Titans head list of salary cap breaches

[Menteek]

So NRL.com just put this up and i am guessing titans lost 4 points for the 2015 season?

The Gold Coast Titans have been docked four NRL competition points and fined $300,000 for salary cap breaches, with the loss of points and a quarter of the fine suspended.

The NRL said it had elected to suspend the loss of points and $75,000 of the fine because the club had self-reported the breach and co-operated fully with the investigation.

Four other clubs – the Roosters, Knights, Sea Eagles and Wests Tigers – have been issued with fines totalling more than $90,000 for less serious salary cap breaches.

An investigation into the Broncos did not uncover evidence of a breach of the salary cap rules, although the investigation was hindered by the fact some people at the club have left the game, the NRL stated.

NRL General Manager of Integrity, Nick Weeks, said all clubs are on notice that they risk losing competition points and face heavy fines if they attempt to cheat the salary cap rules in future.

He said the Titans penalty was issued following an investigation by the NRL Integrity Unity which was instigated by the new management of the club.

It found that former Titans player Scott Prince was paid substantially more than the contract lodged with the NRL by a previous Titans administration. This difference in remuneration was never disclosed by the previous Titans administration or Prince and was only unearthed by the new management.

The investigation found no evidence of systemic rorting of the salary cap at the club.

The suspended fine and points will be applied if there are any further salary cap breaches by the Titans over the next two years.

Prince's role as an NRL One Community Ambassador expires this month and will not be renewed.

Weeks said the Titans penalty was no reflection on the current administration, which had worked with the NRL to resolve the matter.

A separate salary cap investigation was conducted at the Brisbane Broncos but no evidence of any breach of the salary cap rules was identified.

Weeks said the investigation was impeded because it was not possible to obtain information from the Broncos Leagues Club and others from the Broncos who have left the game.

"Given the evidence currently before us, there are former officials from both clubs who are unlikely to be registered to be involved in the NRL in the future," he said.

The penalties for salary cap breaches in 2013 from the other four clubs were:

Sea Eagles ($6,000 – overspend breach)
Knights ($35,519 – overspend breach)
Roosters ($40,000 – comprised of $20,000 fine and $20,000 suspended for two years. The penalty relates to a lack of substantive notes of negotiation)
Tigers ($9,326 – NYC overspend)
"I am satisfied that clubs are generally attempting to meet their salary cap duties," Mr Weeks said.

"But all clubs are on notice that we have drawn a line in the sand.

"If clubs breach the salary cap in the future they will face heavy penalties, including the loss of competition points."

http://www.nrl.com/titans-head-list...4/newsid/82559/default.aspx?cid=NRL_HP_Latest

 

[Mr Beast]

Yup 4 points for 2015 deducted one would think

 

[BulldogsFAN]

but it says loss of points suspended? so they cancel it right?

 

[Mr Beast]

but it says loss of points suspended? so they cancel it right?

just doesn't make sense, loss then contradict with suspended wtf? NRL is a joke, the game i love is becoming something less then professional

 

[Menteek]

I am so confused right now i feel like it's school days doing algebra

 

[CroydonDog]

What's so complicated?. Points and $75K of the fine has been suspended. ie: if they stuff up again, the penalty will apply, but if they don't it won't.

 

[CB1935]

What I dont get is.... had the titans fjnished higher up , the penalty would have been harsher.

So if a coach is good enough to make the most out of the breach - harsh penalty

If a coach is crap that cant make the most out of it - weak penalty.

A breach is a breach and the penalty should reflect as such irrespective of where they finish on the ladder.

The NRL soynd tough but then read the finer print and find its suspended. Weak

 

[rogueflare]

The Broncos were not penalised as not enough evidence could be gathered due to staff no longer being present... so if Titans sack their administration (most of them are gone anyway), then they won't have anything to answer for because there is nobody there to give evidence.

 

[Rodzilla]

once again the only way that the nrl finds out about cap cheating is through self reporting or independent reporting, show me an incident when the auditor caught a team red handed lol

 

[CroydonDog]

once again the only way that the nrl finds out about cap cheating is through self reporting or independent reporting, show me an incident when the auditor caught a team red handed lol

I remember the Dogs were investigated after someone dobbed them in, and most of the minor infringements have been from self-reporting... but what about the Storm (weren't they keeping two sets of books)?

The auditor's role is a bit ridiculous. Cash in paper bags doesn't leave an audit trail.

 

[Papa Emeritus]

What's so complicated?. Points and $75K of the fine has been suspended. ie: if they stuff up again, the penalty will apply, but if they don't it won't.

Yeah pretty simple.

Dobbed themselves in, no penalty. It's like when you get a suspended jail sentence.

 

[Ecca]

I love the Roosters fine

Roosters ($40,000 – comprised of $20,000 fine and $20,000 suspended for two years. The penalty relates to a lack of substantive notes of negotiation)

THIS IS BECAUSE THERE WERE NO NOTES OF NEGOTIATION IMO, and what was negotiated was almost certainly paid in a brown paper bag, what BS

 

[south of heaven]

The roosters " lack of substantive notes of negotiations " what uncle nick showing sbw a car boot full of cash doesn't count ?

 

[ramone]

hmmm, so according to the size of the fines the nrl would prefer a club to breach the cap than to wander onto the field 4 minutes late. nice perspective

 

[Mr Invisible]

What an absolute joke.

Lets issue a fine and points punishment, then almost fully withdraw it.

+ Broncos get away scott free only because they hid their tracks well. BS excuse by a News Limited owned side.
+ Roosters don't lose the premiership gained in 2013 whilst being over the salary cap?
+ Manly don't have any penalty for 2013 breach?
+ Souths not over?? How the F.....???

So if you want to cheat and get ahead in the NRL, it's simple. Don't make any actual notes on paper about it (usable as evidence), hide your tracks well, and if you do go over, who cares as long as you are a darling side of the NRL.

Nick Weeks... Weeks by name, WEAK by nature.

 

[CroydonDog]

I recall rumours from a few years ago that Prince had a house built for him by a sponsor?

 

[dogluva]

So NRL.com just put this up and i am guessing titans lost 4 points for the 2015 season?


This sh*ts me because the Scott Prince part of this was hinted at a few years ago in relation to something to do with the new house he had built and one of their principal sponsors..Coral Homes I think. Of course, no problem was ever uncovered by the NRL but it makes me wonder just how hard did they look?. Surely they haven't forgotten that? Systematic rorting by the club not in evidence my foot. Funny how two Qld clubs have been found to have some sort of discrepancy relating to players payments, one the incident is pushed aside because the amount in question repaid and a chief player in it no longer works for them,. The other years after the player in question has left. Why no docking of points, because they finally came "clean"? Once again blame someone who is no longer there and no questions can be asked. Rorting is rorting whichever way you look at it.

 

[sgodllubsti]

the builder who first claimed there were dodgy deals regarding scott prince would be sitting back smiling now, even though he was scoffed at and the claims disproven, it shows just how poor and pathetic the nrl looked into his claims.
it also shows why the titans had cash flow issues, and this even today needs further investigation

 

[K E]

I remember the Dogs were investigated after someone dobbed them in, and most of the minor infringements have been from self-reporting... but what about the Storm (weren't they keeping two sets of books)?

The auditor's role is a bit ridiculous. Cash in paper bags doesn't leave an audit trail.

A SMH reporter busted us, not the NRL.

ALL of the major salary cap breaches were uncovered by anyone else besides the actual NRL. The NRL have NEVER caught anyone. It's always been by someone else/teams dobbing themselves in. NRL salary cap auditors couldn't find a whore in a brothel.

 

[CroydonDog]

A SMH reporter busted us, not the NRL.

ALL of the major salary cap breaches were uncovered by anyone else besides the actual NRL. The NRL have NEVER caught anyone. It's always been by someone else/teams dobbing themselves in. NRL salary cap auditors couldn't find a whore in a brothel.

I mean dobbed us into the media...but nevertheless it wasn't uncovered by the auditors.

I don't even think the auditor is an actual qualified accountant. I you were serious, you would at least have a CA/CPA qualifies auditor with no footy background, so as to be truly independent.