of NRL regulars Jarrod Wallace, Nick Cotric and Tevita Pangai Junior whilst rugby union star Ben Lam will also link up with the Perpignan side for the remainder of this season in a major coup.
With big hitters such as Chris Satae, Manu Ma’u, Tom Johnstone and Matt Ikuvalu still on the Dragons’ books, people have questioning how Catalans could have fit Lam into the club’s salary cap for the rest of 2024.
The answer is simple: the rules under the sport’s salary cap has a ‘New Talent Pool Dispensation’ which was introduced ahead of this season.
The dispensation means that any player who has not previously played Rugby League is given a value of £0 in the first year of his contract and at 50% of his true value in the second year.
That means that Lam costs nothing for the Dragons on the salary cap.
To add more context to Catalans’ signing spree, the likes of Jayden Nikorima and Siosiua Taukeiaho have both left the Stade Gilbert Brutus.
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