The Waratahs are sweating on the resolution of pay talks between Rugby Australia and the Rugby Union Players' Association as a crunch decision looms for the club.
Super Rugby has been suspended for nearly a month and Rugby AU and RUPA have been in serious talks about a player pay deal for more than 10 days but it is still not entirely clear when a resolution will be met.
Rugby Australia has reportedly requested players take a 65 per cent pay cut for as long as six months, an amount that CEO Raelene Castle has matched.
The two parties held a marathon meeting on Saturday and have been exchanging communications since then but there has been little indication that any deal is imminent.
While Rugby Australia is doing the negotiating, the state unions, have the ability to sand down players should they decide they need to before a deal is done, without the national body's approval.
PLAYER TALKS TO CONTINUE AFTER SATURDAY MEETING
The Waratahs are scheduled to make their next payments to players on Wednesday April 15, setting a clear deadline for a decision on their next step, should a pay agreement not be reached.
That means a call on the club's next step would likely have to be made on Monday evening or Tuesday if a pay outcome is not reached.
While stand down is one option, and one believed to be considered a last resort, clubs could also opt to pay their players in full and then adjust later payments based on the outcome of the pay talks between Rugby AU and RUPA.
That latter option is one it is believed the Brumbies are taking up, after paying their players in full last week.
The Waratahs have stood down more than 70 per cent of their administration staff, including coach Rob Penney, as part of a host of cost-cutting measures to combat the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We’re hopeful that Rugby Australia and RUPA can come to a resolution on this issue as soon as possible," a Waratahs spokesman said.
“But realistically speaking, if a deal can’t be struck then we will need to explore our options. Our preference is this is managed and agreed across the entirety of Super Rugby.
“We’ve made significant cuts across the business to ensure our survival and any action we take at NSWRU is about ensuring our financial certainty over the next few months, as we better understand what the game will look like for the rest of 2020.”
The Waratahs list might not be as star-studded as in recent years but the squad still includes incumbent Wallabies skipper Michael Hooper, star utility Kurtley Beale and Test centurion Rob Simmons among its group.
Rugby is the final major winter football code still to decide on a player pay deal.
The AFL's players have agreed to 50 per cent pay cuts until the end of May and if games do not resume by May 31, that will increase to 70 per cent down the track.
NRL's players agreed to forego five months of their annual salaries but are set to be on the hunt for a new deal after the NRL announced plans to bring the competition back on May 28.
