OT: Smiths 3 contracts.

[Snoochies]

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/smiths-three-contracts/story-e6frexnr-1225875916005

NRL salary cap investigators have discovered champion hooker Cameron Smith had THREE separate contracts with Melbourne Storm.

One was registered with the NRL, one was in a file at the Storm's administration headquarters and another was being hidden at the home of former CEO Matt Hanson.

The contracts, which were drawn up by disgraced former boss Brian Waldron, also included payments for a home renovation and a guaranteed commentary role at Fox Sports. Super League architect John Ribot negotiated the Fox Sports deal.

Smith continues to deny he was aware of any rorting.

Other instances of Storm stars having more than one contract have been uncovered by the investigators.

The Storm are $850,000 over the cap this season and an astonishing $1.5 million next season.

News Limited spokesman Greg Baxter yesterday told 2GB the company now believed board members and players knew many of the contracts were illegal.


"The amount of money is significantly higher than first estimated, which is a massive problem. There are people who have previously claimed to be entirely innocent in these events and we now have emails that prove otherwise," Baxter said.

"We have circumstantial evidence that suggests members of the board were involved. This is probably going to get worse before it gets better.

"There is now evidence that some players were aware these arrangements were illegal in terms of the salary cap rules and they were happy to go along with it. You'd have to now assume some of the star players won't be at the club next year."

But he didn't know about it.:sarcasm:

 

[Someone]

I hate Smith. should just FOAD.

 

[belmoreeel]

well there is the reason we were chanting "CHEATS CHEATS" on friday night lol

 

[Stagger eel]

not surprised tbh

 

[strider]

yeah - i was reading this on the smh too ...

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...ver-cap-scandal-interviews-20100605-xls0.html

Smith and News clash over cap scandal interviews

STATHI PAXINOS AND CHRIS BARRETT

June 6, 2010
MELBOURNE STORM captain Cameron Smith and his teammates have yet to be interviewed by investigators looking into the club's salary cap scandal despite the probe nearing an end.


The Sun-Herald understands the players pulled out of the initial meetings and that new appointments had failed to be set because players were demanding to have their managers present with them.


Accounting firm Deloitte began a forensic audit shortly after the NRL announced on April 22 that the Storm had been guilty of serious breaches and had been stripped of two premierships and of all points this season as part of package of hefty penalties imposed. As one of Melbourne's highest paid players, Smith has been branded in some quarters as the face of the scandal but six weeks after the investigation begun the players were still waiting to tell their side of the story.


''The players still have to have their interviews done and once the interviews are done I'm sure it will be all cleared up,'' Smith said. ''We were told at the start we were going to be interviewed. They were going to interview everyone at the club, administration, football staff, players, everything. That's what we were told, anyway.''
But News Ltd corporate affairs director Greg Baxter said he had seen a schedule of interviews, which had ''dates, times and names on it'' that had not been kept by the players.


''There were appointments made with players for interviews some time ago which none of them kept and requests have been made of their agents to reschedule those appointments and they have not done so,'' Baxter said.
Storm prop Brett White said he had missed an appointment because he was in Sydney at the scheduled time.


Stripped of any prospect of challenging for this year's NRL title, Melbourne Storm players and staff face an anxious wait for the investigation into the club's salary-cap breaches to come to a conclusion after suggestions that some players knew more than they have let on.


''We are not of the view any longer that all of the players knew nothing about it,'' Baxter said. ''When this story broke in late April we didn't have any information at all to say that the players were complicit. Regrettably we're not in a position to say that today because we've now got at least some circumstantial information that suggests that some of the players knew about some of the arrangements and knew that they were illegal under the salary-cap rules.''


He would not say how many Storm players were under the microscope as a result of Deloitte's investigation to date. Baxter said News Ltd had also been forwarded documents ''that show there was some knowledge of this at the board level … not all the directors but some of the board''.


The results of the audit would conclude that the Storm's salary-cap breaches were at least 25 per cent more than the $1.7 million over five years that was announced when the penalty was handed out six weeks ago. The breach has already grown, with the Storm understood to be $850,000 over the cap this year alone and forecast to be $1.3m over in 2011, but the final figures are set to be even higher.


''The amount of money over the cap is more than we thought,'' Baxter said. ''[Deloitte] haven't concluded the investigation yet so we haven't got a final number but it is significantly higher than was expected certainly for this year and next year.
''We're looking at at least 25 per cent more. Possibly more than that in some years. The numbers of ways in which these payments have been concealed has grown exponentially.


''There's been lots of little things going on to conceal payments of small amounts that of course when you aggregate them all together become big amounts.''

this Baxter guy quoted here IS a News Ltd manager and they have been keen to point the finger and avoid blame - so, I dunno .... I guess it'll be interesting to see the outcome of the investigation

pretty interesting that the players are voiding being interviewed :-s

 

[eel4life]

they deserve what they get ... 1.5 million for next season ... fmd .. and they want to whinge about it ....

 

[Twizzle]

hard to believe that Smith is still in denial

3 contracts ffs

 

[jono]

".... one for the master (Melbourne Storm)
one for the dame (David Gallop)
one for the little boy who lives down the lane ... (Wally Waldron)"

 

[Parra Guru]

Many have suspected that Smith was the biggest, I guess this confirms it.

No more denying he knew of it. Cheating scum.

 

[parra-matters]

yeah he should be suspended for 18mths the bastard. Such a smug prick i hope his named gets dragged thru the mud and NSW smash in OriginII.

 

[Maroubra Eel]

Will they need to shed many players to reduce their payments by $1.5m next year?

 

[Craig Johnston]

explains his petulance the other night.

the smug merkin is taking everyone for a ride.

 

[Nikki]

Stuff 18 months.. If he knew see ya later. De-register any player that has brought this game into disripute by cheating!

 

[strider]

the players and their managers will still find a way to wriggle out of it - you watch

 

[Ray Martins Hair]

The belief that players had no idea about cheating is f**king rubbish. Any player signing three separate contracts with one including money laundering through home renovations had to be suspicious.

 

[strider]

i could believe that a player may not know - but in that case his manager WOULD likely know .... while not impossible, I find it hard to believe that neither the player AND his manager would know something was going on

 

[bartman]

Smith signed three different contracts, ten other players signed two different contracts, but.... "the players didn't know" :lol:.

Bunch of merkins, all of them. Boo. Scum. Cheats. ;-)

 

[strider]

i don't know if they have said yet that the 3 contracts were all signed (i remember at the start they said they had found unsigned contracts) .... but if that does turn out to be the case, then the player should be booted

i would think if players and their managers are in on things, the best way to try and save the player from potentially being caught would be to only have a contract signed by both parties in the player's possession - then even if the club gets caught with multiple contracts, they would be unsigned anyway and you could just plead innocent .... but hey, I am just imagining sh*t here :lol: ... will be interesting to hear of all teh findings at hte end

 

[Suitman]

i don't know if they have said yet that the 3 contracts were all signed (i remember at the start they said they had found unsigned contracts) .... but if that does turn out to be the case, then the player should be booted

i would think if players and their managers are in on things, the best way to try and save the player from potentially being caught would be to only have a contract signed by both parties in the player's possession - then even if the club gets caught with multiple contracts, they would be unsigned anyway and you could just plead innocent .... but hey, I am just imagining sh*t here :lol: ... will be interesting to hear of all teh findings at hte end

I wanna know how many different ways you are going to find to spell "the"!! :lol:

Suity

 

[spiderdan]

Smith is a very common name. It's highly possible that there is more than one Cameron smith on the books at the storm or that the auditors have confused cam smith with Cameron smith.

Easy mistake to make.