Eels former boss Scott Seward under threat over NRL probe
The Australian
April 8, 2016 12:00AM
Margie McDonald
Sports reporter
Sydney
Former Parramatta chief executive Scott Seward has received threats warning him not to talk to the NRL about alleged disc*repancies with player third-party agreements while he was boss at the Eels.
Seward, who was unable to elab*orate on the details of the threats, said he would not comment publicly about his involvement or knowledge of Eels’ board matters. But he told The Aust*ralian he was willing to speak to the NRL if it felt he could add value to its integrity unit’s investigation.
Seward has maintained his *silence since he left the Eels last June, due to a confidentiality agreement, but that agreement expires on June 30.
If the Eels agree to let him speak to the NRL sooner, he could do so. However, he is under no obligation to talk as he is no longer involved in the sport.
Seward now lives in Melbourne, where he has a marketing-membership role with the MCG.
There have been reports that if Seward sat down with head of *integrity Nick Weeks, the Eels would want two representatives at the meeting. Seward is exploring the option of having his own *lawyer present.
While no players have done anything wrong, a number of TPAs signed with Parramatta are being looked into to make sure NRL rules were followed and the salary cap was not breached.
Under those rules, clubs cannot source TPAs on behalf of players and any agreements signed must be with companies, suppliers or sponsors at arm’s length from the respective club.
Meanwhile, the Eels have disputed reports yesterday that representatives of winger Semi Radradra requested an urgent TPA in 2014 so money could be sent back to his family in Fiji to *resolve a personal issue.
A statement yesterday said the “alleged TPA request” regarding Radradra had been rejected by the club’s head of football operations, Daniel Anderson, due to salary cap compliance.
The club said it instead worked collaboratively with the NRL and Radradra’s management on an alternative solution. The club then received written approval from salary cap auditors to make an advanced payment to the player for personal reasons on July 25, 2014.
“The Eels were not offered the opportunity to comment on this information before it went to print,” yesterday’s statement continued.
The club said Anderson was looking forward to discussing this and any other relevant issues with the NRL in due course.
Eels chairman Steve Sharp *reiterated that the club was determined to make sure its future governance practices were top-shelf and transparent.
“It is so important for the public, our members and fans to understand that the Parramatta Eels are undergoing a massive reform process, implementing 117 recommendations for reform from independent experts PricewaterhouseCoopers,” Sharp said.
“Further to that, a campaign of smear will not be permitted to undermine this reform. We are concerned that those attempting to smear the Eels are receiving untested and unwarranted media attention. Our message to those attempting to smear the club is that the current Eels’ leadership team will not be deterred from reforming the club.”
The club said it was looking at its legal options over the Radradra reports.
The NRL announced in Feb*ruary it was reviewing the club’s salary cap compliance in the midst of the latest TPA claims.
Parramatta received fines totalling $465,000 for breaches in their 2014 salary cap and were put on notice that the team would lose four competition points in 2016 if further breaches were uncovered.
