The Union Committee at a meeting on Sunday, May 28, 2000, adopted on an experimental basis for one year regulations governing rugby at club level in Ireland relating to movement of players and in particular to providing financial limitations on payments to players.

The Union had been requested by the clubs to introduce regulations as outlined above. After a period of consultation with clubs and Branches, the regulations were agreed by an overwhelming majority of the AIB League clubs.

Accordingly, those regulations are now in place and are now binding on all IRFU affiliated clubs. They are that the maximum payable by a club to a player per season (not including the re-imbursement of legitimate expenses) between match fees and win bonus shall not exceed £IR3,500; that the total of all payments by a club to all its players by way of match fees and win bonus shall not exceed £IR50,000 per season.

* Subject to the limit of £IR50,000 a University Club may provide for a player a bona fide bursary or scholarship as a student at a third level institution up to a maximum of £IR3,500 per player per season.

For further information please contact Slattery PR (Press Office for IRFU):
Tel: +353 1 661 4055.