Parramatta only broke the 11th Commandment: Thou shalt not get caught

Best comment I've read on this.

Well said 81Paling. I agree with your points here.

I do not understand a draft in any great detail however after reading actuarial papers on the salary cap (most of which I had no idea what they were talking about) the simple fact was that it was player movement that made leagues more competitive, it was that one factor alone when reviewing AFL, NRL and NBL (not sure but, I think that is current terminology for basketball) in Australia that made the most significant difference in creating a league that was by definition diversely competitive. I ask for a little latitude here from the subject as it appears from those papers that in Australia salary cap has been a lesser influence than expansion of the game, i.e the bigger we make the premier competition geographically the further we reduce the equality. It appeared that the introduction of the Bronco's and then again the Storm had statistically documented and charted impacts on reducing the overall competitiveness of the League i.e ability of the bottom clubs to move up. We can not have everything we want. the NRL must face reality that they cannot control everything (nor should they) because they have tried and everyone knows that they are a joke when it comes to this (Parra is simply a Melee being brought down after a few good men got to the top). We may not have seen the end of this. I have followed it closely and there is a pattern however, the pattern was that under Fitzgerald close was good enough, then Spagnolo was spend, plug gaps no plan or real care for tomorrow lets just try to buy a player that might get a try tomorrow.. Now we see the end of Sharpe which was OMG how do we plug that problem. I am not sure that anyone would know the answer to your question Bearfax, all I know is that the charge of organized, deliberate, calculated and misleading which is what is alleged against the Eels would never stand up. It appears currently our media are happy this went away because they confused themselves about their accusations. Is Parra a deliberate cunning masterminded club? or a bunch of tradies trying to plug the wholes left in the roof whilst ensuring the underpinning is taken care of. There is a long way to go but, what we saw was that the old saying is very true in regards to this "a strong Parra = a stong rugby League and this year rugby league has started to fall away.

Interesting point there 81Paling. I wonder though if we have seen everything about the Parra rort so far because new things keep appearing each week. Its like a soap opera. Like some commentators I'm for the introduction of a draft system which may help to overcome these abuses. Of course you have to get everyone on side for that and ta seems a sticking point. But it works well with AFL and NFL. We've got to get away from the richer clubs dominating the League. A fairer system may have seen the Sharks win a premiership far earlier for example.

I have read the same story as Razza from 2 seperate sources the 1st being from Roy Master and then in greater detail in the book "Storm Cloud" it was my understanding that only after that discovery did whistle blowers come forward. I might be wrong on that but, I doubt it. However there is another point that I know I am right on and that is that according to the NRL in 2010 the Storm were to be $700k over the cap, then NEWS revealed that their findings found their subsidiary The Storm to be $1.04m over the cap. NEWS did go on to say that their findings were preliminary and conservative they commissioned a further specialized accounting audit to clarify the figures. As these figures were never released in the 44pg paper where 33 pages were in fact blanked out because they were deemed sensitive and certain details on remaining pages were also sensored iit is clear that the Storms salary cap breach was far greater than Parra's.

Get your facts right mate the storm were caught up because a ex manager of a player turned whistle blower ,where you got that story from is too dumb to understand ,and the words "the eels were honest enough to have one set of books" just shows how some people can justify anything ,The storm were caught out 1.5 millions over the cap ,the eels 3 million and yet the eels have been given a light smack compared to what the storm went thru ,if you hate my team that's your prerogative ,but to argue the treatment of both teams are equal is just stupid.

Well, atleast the Eels were honest enough to have it all documented in one book, not like Melbourne who had two books and would not have been caught only for a misinformed female employee in administration who asked "which book, there are two" when Ian Shubert phoned to make an appointment to view their salary cap book, twiddle de dee - twiddle de dumb. GO THE EAGLES

THey rorted the cap by 3 millions dollars and you can dress up that excuse anyway you like and try an justify it but if the rules were there than your club knowingly broke it than your club are blatant salary cap cheats ,and if it's proven some players we taking cash payments than the players knowingly cheated too .

I honestly feel sorry for the supporters but Ima storm supporter ,I remember parramatta fans waving money at my team when we were forced to play a whole season for no points ,them yelling out abuse at my players and our fans at the game .I now hear they think having 12 points taken off them is too harsh ?, they rorted double what the storm did and they have got off leniently I think.I was at a storm manly game an saw a female storm supporter spat on during the cheating saga and yet the media has not attacked the eels like they did the storm ?.I don't want the eels to go thru what my team went thru but I am angry that it was ok to force my team to play a whole season for no points an constant abuse but we are suppose to feel sorry for the eels players ? The double standards and treatment of two teams could not be any different.

81 Paling. You have a fixation on Manly that distorts all that you say. I've noted this before. You dont give substantive examples of other teams but you consistently crucify Manly for your only partial interests. I know your loyalties and why this is so. But this diminishes otherwise sensible arguments that you make. Mate you need to get over your issues about Manly before anyone is going to take you seriously. And that's a shame because you can make otherwise sensible comments. Your response to my comment just reinforces my argument that you had to go step by step through the game interpreting the various issues during the game..and of course from your own perspective. I can acknowledge that the refs made a mistake regarding Foran. Hardly the first mistake made by refs dont you think. So why make it such an issue. The answer is your bitter fixation against Manly. Hardly dispassionate judgement dont you think. I didnt raise the Manly issue, you did. Again reinforcing my argument. Stick to the issues 81Paling and you'll do just fine. Include in some way your personal bias and your argument is lost. And I suspect I'm not the only one identifying this issue.

Not really Parra the storm and dogs were at a whole other level. Parra are over the cap through inept management. Most of the 500K we're over at the moment is just Watmough who is not playing... In previous years we went over the cap because we were stupid enough to sack a good coach (daniel Anderson) and replace him with two idiots (Kearney and Stewart) who sacked and let players go left right and centre who were still included under the cap. Players like Ben Roberts, Sandow, Matt Keating and Reni Matuia. So in summary Parra busted the cap while paying average players not to play. Storm busted the cap keeping a champion team together. They also engaged in fraudulent activities like having multiple contracts with different amounts. The money is also very different Parra is small fry compared to the Storm and Dogs. Last and least point, is that you can't look at Parra's roster over the last couple of years and say look at that amazing squad... Parra fans have a big right to be angry at the clubs administration.The NRL and members should punish the administrators of the club not the fans and players. The salary cap is a joke we all know it, it should be scrapped to avoid more farces like this.

As a Rugby League fan, I am very disgruntled and disgusted that the consequences for cheating the system has not been followed through as thoroughly as when Bulldogs and the Storm were found cheating. There should be the same consequences for ALL clubs bringing this great game down. Those clubs and their fans had to cop it sweet. So should Parra and their fans. Why such leniency for this lot. They have been found to be doing this for over 5 years!! Are the consequences different only because they didn't win a premiership during these years? That shouldn't be a factor.

Bearfax, glad u touched on the subject of that game I only used it as the best example of my point. However there were a few other decisions in that game that you did not mention that have been forgotten along with your strip. - 1st try to Manly in 2nd half was both a knock on and a double movement in the same play. - Taufua's spear tackle in the 42nd minute on Bowen. - Williams lost the ball in the 50th min but given a penalty from which Tafua is awarded a try that on replay shows him short of the line and without control the ball and a foot over the touchline (Bearfax you must agree that was a try u had to have your eye patch on for) - In the 57th min G Stewart holds Thurston back from the ball on the tryline (he should have been given 10 in the bin) - Minute 61 was the start of our play that shall live in infamy and that was Tafua passes the ball over a meter forward to DCE, even some players hesitated it was that bad but, play continues and at the conclusion of that set yes we see the INFAMOUS HAND OF GOD as Manly score another try. - The 66th min revealed Taufua grounding the ball clearly inside his tryline realises that rules no longer apply to him so he runs to the halfway line were eventually he is tackled by an amazed cowboys team and a crowd watching what had become a joke. The list goes on for that match of disgraceful oversights during that match which were never acknowledged and are also not talked by yourself I note Bearfax. If you would like to we can do this all over again because as you may have worked out I keep a very good library of notes and footage that I can easily recall.

Maybe next year the premiership will be decided by default, ie: The club found to be within the salary cap on all counts will be awarded enough bonus points to ensure they win the league and Premiership double!.

bang on

You make some good points 81 Paling, but as usual you have to have your ubiquitous dig at Manly either through innuendo or a refereeing mistake 4 years ago (a mistake that has been acknowledged but in the same match there was an illegal strip by the Cowboys that led to their second try but no one talks about that). The thing is mate that a refereeing mistake is totally unrelated to the present salary cap issue or corruption in the League. Refereeing mistakes happen every week. Its just part of the game. So stick to the subject mate. You make good points but then you spoil it by letting that old anti-Manly bias show its head.