The Parramatta Eels have been fined a whopping $525,000 and may lose competition points in 2016 after being found guilty of breaching the NRL salary cap in 2014.
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The NRL confirmed on Thursday that the Eels exceeded the salary cap by more than $400,000 last season and now has until February 29 next year to get its books in order.
If the NRL are not satisfied by the Eels’ attempts to implement changes, they will begin the 2016 season minus four points.
NRL boss Dave Smith said it was a “complex” issue, but added that the league’s governors would help the Eels throughout the process.
“These are complex matters … and from time to time things are going to go wrong,” Smith is quoted as saying by AAP.
“We’re trying to find a balance between a punitive punishment and trying to encourage the club to get stronger.
“Nobody wants to take competition points away, but we require certain changes and the changes are designed around an independent person making an assessment.
“This didn’t go wrong overnight, this has gone wrong over a number of years.”
The Eels overspent in each of the four salary cap categories. Here is a breakdown:
NRL Top 25 – $101,718
NRL 2nd tier – $233,036
NYC Top 20 – $60,915
NYC 2nd tier – $8277
The Sydney Roosters also face a fine of $41,292 for a breach of the salary cap rules. The breach is related to inaccurate reporting of education allowances in the club’s NYC Top 20.
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