The National Rugby League "is ready to respond to the growing threat of match-fixing by pushing to beef up its powers to gain access to phone and financial records as part of negotiations with the players’ union over a new collective bargaining agreement," according to Brent Read of THE AUSTRALIAN.
NRL officials "are keen to strengthen their ability to investigate allegations and plan to speak to the Rugby League Players Association about widening their powers when talks begin over the CBA later this month." Plans to address the issue "come as the code finds itself in the grip of a crisis" involving Manly last season. It has been alleged that up to six players were paid A$50,000 apiece to affect the outcome of the games. An NRL spokesperson said, "One of the outcomes of this process will be an examination of our rules with regards to sports betting, and our ability to track it, monitor it and enforce our rules. That will form part of discussions with the RLPA over time” (THE AUSTRALIAN, 6/7). In Sydney, Chris Barrett reported the NRL "is facing pushback," with the players' union "likely to oppose any bid for future access to players' bank accounts and phone records." The RLPA indicated on Monday night it was likely "to oppose any such proposed measures, and would instead encourage administrators to take a more proactive approach to the threat of anti-corruption and the potential scourge of gambling." RLPA CEO Ian Prendergast:
"We're committed to working with the NRL on this issue but any broadening of powers would have to take into consideration the players' fundamental rights." The RLPA "had concerns" about NRL CEO Todd Greenberg's declaration last week that "any player or official found guilty of involvement in match fixing would be banned for life." On Monday night, Prendergast confirmed that "sentiment had been conveyed to the NRL, arguing an inflexible and hardline stance would discourage players from coming forward with information on suspect activity." He said,
"Players are the best resource in the fight against corruption. History in other international sports has shown how important it is for players to not feel alienated. Players and officials must absolutely be accountable for their actions. But we have flagged with the NRL our concerns about proposed blanket life bans if it means we miss out on crucial information about potentially illegal activities" (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 6/6).
RAISING DOUBTS: In a separate piece, Read reported Sydney’s former chief racing steward John Schreck "has raised serious doubts over the veracity of match-fixing allegations in the NRL, insisting the accusations defy logic and claiming he would be staggered if anybody is ever convicted." Schreck "has been at the forefront of the fight against rorting in the racing industry for most of his adult life." Known as "The Sheriff," Schreck has been stunned by the allegation in the NRL. He said, "Over many years in racing control I found unfounded allegations levelled against people time after time after time ... Let’s think about this for a minute. So far there have been no squeals from any bookies that they have been stitched up. Bookmakers, if they get caught, are the best integrity controllers I know because if they think there is a rort on, they will squeal to the high heavens. It just defies logic. The theories that have been out forward at this stage in my mind do defy logic." Schreck pointed to the absence of a money trail as an indication that nothing untoward had taken place (THE AUSTRALIAN, 6/7).
