Rugby
Reuters 4y

Premiership Rugby to release Saracens disciplinary report on salary cap breach

Rugby

Premiership Rugby (PRL) said on Wednesday they will release the disciplinary panel report that found Saracens guilty of persistent salary cap breaches after the club said they had no objection for it to be made public.

English and European champions Saracens will be relegated from the top flight at the end of the season after failing to comply with salary cap regulations for the current season.

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The European champions were initially docked 35 points and fined £5.36 million by the Premiership in November for breaching the salary cap over the last three seasons, but the full report of an investigation led by Lord Dyson has so far not been released.

"I am surprised by the suggestion that Saracens are objecting to the publication of the report," Saracens chairman Neil Golding said in a statement.

"Since my appointment on Jan. 9, I have spent considerable time in discussions with PRL and nobody has asked me what my position is on the matter.

"To confirm, we are keen for the report to be published in full and I made PRL aware of this earlier today. It will provide much needed context and clarity."

The league's governing body have now begun preparations to release the decision document.

"Premiership Rugby welcomes Saracens' decision to withdraw its previous objection to publication of Lord Dyson's decision," a Premiership spokesperson told the BBC.

"These objections were stated in the strongest terms and in writing on behalf of the club by its lawyers.

"We believe that publication of the decision in respect of Saracens' past breaches of the salary cap is an important step towards upholding trust in our enforcement of the regulations and the disciplinary process."

Golding confirmed the club were in discussions with the PRL over a mid-season audit spanning "several seasons."

"We carefully considered the option of a full investigatory audit," he added. "However, that inevitably would have involved a long period of more financial and emotional strain and this in turn meant this was not a viable option for us."

Golding accepts Saracens have let their supporters down but said his top priority is to ensure that the club can stand up against "the highest level of scrutiny going forward."

He added: "That work has already started -- for example, we are looking to strengthen the board with the appointment of further non-executive directors of some stature and we are looking to recruit a permanent CEO."

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