Marrar president, Terry Langtry, said the Farrer League premiers are in favour of a cap but believed $80,000 was more suitable.

“We thought that was more realistic and might be more sustainable for the Farrer League but I think it will be a work in progress,” Langtry said. “Next year (for 2019) it might be lowered.”

Enforcing the cap is a big query for many. 

“It’s a hard one because they find it hard to police in the AFL, let alone clubs in the bush,” Langtry said.

“It’s going to come back to clubs’ honesty, really. It’s not perfect but we’ve got to be trying if we want sustainable football in the bush.”

Former Charles Sturt University president Tristan Robinson agrees implementing a cap is a step in the right direction. He said he researched some of the reports in country Victorian football and believes it’s up to clubs to take the initiative in bringing costs down.

“It’s a bold move by the league but I think the line has to be drawn in the sand,” Robinson said.

“It’s about clubs taking control. ($100,000) is a starting point but you’d want to be bringing that down. We would’ve been lucky to spend a third of that.

“Some clubs are paying nearly every player and I don’t see the point in that. Where does that get you? In my three years we spent less each year and our results went the other way.”

Robinson acknowledges some smaller towns further away from the main population centres may need special dispensation.

Narrandera president Mark Savage said implementing a ‘soft cap’ in 2018 will help clubs get used to the system. It will take some time to bite, however he believes the player points system is already working. 

But the Eagles, winless in 2017, will have to bring in players to compete.

“The last couple of years we’ve played nearly all locals and it’s probably showed on the scoreboard,” Savage said. “So if we have to bring in more players to be more competitive in the Riverina League, we might have to ask for more points.”

Savage says the Eagles do focus on juniors but even when successful, they will always have trouble keeping players beyond school.

The ideal scenario, of course, is finding jobs for players but in many communities, that is easier said than done.

Savage said this year’s premiers have struck the right combination in recent years.

“I think Leeton-Whitton have done it well, with a few travelling and a few who move there and have found jobs,” Savage said.

“If you have too many travelling recruits it can really affect your numbers at training.

“And on the money side, you can offer players so much but they only want to come if you’re competitive or can offer jobs.”

Wagga Tigers were the only Riverina League club to vote against a cap. Their view is that it should be up to each club to determine what they can afford and what they need to spend depending on their own unique circumstances.

Tigers believe that if teams will be allowed to make ad-hoc requests to spend more than the cap in certain situations, and the system is virtually governed by an honesty policy, it’s not a workable or necessary instrument to implement.