REH does the contract of players have to be ratified by KT or others at board level? It just amazes me that we offered HH a 5 yr deal...I don't think I'm commenting based on hindsight but I just wonder what measures we have in place that scrutinises long term contracts.
I don't know about the board but I know KT signs off on it. He would pass it onto the board but I don't know if they would or could block it.
Remember we have to pay 95% of the salary cap and the AFL base+ equal TV monies distributions at the moment covers about 98% of the salary cap figure for all clubs, before any additional distributions to the clubs. Sure players get paid outside the cap amounts and there are the Additional Service Agreements which also have to be paid 95% of that cap amount, which for the last 2 or 3 years has been set at 10% of the salary cap amount, and this can be payed by a sponsor / associate of the club and/or the club for promo type work.
So the club doesn't have a lot of room to move if the strategy a couple of years ago was, with board backing, that we have to offer our top line players longer term deals to stop being raped by free agency. The real important stuff for me if I was a board member, would be the out clauses in these long term deals and what the AFL and AFLPA allow and don't allow in out type clauses.