Well, the Sydney Morning Herald is maintaining that he's signed ... it seems that there's a rush to sign players before the salary caps come in next year. Apparently, players on existing contract aren't counted in the salary cap until their contract expires and has to by renewed.
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/u...ned--and-with-a-war-chest-20110415-1dhqz.html
O'Connor move leaves Force stunned - and with a war chest
Jamie Pandaram
April 16, 2011
JAMES O'CONNOR'S defection to the Melbourne Rebels will leave the Western Force reeling, but the Perth side shapes as the big threat to rival teams when the new salary cap is imposed from next year.
The Australian Rugby Union is introducing a cap of $4.4 million for next season, which will be cut back to $4.1 million the following year in a bid to cut costs. While the Force will be hard-hit by the loss of their star player next season, they will have more money to spend than any other team on new recruits, and will be chasing the biggest names in the game.
As seen in the NRL, a salary cap equalises the talent across the competition, and the star-studded NSW and Queensland sides will have to lose some players if they are to remain under the stipulated expenditure for their 30-man squads. The Rebels' coup in signing dynamic duo O'Connor and Kurtley Beale on deals worth up to $1 million a year each also means they will be restricted in chasing other notable players, and will have to rely on young and inexperienced squad members to develop under the pair.
O'Connor will announce on Monday that he has joined the Rebels. He had hoped to keep news of the defection a secret until after the Force's match against the Brumbies tomorrow, to the extent that he has yet to return a signed contract extension to the ARU, but the Herald has learnt that the Rebels deal is done.
The marketing appeal of the two Wallabies stars will significantly boost the profile of the Rebels in AFL-mad Melbourne. The club began the year with a bold vision of attracting international quality stars with their brand of rugby, and while that has played a part, the undeniable lure for O'Connor and Beale is the enormous money.
The Rebels' strong ties with Melbourne's business community have enabled them to snare the two hottest young talents in Australian rugby. While five-eighth Danny Cipriani insists he will see out the remaining year of his contract next season, it's understood he has approached several European clubs seeking a return to the northern hemisphere following this year's World Cup.
Should the Rebels lose Cipriani, they have a ready-made five-eighth in O'Connor - who spent his junior years in the No.10 jersey - and he would form a lethal combination with fullback Beale. If Cipriani stays, O'Connor would play at inside-centre and skipper Stirling Mortlock would shift to No.13.
O'Connor and Beale are close friends, and will have been swayed by the prospect of playing together at provincial level.
Melbourne have already exceeded expectation this year but will be a far more formidable proposition next year. The Rebels were given special dispensation for overseas recruits - 10 foreign players compared with just two for the rest of the Australian sides - but that will be reduced each year until they are also allowed just two from 2016 onwards. The foreign player allowance was granted so the Rebels would not raid the ranks of the other sides, but that has not prevented them in the astute purchase of two of Australia's best backs.
The Force have struggled to entice players to move to Perth, particularly after the rogue company Firepower defaulted paying millions of dollars in sponsorship money, resulting in several key departures from the team. But when the top players are coming off contract next year, the Force will be handing out the biggest cheques. The thought of moving to the other side of the country will not seem as difficult when pay rises are being offered in an environment of salary restrictions.
The salary cap will apply to all deals done from next year and beyond. The highest-paid players such as O'Connor and Beale will struggle to get similar deals from the Rebels when they are off-contract again. O'Connor, 20, made his Super Rugby debut for the Force in 2008 when he was 17 - against the Reds in his home town of Brisbane - and played for the Wallabies for the first time later that year against Italy in Padova.
He has since played 27 times for Australia and represented the Force 32 times at Super Rugby level.
O'Connor will be a key figure for the Wallabies at the World Cup in New Zealand starting in September.
