CRONULLA Sharks have brought back Labor powerbroker Greg Holland onto their board of directors as ASADA intensified the heat of their investigations onto 31 players in the National Rugby League competition — including some who may have sourced performance-enhancing drugs outside their club programs after 2011.
The Sharks were forced to fill a casual vacancy on the board after Australian Rugby League development officer Paul Walker stepped down on Tuesday, thus jeopardising the continuing operations of the Sharks board.
At the same time, ASADA notified the rugby league commission and NRL yesterday that it would begin interviewing 31 players from next week, to run over four to six weeks.
The agency said it had moved its focus away from clubs and onto a player or groups of players who may have gone outside their club programs.
Although Cronulla Sharks had been singled out, NRL chief executive Dave Smith said ASADA had ‘‘squarely moved their investigations to players’’.
‘‘The focus is not on the clubs,’’ he said. ‘‘The NRL’s view is that no-one will be pre-judged, no players will be named and it doesn’t mean any players will be stood down.
‘‘It also doesn’t mean there are charges and the [ASADA] interviews don’t mean direct suspicion.’’
He said the NRL integrity unit would begin issuing notices to the 31 players in the next few days.
Smith said ASADA had not nominated any year it was investigating.
ARL Commission chairman John Grant stressed that without infraction notices, the league could not, and would not, stand down any player.
‘‘ASADA is looking for anti-doping violations,’’ Grant said. ‘‘If and when they have a case they refer it to the NRL, an infraction notice is then issued, a player is stood down and then case goes to the NRL Tribunal for determination.’’ Players also have several avenues of appeal, after that.
On Tuesday, the Sharks averted a board crisis by appointing former long-time director Greg Holland to replace Paul Walker.
With chairman Damian Irvine stepping down and directors Jim Barnett and Ricky Surace having quit already, the Sharks board had less than the seven board members needed under the constitution to continue operating.
‘‘I was happy to get the call to fill the vacancy,’’ said Holland from Canberra, where he was on family business.
The Sharks crisis also has cost the club the services of long-time director and vice-chairman Keith Ward, who announced the sackings of four staff and the standing down of coach Shane Flanagan in the absence of then chairman, Damian Irvine.
Ward won’t be standing for re-election at the Cronulla AGM next month, and fellow director Craig Douglas said the Sharks would be ‘‘poorer’’ for his decision.
‘‘Keith was a major contributor to this club, and especially instrumental in work on our [$300m property] development and getting it approved,’’ said Douglas, the chartered accountant who headed the board’s work on the development over many years.
Yesterday, the returning officer was re-checking the names of about 30 candidates for the board elections, with present directors Craig Douglas, new chairman Glenn Coleman, Peter Kerr and Phil Tiernan re-nominating, along with Greg Holland.
The reappointment of Sharks coach Shane Flanagan will depend on the findings of the independent review for the club by Grant Thornton International, now expected by the end of the week. Solicitors for the club will have to examine the report before making recommendations to the board, which may or may not happen before Sunday’s home game against the Warriors.
http://www.theleader.com.au/story/1377171/drug-probe-moves-to-players/?cs=1255
