EOL now nesting on the GC
Official NRL commentator of the UK Royal Family
Premium Member
Tipping Member
- In 2010, officials from the Melbourne Stormrevealed that the club had committed serious and systematic breaches of the salary cap regulations between 2006 and 2010. By running a well-organized dual contract and bookkeeping system they concealed from the NRL a total of $3.78 million in payments made to players outside of the salary cap, including $303,000 in 2006, $459,000 in 2007, $957,000 in 2008, $1.021 million in 2009 and $1.04 million in 2010. As a result, the Melbourne Storm were stripped of the 2007 and 2009 premierships, 2006–2008 minor premierships and the 2010 World Club Challenge trophy, and fined a record $1.689 million. $1.1 million in NRL prize money was equally distributed between the remaining 15 NRL clubs, $89,000 in prize money from the World Club Challenge was distributed to the Leeds Rhinos, and the maximum of $500,000 was fined for breaching the salary cap regulations. They were ordered to cut their payroll by $1.0125 million, deducted all eight premiership points received during the season and barred from receiving premiership points for the remainder of the season. The points penalty meant that the club won the 2010 wooden spoon. Legal action by the former directors of the club against the penalties collapsed, and the matter was referred to ASIC, the Australian Tax Office, the Victorian State Revenue Office, and the Victoria Police.[13] The club's former CEO, Brian Waldron, and financial officers Matt Hanson, Paul Gregory and Cameron Vale were all suspended for life.