Former Parramatta superstar Jarryd Hayne says he knows nothing about receiving off-the-record payments of nearly $500,000 when he was at the NRL club.
New revelations in an NRL breach notice against the Eels reportedly show the club secretly arranged almost $500,000 in deals for the NFL convert since 2013.
Official documents and boardroom minutes show a trail of salary cap discrepancies in the star fullback’s third party deals with the club from 2013 to 2015, News Corp reported on Tuesday.
More Jarryd Hayne:
» Hayne cleared by World Rugby to compete at Rio
» Why Hayne shouldn’t make the Fiji sevens side
» NFL to the Olympics, but where will the Hayne Plane land in 2017?
» Jarryd Hayne announces NFL retirement, aims for Olympic Games
They allegedly include cash payments, first class overseas travel and car expenses adding up to $465,000, all hidden from the NRL.
When asked by reporters about the “secret deals” in London on Monday, Hayne joked about the amount.
“Half a million, wow, must have been the wrong bank account. I haven’t seen it.”
When asked if he was aware of any off-the-record payments, Hayne replied: “Not that I’m aware of, no”.
Hayne said the Eels’ salary cap scandal was sad and disappointing when the side was doing so well, “not only finals-bound but top four bound”.
“Us players have no idea what goes on behind closed doors.”
He said the players’ duty was to go out and play and he had put his trust in his manager and the people who ran the club.
“I’m an athlete, not a manager.”
Hayne’s manager, Wayne Beavis, also denied the reports.
“On the press reports there is a lot of the content contained in it relating to Jarryd that is factually incorrect,” Beavis told Sky Sports Radio.
The revelations follow Hayne’s surprise news on Monday that he was quitting the San Francisco 49ers and n NFL career to chase Olympic gold with Fiji’s Rugby Sevens team.
Third-party payments to players must be done on an arm’s length basis from the club and it’s a breach of salary cap rules if a club makes a payment on behalf of third parties.
The audio tapes from meetings also indicate that current board member Tanya Gaidel asked Steve Sharp whether the club was participating in fraudulent activities to provide third-party payments to 2015 recruit Anthony Watmough.
There is no suggestion Hayne or Watmough were aware their payments were contrary to NRL rules, or that either had done anything wrong.
IKnowEverything
Guest
Very good summary.
Marvel
Guest
And the herald made no mention of Haynes alleged indiscretion...in 5 pages...
Max
Guest
"Half a million, wow, must have been the wrong bank account. I haven’t seen it.” That's the whole point - it wouldn't be in your bank account - ask your manager or the bagman that lives next door.. Note how the NRL leaked this on the day that Hayne took up 5 pages of the Sydney Morning herald and buried near the death notices was the Parramatta indiscretion transcripts...
steveng
Roar Rookie
To summarise Jarrod Hayne’s adventure into the NFL it’s been two fold, yeah he was a hero to us sports fans in Australia for making the 49rs pick but in the US and to all NFL experts he was a failure. The 49rs had a very ordinary season if not an abysmal season, coach Tomsula got sacked as did allot of the coaching staff at the 49rs from last year. The new coach Chip Kelly won’t have anything to do with what happened last year and that is why Jarrod Hayne was advised (and tapped on the shoulder) to leave the code as he would be embarrassed, and that is the bottom line with the ‘Hayne Plane’ in the NFL!!! What theatrics that Jarrod will go through from now on will only be so he can get the biggest pay from whichever code that will have him, the NRL looks like his best bet. This Fiji 7’s Olympic squad is a smoke screen to what Jarrod really wants to do and that is to play for an NRL club for biggest money, it makes business sense and his manager is playing all his cards the right way to get Jarrod a contract for the most money in whichever code that will have him.
Red Dog
Guest
Here we go , another week or two of boooooooriiiiiinnnngggggg , fanciful Hayne stories.