SAD as I was to hear that the British game is soon to lose one of its most accomplished international stars, I couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of Super League's big spenders having their purses snapped shut.

Wigan forward David Furner is the first of many overseas aces certain to be shown the door as the bigger clubs' often ridiculous overspending is finally curtailed by the enforcement of an absolute £1.8million limit on player wages.

With top players such as Andy Farrell believed to be earning more than £200,000 a year, it does not take a mathematician to work out that either heads must roll or salaries be slashed to squeeze the square peg through the round hole. In Wigan's case it will be more like pushing a rugby ball through a pea shooter.

Ever since Dave Whelan snapped them up and moved Warriors into his spectacular JJB Stadium, chairman Maurice Lindsay has been given wads of cash to tempt the world's greatest talent, including Matthew Johns, Adrian Lam, Steve Renouf, Craig Smith, Jamie Ainscough and Brett Dallas.

Now that spending must stop and the exodus begin as the league's more frugal clubs finally get a genuine chance to make up ground.

The new ruling could be a disaster for sides like London, who have also made several big money swoops Down Under as well as offering northern-based English players nearly double their existing salaries to tempt them to the capital.

But it need not be a nightmare to Wigan, who can use the level playing field to their advantage and go back to what they did best during their hayday - developing the most exciting young players in the game through their academy ranks.

Many of their current senior stars, including Farrell, Kris Radlinski and Mick Cassidy, all came off that famous 'conveyor belt' in the early 1990s. But precious few young English players have been given more than one-off appearances in the first 13 since the inception of Super League.

The fear has always been that they would be out of their depth against fellow star-filled sides at Valley Parade, Headingley and Knowsley Road. But now everyone must rely much more on home grown talent, which can only be fantastic news for the British national side.

THERE are no such selection headaches at Bolton Mets RLFC, who are again on the lookout for new players.

Mets showed great spirit to reach the Lancashire Cup semi-finals last year despite losing their coach mid-season and having their home pitch rendered unplayable for most of the campaign by collapsed drainage.

But without a fresh influx of players, Bolton's only rugby league club will again be facing a struggle to compete. Anyone interested in joining should turn up for training at Withins School from 7pm on Thursdays.