Manly Sea Eagles salary cap breach: Roosters boss Joe Kelly dragged into drama
THE Sydney Roosters have been sensationally dragged into Manly’s salary cap drama after the NRL issued a breach notice to their chief executive Joe Kelly.
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THE Sydney Roosters have been sensationally dragged into Manly’s salary cap drama after the NRL issued a breach notice to their chief executive Joe Kelly.
The Daily Telegraph understands Roosters boss Kelly received the breach for his alleged role as Sea Eagles CEO between October, 2014, and September, 2016 — a position he stepped down from.
Kelly is one of two club officials facing deregistration by the NRL.
The Daily Telegraph knows the identity of the other official but cannot name him on legal advice.
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Kelly, whose mobile phone was switched off on Tuesday, was appointed Roosters CEO in April this year. He is understood to be shattered at the prospect of being kicked out of rugby league.
The Daily Telegraph understands Manly chief operating officer Neil Bare was heavily involved in balancing the club’s salary cap.
The Kelly drama comes as Sea Eagles chief executive Lyall Gorman admitted salary cap allegations against his club were “serious”.
Manly officials and the club’s legal team were poring over myriad allegations and findings on Tuesday after the NRL sent the embattled Sea Eagles a breach over alleged third-party payments dating back five years.
In another day of drama at Brookvale, The Daily Telegraph can reveal:
● THE club’s breaches could be more than the $400,000 first floated;
● PLAYER managers have told of two former Manly stars they insist were owed a total of $450,000 in non-paid third-party payments. Neither agreements were put in writing;
● INDUSTRY experts claim the negative investigation could cost Manly up to $10 million in lost advertising and revenue;
● MAJOR sponsor Lottoland has vowed to stand by Manly through the investigation;
● A CONCERNED Gorman, who started as Manly CEO less than a month ago, called a staff meeting on Tuesday morning to discuss the NRL investigation, telling club employees “that the one thing we can do is control our future, our values and our culture”.
Sports sponsorship and marketing experts believe the potentially damaging cap issues could set Manly back five years.
“Competition for sponsorship dollars has never been tougher,’’ one said. “Signage at grounds is harder than it’s ever been before. Your brand and integrity is everything. It could be a lights-out moment for Manly.
“This could set a club back five years. It’s hard to keep your head above water if you’re a strong club and Manly isn’t financially sound.
“This could cause Manly irreversible damage and cost them up to $10 million in lost sponsorship and revenue.
“These are really challenging times in rugby league. A lot of areas are down financially but the salary cap keeps going up.”
Gorman said his club wouldn’t be rushed into responding to the NRL findings.
Manly’s punishment could include $400,000 being taken off their salary cap next season and a fine of up to $1 million.
“There have been some serious allegations in these preliminary findings,” Gorman said. “These issues need to be addressed.
“It is incumbent on us to take the time to work through the documentation we have been given to form an appropriate response.
“This investigation, as I understand it, took six months and we were only provided with the detailed document (on Monday).
“There is a significant amount to work through. It’s a process that can’t be rushed, a process that needs to be right to protect the best interests of all.
“What we won’t do is run our response through the media. We will respect the protocol of the game.
“Once we have formed a detailed response, we will submit it through the appropriate channels.
“We are trying to do that as quickly as we can but also take the time to ensure our response is an appropriate one in context to what has been provided to us.
“My focus is to put every ounce of energy into making sure this is a great club for many, many years to come.
“These issues need to be confidently led in how we manage them from a transparency and integrity point of view.”
Manly employed three other CEOs over the past five years while the alleged salary cap breaches were unfolding.
While Kelly did not return calls, former Manly CEOs David Perry and Tim Cleary preferred not to comment.
There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Perry or Cleary.