Opinion Poll

Ha, true enough ottawa.

And seymour and mikem, I doubt either of you are watching Duane Forde’s best Canadian CFL talent program on TSN right now but if it were not for the rules as now, you or I or anyone might not know of these guys and the talent they bring to our game. In your minds you probably think “so what” they just got “free passes”. That would be sad if you actually think this.

[off topic rant]
Can’t wait until Bell rolls out their “TV over Internet”, i.e. over the phone line, service in Ottawa. Because, while I’m not a huge fan of Bell either, that would at least provide one non-satellite competitor to Rogers. Maybe then they’ll figure out that providing a service also includes providing service. And maybe we’ll also all start to see some competitive offerings out there.

As long as the CRTC doesn’t step in and prevent it from happening. Unfortunately, that wouldn’t surprise me, as they seem to be in the two companies’ pockets, more interested in ensuring they remain profitable than in ensuring we, the customers, have competitive pricing on quality service.
[/off topic rant]

Thanks for posting this Grover.

One thing I’ve wanted to know is the actual source or authority for the ratio.

Is it a “rule”? It doesn’t appear in the CFL rulebook that I can find.

Or is it a provision of the collective agreement with the CFLPA? I’d be curious to see what the provision actually says.

[i]One thing I've wanted to know is the actual source or authority for the ratio.

Is it a "rule"? It doesn't appear in the CFL rulebook that I can find.

Or is it a provision of the collective agreement with the CFLPA? I'd be curious to see what the provision actually says.[/i]

Interesting point steve I must admit. :?

It’s in the CFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article 23: Roster Size.
http://www.cflpa.com/Collective%20Bargaining%20Agreement%20June%2016%202010%20(E5788660).pdf

Well that seems to me to say the power structure within the players union is with Canadians. And is that such a bad thing when it is the Canadians, for the most part I would think, that actually live in this country year round thus spending their money here and contributing to Canadian society more than people who come here to work for a few months and then leave.

It also means that it's unlikely to change before the end of the agreement in 2014 - a year after Ottawa is supposed to get its team.

Agreed. Having the players themselves in control of the ratio is a good thing, IMO. Especially as the players in control more than likely reside in Canada, and are therefore more likely to support keeping the Canadian content high.

But don’t forget that the Americans working here are paying Canadian income tax, even though they are here for only 6 months!!! They are also paying property tax through their rents and HST on everything they spend here. Did you think they were earning tax free here? In fact they are taxed at the same rate as Canadians and I’m not sure that they get health care here.
I would say that they probably contribute MORE in 6 months than some Canadians do in a whole year.

So they spend 50% of Canadian money in Canada, taking 50% or roughly $20,000 per player (assuming a $50,000 ave salary) out of the country for a net loss to Canada of $500,000 per team. Thats not good for Canada Mikem, its bad. Not a contribution to the economy but rather a drain on the economy

That only includes those on the active roster and assume there are no positions that get more than the minimum. I excludes the 3 or 4 on the practice roster as they won't have a nickle to take home and excludes player on the IR who also get paid. The actual number could be 50% higher as a result

Wrong Earl… I watched and enjoyed the program.
Many of the players on Forde’s list are capable of legitimately earning a CFL roster spot against any available competition that their team could bring in - imports included. The top 5 or 6 on the list may be in that catagory. So, in my opinion, those players are truly worthy of their roster positions and would be on the field for CFL fans to admire and emulate even if the roster quota didn’t exist.

So, using your logic, I guess it would best “for Canada” if the CFL eliminated imports entirely then.

and if Kevin Glen wasn’t here and Arland Bruce wasn’t here and the rest of the stars from the US were not allowed to be here, there wouldn’t be a CFL and we wouldn’t be talking about this right now…lol
A CFL with only Canadians wouldn’t be very entertaining.

Come on guys start using some common sense, you are better than this.

AS for Canadian players, just read my posts again. Nowhere have I said there is no talent or that some of our Canadian players are not good. I am saying - and I will repeat it…There are just NOT ENOUGH CANADIANS - and when Ottawa enters the league we will be stretched thinner. REDUCE the Cancon you don’t have to eliminate it.

you argued that US players were a financial benefit. They are not. This goes for all sports that generates more money from within the country than what is taken out of the country. The very same can be said about foreign players on the Leafs, Raptors, Canadiens, Jets, Oilers, Flames, Canucks, WhiteCaps and Toronto FC. This issue has nothing to do with the quality of the league or its viability. Its about the economy s>>>>> as Bill Clinton liked to say.

Does that mean all leagues should be all Canadian? I seriously doubt anyone would argue for that

That is a lot more definitive a statement than can safely be made. If we didn’t allow US players in Canada then the US would likely not allow Canadian players in the US. And governments cannot discriminate by sport or even industry.

So are all the Canadians working in the US sending more money back Canada, than all the Americans working in Canada send to the US?

Who knows. But the fact that they are all working is an economic benefit. :wink:

It is not straight forward but no, but having Canadians working in the US doesn't help them either. It like import/export issues. Its all about the net results of ALL business not just a single industry. Arguing that the CFL employing foreign workers is good for the economy in isolation tho is 100% incorrect. The legalities are another subject altogether.

Hmm, “100% incorrect”. That must be really wrong. :wink:

Thanks very much catsfaninottawa for posting the link to the collective agreement.

It is very interesting, and re the roster it is as I expected. Nowhere in the CA does it say that there must be 7 non imports as starters. That appears to be a derived number.

A CFL with only Canadians wouldn't be very entertaining.

In your opinion mike. I personally find many CIS games I watch more entertaining than NFL or CFL games. But that's just me. I've seen regular season CIS games that blow the heck out of Grey Cups and Super Bowls.

yup :lol: :wink:

This is probably not going to sound the best but beside the fact Hamilton is in both the CFL and AHL, I somewhat prefer watching those leagues more because there are better odds of seeing a player make that one brief minor screwup that leads to an amazing play from the opposition. Same with MLS. This is opposed to the NFL and NHL where it's just so....grind upon grind and mistakes are either glaring or non-existent.