Sale settle Solomona dispute

Sale Sharks and Denny Solomona are delighted that the court case with Castleford Tigers has been resolved on favourable terms, the club has announced.

A statement on Wednesday read as follows: "The settlement sum accepted by Castleford is effectively the same £200,000 figure initially offered by Sale last year, with a small amount added for interest.

"Given that a potentially sizeable proportion of the legal costs may not be recoverable from Sale, it is inevitable that Castleford's net position will be significantly lower than that £200,000 figure offered last year.

"The last 10 months have therefore been nothing more than an unnecessary distraction, and the court case has achieved nothing other than wasted time and legal fees for all involved. Castleford issued proceedings prematurely, in a hail of publicity, seeking in excess of £500,000 damages and with a purported desire to fight this case for the good of Rugby League. This settlement proves that this was not the case.

"There has been no ruling at all and this case does not set a precedent for future dealings between Rugby League and Rugby Union. If that was Castleford's desire, they have failed to provide any clarity at all for other Rugby League clubs, which suggests that their primary, if not only, motivation was to get monetary compensation. Even so, they will receive approximately 40% of the sum they hoped for.

"Sale Sharks and Denny were quite willing to let the case run to trial, confident that they had done nothing wrong. There was an assumption (put forward by Castleford in the media) that Denny was in breach of his contract, yet there was evidence to show that he was treated unprofessionally by Castleford and Denny maintains that the club forced him into a position where his only future was in a different sport.

"In the end, however, settlement of the dispute allows Sale Sharks and Denny to concentrate solely on playing rugby and to prepare for what is sure to be an exciting and, hopefully, successful season. The parties were looking to send a joint press statement, but the fact that Castleford jumped the gun with their own press release suggests that they have sought to put a positive spin on what is clearly a meagre result.

"Neither Sale Sharks nor Denny will be making any further comment on this matter."