Wasps take in their new surroundings © Getty Images

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Salary caps, Saints, sinners and scrums - Monday Maul looks back at the key talking points from an eventful weekend of Aviva Premiership rugby.

Salary cap shambles

Saracens have been a team who have pushed the boundaries of professional rugby ever since it was introduced in 1995. Since the days of Philippe Sella and Michael Lynagh, Saracens have reinvented themselves. Grass was too old-fashioned for them so they went to an artificial turf. On Friday, their CEO Ed Griffiths called for the salary cap to be scrapped citing seven Aviva Premiership teams who collectively want an end to restrictions on spending.

Since that bold if slightly brash statement from Saracens, reports have emerged that both Sarries and Bath are under investigation for allegedly breaking the confines of the salary cap. Time will tell whether the reports materialise into the two teams feeling the wrath of Premier Rugby but on a weekend where talk of the salary cap was mentioned almost as much as the rugby itself, what became apparent is teams are keen to distance themselves from being one of Griffiths' seven rebels.

Premiership Rugby's Statement

• "The salary cap ensures the financial viability of the member clubs and underpins the sustainable growth of the competition for all stakeholders.
• "In addition, the salary cap provides a level playing field for all clubs, ensures a competitive Aviva Premiership rugby competition; promotes home-grown players and supports the performance of the England team, and allows the recruitment of elite players from other countries through the Excluded Players provision.
• "Premiership Rugby keeps the salary cap under constant review and consults with its shareholder clubs to ensure that its regulations remain the most appropriate and proportionate means of achieving its objectives."

When Bath coach Mike Ford was questioned about their alleged violation of the limits, he responded: "We agree with the salary cap." To the layman, Bath would be widely expected to be one of the teams who would want the salary cap removed as their owner Bruce Craig has one of the largest chequebooks in world rugby.

But taking it as read, Bath seem keen to keep the salary cap as do Gloucester with David Humphreys saying: "It is something we support and certainly going forward, we will be supporting it."

Leicester boss Richard Cockerill believes the salary cap is "a good thing because it keeps the league competitive" while Harlequins CEO David Ellis said "Harlequins fully support the salary cap."

Sale boss Steve Diamond and Saints CEO Allan Robson both issued their support for the cap when talking to the BBC with Diamond saying they see it as a "governor for the competition". Exeter chairman Tony Rowe also backed the salary cap saying the league will "spiral out of control" if it is removed.

Alongside those seven who have supported the salary cap, Newcastle Falcons have previously said they are not spending the full salary cap and on a week where London Welsh called for an increase in financial support for newly promoted clubs, those two would hardly support an end to the limits.

Whether the seven clubs issuing their support was an attempt at maintaining the status quo with PRL surprisingly quiet on all the huff, bluff and bluster only they know but while there is probably a desire to raise the salary cap to help the Premiership's sides compete with those in France it seems the general consensus is the financial limits are here to stay.

More scrum woe

The first completed scrum in Gloucester's match against Bath came late in the second-half. Up to that point, referee Greg Garner was handing out penalties and free kicks with alarming regularity. Uncontested scrums, when Sila Puafisi was sin-binned gave the referee some sweet relief. It is time that the clock is stopped when a scrum is called. The game descended into reset scrum after reset scrum and killed any natural momentum.

One positive, for Bath and England supporters, was the form of George Ford as he put in a nerveless performance at fly-half and punished Gloucester for their scrum ill-discipline.

Saints and sinners

Luther Burrell was immense for Northampton © Getty Images

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The Dylan Hartley red card undoubtedly dominated the news agenda from the weekend. Whenever a rugby player is grabbed and grappled by an opposition player, the natural reaction is to shrug them off. Only Hartley knows whether the elbow on Matt Smith was deliberate or not. Intention apart, the red card will do little to enamour him to England coach Stuart Lancaster who said the hooker was on his final warning in the wake of his red card in the 2013 Premiership final.

But what Hartley's red card should not do is draw attention away from Luther Burrell's remarkable performance in the centres. He was superb against Leicester and took his team by the scruff of the neck and dragged them to victory. As Jim Mallinder said post-match, if England don't pick him now then they never will.

Wasps start new chapter in style

As little as 18 months ago, Wasps had a measly £65.16 in their bank account. They were the second-least profitable team in the league, now they are the second-most in Europe. It has been a remarkable transformation and they did superbly well to get 28,254 into their first match at the Ricoh Arena. They now need to build on these foundations. Andy Goode put in a performance for the ages at fly-half while Joe Simpson also showed moments of magic. They must sort out the poor pitch but as first matches go, Wasps can feel hugely proud of what they achieved at the Ricoh Arena on Sunday.

Where now for London Welsh?

It was another game and another hammering for the Exiles at Saracens. There is no schadenfreude in London Welsh's plight. For the second time this season they have shipped more than 70 points. They are simply not fit for purpose and are living proof of why the play-off system in the Championship is a dreadful notion. Justin Burnell now faces the unenviable task of picking his team up off the canvas once again.