The Emperor plans to strike back: Denis Fitzgerald to run for Parramatta board
Daniel Lane
Sports reporter & Video journalist
Former Parramatta chief executive Denis Fitzgerald, who ran the Eels for 30 years before he was voted out of office in 2009, will run against the board he helped put in power two years ago to depose Roy Spagnolo to help return the club to its "former greatness".
Since word leaked of Fitzgerald's decision, he has been advised that the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing [OLGR] received a request to reopen an investigation from six years ago concerning almost 50 allegations against him. They included his supposedly offering members in 2009 meal vouchers at the club's Chinese restaurant in return for their vote and that he used club money to pay for his legal expenses.
Fitzgerald added he received a letter from a solicitor acting on behalf of the Parramatta board in December that threatened to suspend his membership if he didn't apologise for criticism he levelled at the Steve Sharp-led board during a radio interview. He did not comply with the demand.
A spokesperson said Parramatta had not complained to the OLGR about Fitzgerald and rejected the notion they would threaten his membership.
"There is no disciplinary action underway against Denis Fitzgerald and the Club does not use this process for political purposes," a Parramatta spokesperson said in an email
Fitzgerald, who was known as the "Emperor" during his reign at the Eels, confirmed he was a member of the Parramatta Professionals ticket.
"I played at Parramatta for nine years; I was CEO of the football club for 30 years; CEO of the leagues club for 20 years; I was chairman of the Leagues Club from 1986 to '88, so it's been a dominant part of my life," he said.
"I'd be happy if I thought the organisation was well run. I'd like to see Parramatta run well and to be successful. So many people have said to me that things were better when I was there even though they didn't realise it at the time.
"Since I left six years ago there's been four coaches, four CEOs of the football club, four CEOs of the leagues club. There's been no consistency. I'd like to think that I, with my experience, and with a number of other people with experience in clubs or business whose main reason for standing is to assist the club to return to it's former greatness rather than looking after themselves."
Fitzgerald, who is the chairman of the NSW Combat Sports Authority and serves on three other boards, has been involved in the club's political tapestry since 1973 when he was a 23-year-old forward and assembled a mini-ticket to challenge the "chook raffle" mentality of the time.
Fitzgerald's declaration came after Parramatta avoided a second appearance at the Supreme Court on Friday for the case involving director Lawrence Shepherd, who argued he was denied natural justice after being suspended via letter after three allegations were levelled against him.
Shepherd said Parramatta paid his legal costs and agreed it would follow due process to avoid returning to court on Friday. Shepherd, who will run with Fitzgerald on the Parramatta Professionals ticket and has a poker machine business that exports to 35 countries, said it was important he defended his reputation.
"[Parramatta] contacted my legal team and said they didn't believe we needed to go back to court," he said. "My legal team was satisfied they were going to [follow] the proper process and they've paid my costs.
"My legal team thinks this is a great win. I'm in the gaming/gambling industry and I need to protect my name. If you had someone lie about you, you'd stand up as I did and say 'please prove it'."
The Parramatta spokesperson said the club had paid only a portion of Shepherd's legal costs when he withdrew proceedings and that he'd face disciplinary proceedings in the not too distant future.
One allegation stemmed from his alleged behaviour inside a NSWRL corporate box at a concert last March. The others concerned conversations he was supposed to have had with club executives threatening their jobs.
It was claimed he acted in an inappropriate manner in the box asking loudly for alcohol. It was also suggested he tipped a beer over then NRL chief operating officer Jim Doyle, who is now chief executive at the New Zealand Warriors. Doyle told Fairfax Media during the week he had no issue with Shepherd and suggested it was an accident.
"Mr Shepherd's disciplinary notice involves a pattern of alleged behaviour that relates to incidents right up to February of this year," said the club's spokesman. "The board will be making no further comment while the disciplinary process continues."
