Bellamy's response

[Kiwi Eagle]

What a load of garbage this is

Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy said: “This is an absolute shock to myself, to our football staff, to our players.

“Personally I am heartbroken.

“But this football club has great character and values. We will not walk away from this challenge.

“We will stick tight together as a group and fight our way back from this.”



http://www.melbournestorm.com.au/default.aspx?s=article-display&id=24871

 

[Berkeley_Eagle]

better response would be
We cheated we got caught
I'm Sorry we are Sorry

 

[Berkeley_Eagle]

Bellamy looks like he is gonna be sacked

Des for Origin coach ?

 

[The Wheel]

How could it be a shock to the players?  They were the ones getting paid more than or what they signed their contracts for

 

[byso]

Kent from the Matty Johns show reckons he's gorrrne by the end of the week.

He would be the main architect with Waldron.

 

[Matabele]

As if Bellamy did not know what was going on.  He would have known intimately of contract details and retention policies.  It is an insult to our intelligence that he would claim innocence. 

 

[Rambo1987]

Waldron is gonna be hanged - I hope the announce who was the mole who told NRL about this. They are a true Australian to be a whistleblower.

The players would have known what they were being paid by their managers.

 

[Matabele]

I hope the announce who was the mole who told NRL about this.

  Waldron perhaps?  He is employed by the opposition Melbourne Rebels you know.

While I'm here - what utter rubbish for News Ltd to say they knew nothing of this until 3 days ago.  They are one of the biggest companies in the country and they'd have us believe they were not monitoring the cashflow of the Storm?  Yeah, right.

 

[Spuds Bodyguard]

[quote author=Rambo1987 link=topic=183104.msg260192#msg260192 date=1271931519]
I hope the announce who was the mole who told NRL about this.

  Waldron perhaps?  He is employed by the opposition Melbourne Rebels you know.

While I'm here - what utter rubbish for News Ltd to say they knew nothing of this until 3 days ago.  They are one of the biggest companies in the country and they'd have us believe they were not monitoring the cashflow of the Storm?  Yeah, right.
[/quote]

Particularly as they have been operating at a loss.

It also makes an absolute farce of the independent commission. Wasn't there was a stipulation from News that capital support was to be paid to Melbourne for 5 years to keep them afloat.

If the only way they can muster support is by cheating the system, piss them off. No one in Melbourne gives a rats about them anyway.

 

[Corso_Pete]

The bigger the pie is the less likely you are to find the rotten bit

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

[quote author=Rambo1987 link=topic=183104.msg260192#msg260192 date=1271931519]
I hope the announce who was the mole who told NRL about this.

  Waldron perhaps?  He is employed by the opposition Melbourne Rebels you know.
While I'm here - what utter rubbish for News Ltd to say they knew nothing of this until 3 days ago.  They are one of the biggest companies in the country and they'd have us believe they were not monitoring the cashflow of the Storm?  Yeah, right.
[/quote]
Waldron is being fingered as the chief architect of the deception according to the News frontman who was in the press conference.

 

[Matabele]

[quote author=Matabele link=topic=183104.msg260194#msg260194 date=1271931872]
[quote author=Rambo1987 link=topic=183104.msg260192#msg260192 date=1271931519]
I hope the announce who was the mole who told NRL about this.

  Waldron perhaps?  He is employed by the opposition Melbourne Rebels you know.
While I'm here - what utter rubbish for News Ltd to say they knew nothing of this until 3 days ago.  They are one of the biggest companies in the country and they'd have us believe they were not monitoring the cashflow of the Storm?  Yeah, right.
[/quote]
Waldron is being fingered as the chief architect of the deception according to the News frontman who was in the press conference.
[/quote]And News are in full damage control.  They have good incentive to find a scapegoat.

 

[Dan]

This club has character and values.

Ha ha, given today's events I would severely question that

 

[blitzkrieg]

Kent from the Matty Johns show reckons he's gorrrne by the end of the week.

See you later, Arseache. And take your premierships and origin trophies with you, oh thats right you have NONE!!! But don't forget your '10 WOODEN SPOON.

 

[lsz]

You have to wonder hows news limited did not have some knowledge of what was going on

You have an investment....which is losing money. Somewhere, someplace someone within news had to know the reason why they were losing money

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

Don't kid yourselves they ALL knew, this goes from the top to the bottom and they all knew...Slater, Cronk, Snith. Inglis, their player managers, the admin people, the coach, the board ALL Guilty as charged!!

Only one thing for it really


Sayonara Melbourne Storm

 

[ads]

Bit harsh to say they all knew. I mean if they did they should get roasted but let's give them the benefit of the doubt - people often don't know what their colleagues are getting paid.

As for News Ltd as a big company I can't see them rorting like this. They'd have been better off using their NRL ownership to give storm official concessions etc ala AFL with interstate clubs.

 

[Canteen Worker]

Funny enough but I don't blame the players though Bellamy and at least 5 in the club knew darn well what was going on.

Clubs have a retention committee who sit down and have a close and hard look at the big picture.

Players might have a hunch but clubs keep figures from them as egos can impact on effort - Imagine how a Choc would feel if Gifty was getting more than him or how Wolfman might react if he was getting less than Robbo etc.

 

[Ian Martin tragic]

Gallup characterised the scheme as having basically 2 sets of books: so that means institutionally organised: with accountants/financial executives for starters, operating under direction from their seniors....

To think the senior staff most responsible for input into player roster priorities didn't know their parameters for attracting and retaining staff were operating only with the 'official' set of book numbers in mind seems a bit fanciful to me also.

They would be talking to player managers of those priority players; and they talk to their talent.... and so on and so forth.

anyways, that is up to the investigators, lawyers, scapegoaters, and media to make alot of money and copy and mileage out of.

I think the storm are finished as an entity. the high value players will have to look elsewhere for their own financial futures. they're unfinancial even with all the success they have stolen. how about when they become mediocre for a few years? And the thing that is the final nail in the coffin for me is the prospective penalty for this year: if you can't do anything in the comp, then what is the point of being in it?

I think the storm players will take out their anger on the next 2/3 teams. But after that playing will seem more and more pointless: for some it will be about keeping trim and in mind for origin selection, and demonstrating their attractiveness on the player market. But there is no 'team' purpose anymore this year. Later in the season if I were one of their higher profile players I'd be hoping for a little injury I could turn into an excuse to have that bit of surgery I was putting off till the end of season to put myself in cotton wool for my new club....

(note: can we pick up blair please?)

 

[Chip and Chase]

Yep, next years player market will be very interesting. The Storm are apparently $700K over the cap this year which they will be required to bring back into line. That sort of coin represents a fair bit of player talent that might have to be freed up. I don't know how our situation is but clubs that have some room to move in their cap next year will be ready to pounce. Also will make it difficult for players from other clubs who are coming off contract this year because clubs will have in the back of their mind that they might keep some powder dry to make a move on some Storm players.

I'm not normally a conspiracy theorist but.......Wasn't one of the requirements of News Limited exiting the game that a guarantee had to be made that the Melbourne Storm would be propped up for the next 5 years by the new controlling body ? I think they run at about a $5mil loss each year so an easy way of saving yourself $30mil is to kill them off. I really think Melbourne will struggle to recover from this especially if the complicity stretches to Bellamy and the players in question. Could well be the death knell for the Scum, and not before time.