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http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...ears-tony-zappia/story-e6frexnr-1225904634168
Explosive report clears Tony Zappia
EXCLUSIVE by Josh Massoud From: The Daily Telegraph August 13, 2010 12:00AM 2
IT was the punch that floored a footy club. But two years since the night when former Sharks CEO Tony Zappia struck a female employee, a secret report has painted a different picture of the darkest hour in Cronulla's history.
As Cronulla prepared for their return to the free-to-air spotlight against the Roosters at Toyota Stadium tonight, The Daily Telegraph obtained a private investigator's 73-page report into the incident that condemned Zappia to NRL exile.
Zappia has now applied for the vacant football manager's role at the Roosters, but is still waiting to learn whether the game will accept him back after 12 months consulting and working at the fruit markets.
In the wake of allegations from ex-community officer Jenny Hall about Zappia's conduct, the Sharks last year engaged former detective Ray Lambie to conduct an investigation into her claims.
Lambie also looked into claims of sex toys being distributed at training, prostitutes in the changerooms and pornographic emails being circulated through the workplace.
After questioning 26 former and current Sharks staff, Lambie concluded that Zappia's punch to Hall's face on August 9, 2008, was accidental. The finding was unanimously supported by football and administrative staff who spoke to Hall immediately after the incident, and who felt her story changed because of a verbal confrontation with Zappia on the same night.
A female employee in the Sharks office at the time Zappia and Hall were shadow boxing described the mood as jovial afterwards. But she claimed Hall was visibly upset later that evening - the night of Cronulla's round 22 win over Souths - after Zappia rebuked her for telling other staff about the punch.
"At 3.50pm on 9 August [2008] ... I could hear Tony and Jenny laughing around the corner," the employee wrote. "A short time after [one minute] Jenny and Tony appeared near my desk laughing and Jenny said, 'Tony accidentally knocked me near the eye'.
"I never felt like Jenny was traumatised from this incident or she felt like Tony 'hit' her.
"At 8pm she [was] crying. She said Tony spoke to her in a rude manner and raised his voice. She kept saying, 'Tony punched me in the eye'. I thought this was strange as I noticed her story changing.
"When [she] returned to work it was obvious the wounded area was aggravated. The area was now a complete black and larger."
Another employee, who no longer works at the club, said: "Her [Hall's] mental state was reasonably calm until a verbal confrontation with Tony ... with Tony apparently upset the incident had become public."
Lambie's report also considers a full transcript of Hall's clandestine recording of her 27-minute interview with Zappia and another staff member - later sold to, and broadcast on, Channel 7 - in which the administrator offered to be spanked.
"During the recorded conversation Zappia apologised on three occasions, inquired on her welfare and Hall confirmed the accidental nature of the black eye on seven occasions," the investigator wrote.
Lambie advised the Sharks board to consider legal action and pressing criminal charges against Hall for breaching the confidentiality terms of her $20,000 settlement and secretly recording conversations. Sharks chairman Damian Irvine said neither action would be taken.
Lambie found evidence of one Sharks player - no longer at the club - who possessed sex toys.
He also concluded that allegations of "prostitutes" in the home changerooms after the round 19, 2008, clash against Newcastle were motivated by Hall. The women were corporate guests who represented the alcohol industry.
While he described the allegedly pornographic emails found on Zappia and Hall's work computers as "inappropriate", Lambie said the images only warranted a "high M rating".
Explosive report clears Tony Zappia
EXCLUSIVE by Josh Massoud From: The Daily Telegraph August 13, 2010 12:00AM 2
IT was the punch that floored a footy club. But two years since the night when former Sharks CEO Tony Zappia struck a female employee, a secret report has painted a different picture of the darkest hour in Cronulla's history.
As Cronulla prepared for their return to the free-to-air spotlight against the Roosters at Toyota Stadium tonight, The Daily Telegraph obtained a private investigator's 73-page report into the incident that condemned Zappia to NRL exile.
Zappia has now applied for the vacant football manager's role at the Roosters, but is still waiting to learn whether the game will accept him back after 12 months consulting and working at the fruit markets.
In the wake of allegations from ex-community officer Jenny Hall about Zappia's conduct, the Sharks last year engaged former detective Ray Lambie to conduct an investigation into her claims.
Lambie also looked into claims of sex toys being distributed at training, prostitutes in the changerooms and pornographic emails being circulated through the workplace.
After questioning 26 former and current Sharks staff, Lambie concluded that Zappia's punch to Hall's face on August 9, 2008, was accidental. The finding was unanimously supported by football and administrative staff who spoke to Hall immediately after the incident, and who felt her story changed because of a verbal confrontation with Zappia on the same night.
A female employee in the Sharks office at the time Zappia and Hall were shadow boxing described the mood as jovial afterwards. But she claimed Hall was visibly upset later that evening - the night of Cronulla's round 22 win over Souths - after Zappia rebuked her for telling other staff about the punch.
"At 3.50pm on 9 August [2008] ... I could hear Tony and Jenny laughing around the corner," the employee wrote. "A short time after [one minute] Jenny and Tony appeared near my desk laughing and Jenny said, 'Tony accidentally knocked me near the eye'.
"I never felt like Jenny was traumatised from this incident or she felt like Tony 'hit' her.
"At 8pm she [was] crying. She said Tony spoke to her in a rude manner and raised his voice. She kept saying, 'Tony punched me in the eye'. I thought this was strange as I noticed her story changing.
"When [she] returned to work it was obvious the wounded area was aggravated. The area was now a complete black and larger."
Another employee, who no longer works at the club, said: "Her [Hall's] mental state was reasonably calm until a verbal confrontation with Tony ... with Tony apparently upset the incident had become public."
Lambie's report also considers a full transcript of Hall's clandestine recording of her 27-minute interview with Zappia and another staff member - later sold to, and broadcast on, Channel 7 - in which the administrator offered to be spanked.
"During the recorded conversation Zappia apologised on three occasions, inquired on her welfare and Hall confirmed the accidental nature of the black eye on seven occasions," the investigator wrote.
Lambie advised the Sharks board to consider legal action and pressing criminal charges against Hall for breaching the confidentiality terms of her $20,000 settlement and secretly recording conversations. Sharks chairman Damian Irvine said neither action would be taken.
Lambie found evidence of one Sharks player - no longer at the club - who possessed sex toys.
He also concluded that allegations of "prostitutes" in the home changerooms after the round 19, 2008, clash against Newcastle were motivated by Hall. The women were corporate guests who represented the alcohol industry.
While he described the allegedly pornographic emails found on Zappia and Hall's work computers as "inappropriate", Lambie said the images only warranted a "high M rating".
