The Estate Agents at it Again?

[DGP Wasp]

I don't believe PLR would ever have investigated the EAs if the DM had not brought matters to a head, they were content to let things go on because it looked good for the EAs to keep winning in Europe, it reflected well on English rugby. If we have 1 thing to thank the DM for it's exposing the corruption within the EAsa as although everybody knew it was going on PLR were content to let it happen, as they are to this day.

I wonder what level of complicity there was from the RFU too, as it suited the England team to have the core of their squad drawn from one team that won a lot.

[wasps]

I don't believe PLR would ever have investigated the EAs if the DM had not brought matters to a head, they were content to let things go on because it looked good for the EAs to keep winning in Europe, it reflected well on English rugby. If we have 1 thing to thank the DM for it's exposing the corruption within the EAsa as although everybody knew it was going on PLR were content to let it happen, as they are to this day.

I wonder what level of complicity there was from the RFU too, as it suited the England team to have the core of their squad drawn from one team that won a lot.

I'm convinced that the RFU were well aware of the ongoings, and at the very least were happy to bury their heads in the sand

[Rifleman Harris]

I don't believe PLR would ever have investigated the EAs if the DM had not brought matters to a head, they were content to let things go on because it looked good for the EAs to keep winning in Europe, it reflected well on English rugby. If we have 1 thing to thank the DM for it's exposing the corruption within the EAsa as although everybody knew it was going on PLR were content to let it happen, as they are to this day.

I wonder what level of complicity there was from the RFU too, as it suited the England team to have the core of their squad drawn from one team that won a lot.

I'm convinced that the RFU were well aware of the ongoings, and at the very least were happy to bury their heads in the sand

...and still are.

[BrackenandMacken]

They aren't going to stop as long as Nigel Wray is involved in the club.

Premier Rugby has a decision to make, either make Nigel leave the game or have cheating regularly occuring in the highest level of the club game.

Unfortunately we all know what will happen and the fans of all the other clubs (the fans who were paying good money to watch a fraudulent product) will be the ones who have to put up with the constant inaction.

[Bloke in North Dorset]

I don't believe PLR would ever have investigated the EAs if the DM had not brought matters to a head, they were content to let things go on because it looked good for the EAs to keep winning in Europe, it reflected well on English rugby. If we have 1 thing to thank the DM for it's exposing the corruption within the EAsa as although everybody knew it was going on PLR were content to let it happen, as they are to this day.

I wonder what level of complicity there was from the RFU too, as it suited the England team to have the core of their squad drawn from one team that won a lot.

I'm convinced that the RFU were well aware of the ongoings, and at the very least were happy to bury their heads in the sand

Don't ask, don't tell.

The excuse of weak administrators the world over.

[hookender]

Strange that it’s being said date listed for the investment of 26th of March last year is an admin error and was earlier before any sanctions were placed on Saracens. If Prl were aware of it surely it should have been entered in accounts to substantiate it at that time ?

[JF]

If the investment was indeed "historic" and just reported late then some mention of that should have been made in the company's accounts.

I'd really like to believe that this is all tickety-boo and above board but when your dog has history for pooing on the living room carpet and you find Fido standing next to a fresh batch your mind tends towards a certain conclusion.

[westwaleswasp]

This batch stinks for me.
Think Nigel missed his calling, he would have been better off in soccer, trying to justify how a European super league would save the game.
It always saddens me when people like Geech say nice things about a guy whose values are loathsome. Still won't buy the RP or its sister papers over their 'Sarries as victims' narrative.

[WonkyWasp]

It's who you know that counts.  Sad.

[andermt]

Still won't buy the RP or its sister papers over their 'Sarries as victims' narrative.

I cancelled my subscription for that very reason.

Thanks to the local library and press reader I get to read it for free, still don't read Nick Cain as it is only ever poor Sarries or PRL and RFU are corrupt.

[InBetweenWasp]

This whole scenario is just so exasperating.  The lack of transparency is what kills it.  There's a small chance that it (investment in businesses - not buying houses) is all legit and they have perhaps been hard done by. 

Supposedly, Maro's images rights value (despite Nigel's investment/share supposedly being deliberately over-valued) have rocketed thanks to a couple of household name sponsorship deals (Under Armour and can't recall the other).  If that's the case then perhaps the investment looks shrewd for both sides; Nige invests his cash (to make a return) and Maro let's him to get up-front cash and let him take care of his rights with the net sum that even with diluting his image rights they're still worth more to him than if he had 100% and had to forge his own deals.

The attitude of cancelling a call because they know they'll be asked questions absolutely stinks - It's an opportunity to correct the narrative (if it's wrong) and explain more about it.  The problem, is that Wray published his monologue telling everyone how he was innocent and turned out to have been economical with the truth.  So he needs to expect tough questions.

Shirking them just reeks of guilt.

[Neils]

This whole scenario is just so exasperating.  The lack of transparency is what kills it.  There's a small chance that it (investment in businesses - not buying houses) is all legit and they have perhaps been hard done by. 

Supposedly, Maro's images rights value (despite Nigel's investment/share supposedly being deliberately over-valued) have rocketed thanks to a couple of household name sponsorship deals (Under Armour and can't recall the other).  If that's the case then perhaps the investment looks shrewd for both sides; Nige invests his cash (to make a return) and Maro let's him to get up-front cash and let him take care of his rights with the net sum that even with diluting his image rights they're still worth more to him than if he had 100% and had to forge his own deals.

The attitude of cancelling a call because they know they'll be asked questions absolutely stinks - It's an opportunity to correct the narrative (if it's wrong) and explain more about it.  The problem, is that Wray published his monologue telling everyone how he was innocent and turned out to have been economical with the truth.  So he needs to expect tough questions.

Shirking them just reeks of guilt.

Sorry you are "trying" to be too reasonable 😉. Cheating is in their DNA. It is time PRL/RFU cleaned up rugby finance.

[wasps]

InBetweenWasp...

I agree with you.
There is a chance that it's all legit and may just be a slight bend of any rules rather than the blatant breaking that we all expect.


However, every time I start thinking that way, I remember that Nigel Wray came out and publicly stated he would never abide by a salary cap as he doesn't believe in its legality and doesn't believe that it benefits the game. He also said that he'd always be looking at ways to circumvent it


If that's his outlook on the rules, then I find it very difficult to trust anything he does

[Lwasp]

What does "clean up rugby finance" actually mean though? Sadly, take away the sugar daddies financing the game and it ceases to exist, even the pre-CoVid profitable teams (Exeter always cited as an example) often rely on the largess of a single benefactor (Exeter's shirt sponsorship from Rowe's company).

The only real way to "clean up" the cap problems would be to publish every player's salary in the way the NFL does and incentivise whistle blowers to come clean about abuses. The strange thing about the Sarries scandal is not that it happened, it's that none of those players or staff not benefiting from it personally blew the whistle on it, even those that had left the club. Maybe they did all believe what they were told "we've checked it and its all fine"

[wasps]

Maybe they did all believe what they were told "we've checked it and its all fine"

I don't think that's so far fetched.
If an employer, potentially a legal expert and your agent all tell you that it's good, and other players tell you that it's totally above board and never been a problem, then your likely to accept it too.

It's not as clear cut as brown paper bags full of cash.

Investments in a business for safeguarding a players future post-rugby can definitely be spun in a way that makes it sound like the player isn't getting any benefit in the short term.


I suspect the players all felt they were getting a good deal, but also probably had been convinced it was totally fine