Penrith Panthers staff vow to keep working, despite pay cuts or being stood down
The season is over, the doors are closed and the staff have gone home – but the work won’t stop. Penrith will be able to draw on a volunteer workforce willing to give up their time to ensure the club stays strong during shutdown.
Panthers
Don't miss out on the headlines from Panthers. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Penrith coach Ivan Cleary suddenly finds himself in charge of rugby league’s newest volunteer army, with Panthers staff declaring: “We’ll work for free to win this year’s premiership”.
Despite being the first NRL club to shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Daily Telegraph can reveal dozens of Penrith staffers have vowed to continue working while either unpaid or earning a slashed annual leave pay cheque.
While the Panthers Academy is officially closing its doors indefinitely from this Friday, Cleary and his High Performance team will continue working closely with players every day via both Skype and online training programs.
Relive classic NRL matches from the 60s to today on KAYO SPORTS. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
Elsewhere, stood-down staff will also continue assisting players in areas like rehabilitation, nutrition, physiotherapy and mental health.
Even as Centrelink forms were being handed out around Panthers HQ on Tuesday, Penrith employees were beginning the process of tearing up Academy gym equipment for players to use at home.
“Everyone here at Penrith is so invested,” Panthers high performance boss Hayden Knowles insisted.
“We’ve got a building full of people who have bought in are willing to work for nothing if they have to. Truly, there isn’t a person out here who has said they’re out.
“Instead, everyone is saying ‘hey, what can I do to help?’ People are willing to work for free if it helps get this club to an NRL premiership”.
Unthinkable only days ago, almost half the NRL competition has now gone into shutdown as worried club boards look to save money during the growing coronavirus pandemic.
It means that only two years after the NRL introduced its $6.17 million cap on football department spending, most franchises are now being overseen by a skeleton staff.
While Penrith are providing a united front, the situation remains far murkier at other Sydney clubs, with even some head coaches unsure about what is happening with their jobs moving forward.
On Wednesday, a number of clubs announced they would be shutting down including Parramatta, Cronulla and Newcastle, while Canterbury had already done the same roughly 24 hours earlier.
Speaking on Tuesday, Panthers CEO Brian Fletcher not only confirmed his club would be putting up the ‘closed’ sign from Friday, but revealed all staff would either go immediately on annual leave or, if they had none, would join Centrelink queues.
Asked which staff were affected, Fletcher replied: “Everybody”.
Speaking on Fox Sports Wednesday, the Panthers CEO clarified that all staff were taking either annual leave or long service leave at half pay. He said if the lockdown lasts longer than 12 weeks, employees will not be paid and will need to go on the Newstart allowance.
Fletcher had also reiterated to staff earlier in the day that he would continue working without a wage, with many employees agreeing to join him.
MORE NEWS
Top Olympic athletes told their funding grants will remain in place during coronavirus crisis
Coronavirus: Racing shutdown averted as leading jockey Mark Zahra is cleared in COVID-19 test
“So this starts from the top down,” Knowles continued. “And why we have people here willing to work for nothing if they have to.
“Obviously it is a really tough time now for a lot of people. But everyone here is incredibly invested and I think it’s important Penrith fans understand the type of spirit and passion existing in their club.”
Despite being tipped to miss the top eight this year by NRL critics, Penrith are one of six clubs to open the season undefeated.
After upsetting the reigning premier Roosters in the season opener at home, the Panthers then doubled down by beating St George Illawarra away.
Halfback Nathan Cleary has enjoyed a strong start to the season while imported Manly Sea Eagles No.9 recruit Api Koroisau has also added a new dimension to the side’s attack.