Supporters raise more than $40,000 to fight Tattersalls’ Club battle

The first hearing for a lawsuit against the vote approving female membership at Brisbane’s exclusive Tattersall’s Club will be held this week. And supporters of the man fighting the vote have helped amass a tidy war chest to fund the case.

THE first court hearing in the lawsuit seeking to nullify last month’s highly controversial vote narrowly approving female membership at Tattersall’s Club will be held this Thursday.

Spearheading the challenge is Catalyst Sports Group boss Paul Hogan, who has retained legal eagle Tom O’Donnell, a fellow club member, and already raised more than $40,000 to fight the battle.

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We hear there are more than a few Hogan’s Heroes jokes making the rounds, with club CEO David Bark now referred to by a snickering few as Sergeant Schultz! Any guesses who might be Colonel Klink?

For club president Stuart Fraser, the LNP Treasurer who is understood to have a keen eye focused on political office, it’s a lousy start to the new year.

Tattersall’s Club in Brisbane.

He had surely hoped the holiday break would cool passions as women starting signing up. But no such luck, with that plan on ice until the legal dispute has been resolved.

In a highly questionable claim, Fraser told members that Hogan and his team were satisfied after an inspection of the ballots on January 16.

They “subsequently advised the club that the ballot appeared to have been conducted with the highest standards,’’ Fraser said in an email sent on January 22, the day the lawsuit lobbed.

Really? Hogan’s claim makes clear he is unhappy about several alleged anomalies, such as 96 votes getting thrown out as informal because of incorrect or missing member numbers.

Furthermore, on the day of the inspection, O’Donnell wrote to the Tatts committee asking them to agree to a concession that the “ballot be deemed invalid”.

The club declined, of course, and has vowed to fight the matter, which Hogan estimates could cost more than $100,000.