The NRL have hit back at claims Parramatta were forced to declare a $134 airfare for Fuifui Moimoi’s son to make a surprise visit to his father as part of their salary cap.

The Eels say they had to declare the fare as $1,500, but the NRL have said the Auckland to Sydney ticket was one of three the club submitted to salary cap auditor Ian Schubert and not a one-off.

Clubs can show cause why trips for players’ family members should not be included under the cap, but the NRL said the Eels did not do so on this occasion.

“The NRL has not made any decision on this issue and has left it open to the Parramatta club to make submissions if it so chooses,” chief executive David Gallop said in a statement on Wednesday.

“To date the NRL has simply inquired as to the status of three air fares that the club provided to the player’s family.

“Parramatta had already included $1,000 in airfares within its declaration to the Salary Cap Auditor.

“Again, the NRL has not made a determination and has only ever provided an estimate of the normal consideration given in relation to trans-Tasman airfares.

“All clubs are aware of the implications that supplying travel to family members may have on the salary cap and of the practical necessity of these measures when assessing benefits to players across Australia and New Zealand.

“The NRL already has rules that allow airfares for family members to be paid without affecting the salary cap in the case of players making their NRL debut.

“It remains disappointing that someone within the Parramatta club would seek to inflame this issue before determinations are made.

“The salary cap is an important part of the game’s unprecedented success and it is disappointing that people connected with the club would try and engineer emotive attacks on the salary cap auditor.

“The issues involved here should have been clearly apparent to any administration experienced with the salary cap.

“If this has simply been a one-off airfare at $134 for a nine-year-old child, it would not have been included in the salary cap.”

© AAP 2012

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