The Canberra Raiders are seriously considering cutting funding of between $300,000 and $400,000 a year to the Souths Logan Magpies and taking financial resources out of junior development.
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The Raiders are upset the NRL declined a proposal to offer dispensation - in the salary cap or transfer fees - to clubs that produce their own players to allow them to be retained.
They are now putting more of their focus on signing players from other clubs after they secured Wests Tigers fullback James Tedesco on a three-year contract worth $1.9 million last week.
The Raiders have a rich history in the Souths Logan area, recruiting the likes of club legend Mal Meninga and modern-day players such as Anthony Milford, Josh Papalii and Edrick Lee.
However, they believe there isn't any incentive to put money into junior development after star fullback Milford, who has been in the Raiders system since he was 13, signed a two-year deal with the Brisbane Broncos from next season.
Raiders chief executive Don Furner outlined his club's proposal to leave the Magpies during a meeting with the Queensland Rugby League in Brisbane on Thursday.
"We've basically said if the system stays as it is, it's very, very unlikely we'll be supporting them to the same level we have been in the last eight years,'' Furner told ABC Radio Canberra on Saturday.
"It runs into millions of dollars at $300,000 or $400,000 a year over eight or nine years, and maybe we spend it in other areas.
"Logan don't want us to leave them because they probably can't afford to stay in the Queensland Cup.''
QRL chief executive Robert Moore said his organisation wouldn't want to see the Raiders leave the south-east Queensland region.
"Second-tier affiliation is very hard to get back, bearing in mind there are only three NRL clubs in Queensland,'' Moore said.
"We've seen a significant difference in Souths Logan Magpies this year because of their affiliation with the Raiders with young players, coaching programs and development support.
"It becomes a bit of an open slather for any other club, but ... without Canberra, I don't think Souths could continue to develop that area, and that's where the young players will suffer.''
Moore agreed with Furner that the NRL should bring in more incentives for junior development.
"The difficultly is they are working in an area that isn't their backyard,'' Moore said.
"It's probably a little bit harder for other clubs to drop into their backyard and grab the players out of there.
"Canberra and Souths are putting their resources into that area, so there should be some way where the Raiders have first rights to those players.''
Furner said Wests Tigers were another club that had a strong junior base and would be better off with more incentives for developing players.
''We've got their junior in James Tedesco coming next year, so they're another development club ... probably looking at what they spend on junior development,'' Furner said.
''They would be questioning why there isn't is an incentive down the track when you go to re-contract them when they're at their peak, which is 21, 22, when they're ready to repay all the development work that's been done.
''It's not a system that gives a great reward to developing clubs.''
