STRAIGHT-shooting Parramatta administrator Max Donnelly has outlined his blueprint for sweeping changes that will shut the door on ‘jobs for the boys’ and disgraced former directors ever sitting on the board again.
As the Eels look to move on from the worst year in their history that was ruined by the club’s salary cap scandal, the Ferrier Hodgson bankruptcy expert revealed:
*Plans to slash this year’s $10 million loss on football club spending to just $5 million next year, with the hope the Eels could run at a profit by 2018;
*Changes would not impact on Brad Arthur’s ability to restore Parramatta as an NRL premiership powerhouse, nor would it require any junior funding cutbacks;
*The club had reached a confidential settlement in its contract dispute with former star Will Hopoate; and
*His frustration over the Anthony Watmough insurance saga.
Donnelly, who worked through the North Sydney Bears’ demise in 1999, put into perspective the task of turning Parramatta into a rugby league force.
“Powerhouse is the word everyone uses. Everything I am putting up is just common sense,” Donnelly said.
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JOBS FOR THE BOYS
Three months ago Donnelly was handed a basket-case at Parramatta, but already he has come up with a plan to end three decades of boardroom pain and mismanagement.
Perhaps the most significant change in his proposal is the new criteria banning anyone who has been a director or company secretary at the club before July 19, 2016 from serving on the board.
“That will be a bit controversial,” Donnelly said.
“That is not a normal thing but I just thought I would cull out all the people that had caused some of the problems in the past.
“Now that might cut some good ones out but it eliminates a lot of people who have caused problems for Parramatta.
“I just thought I don’t want those groups trying to get back in again. It is a clean break.”
In the past every football club director also sat on the leagues club board. But Donnelly wants more independence, and only two leagues club appointed directors would be allowed to sit on the football club board.
Asked if it would finally put an end to ‘jobs for the boys’, he responded: “Exactly.”
Donnelly wants only himself and Ferrier Hodgson colleague Jim Sarantinos to be appointed from the leagues club board initially for one year, with the rest independent with three-year terms, subject to an annual review.
“It is all about an independent skills-based board,” he said.
“Not a place for people who are ex-council members or plumbers, not that I have a thing about plumbers, or ex-footballers.
“There might be a place for one person on a board but you don’t need seven people like that. And you get a board with maybe a chartered accountant, a lawyer, someone who understands something about marketing and sponsorship.”
Donnelly is also seeking feedback from the members, who have until November 4 to come forward with suggestions.
“I don’t think the members have ever been consulted before but I am going to consult them,” he said.
“In an ideal world those board members will be in place before the premiership season starts.”
$10M BUDGET BLOWOUT
When he was handed the job, it was put to the man who chased down Christopher Skase and crime boss Robert Trimbole that cleaning up Parramatta would be his toughest challenge.
“Norths was a lot worse because Norths got kicked out of the comp,” he said.
“I didn’t have a license and they were broke.
“Here I have a license and you have a strong leagues club behind it.”
Donnelly admitted Parramatta’s football club ran at a loss of between $10 and $11 million last year.
His expectation was for 2017? “Half that.
“Which may still not be acceptable but I am not going to cut football spending.
“I am not going to cut the money the juniors get. I am not cutting anything to do with football.
“A few staff needed to be terminated and a few expenses needed to be controlled.
“It is just overheads, lawyers and Christ knows what else.”
Asked when the Eels would be profitable, he said: “I’d like to think with the 2018 and the broadcasting rights income, I’d like to see the loss reduced again to $1 or $2 million and in the ideal world it should be break-even.”
Donnelly said the Eels also needed to attract a new sponsor with Dyldam deal ending this month.
“We are happy to talk to anyone who is interested in the major sponsorship,” he said.
WATMOUGH AND HOPOATE
Watmough and Parramatta are heading for a $1.2 million legal showdown over the star forward’s career ending injury payout after he played just one season of a four-year deal.
“It was before my time,” said Donnelly, who has been left to fix the mess.
“Look, as a non-Eels bloke at the time I thought it was a bit odd.
“I thought it was a bit long for a player at the end of his career.
“If you were signing Cameron Smith now would you want him for four years?
“I don’t know who you would sign for four years who was 32 or 33.”
While it could ultimately cause more salary cap pain for Parramatta, Donnelly is not happy at the way the career ending insurance scheme is structured.
“I am just acting on legal advice now,” he said.
“The club made what we thought was a very fair offer.
“I won’t go into what it was but it did include paying some money more than what we probably legally had to pay.
“But it wasn’t accepted.
“Look, Parramatta was in an awkward spot.
“He signed his contract, subsequently to the signing of the contract the Collective Bargaining Agreement was done and there is meant to be insurance to cover players.
“The player has the insurance, we don’t have the insurance.
“We pay the bill but the player has it.
“So I don’t know what the managers do.
“The insurance is knocked back and everybody goes, ‘Well, that is Parramatta’s problem’.
“Well it is not my policy.”
Hopoate was also seeking $1.8 million in damages but Donnelly said that had been finalised recently.
“I settled it a couple of weeks ago. It is all done and dusted,” he said.
“I can’t tell you (what it was worth), it was confidential.”
Replies
How good is this?!!
Hopoate all done and dusted, no more jobs ever again for "plumbers" or "jobs for the boys".
Haha, he doesn't mince his words!
I like this bit...
“It's just overheads, lawyers and Christ knows what else.”
The Watmough issue seems to be ongoing though. That is a real problem, which could cost us salary cap space next year. As Max points out, the insurance structure leaves the club at a disadvantage in that they are left to foot the bill, even though they have no say in the insurance of the player. This could be a hornet's nest for NRL clubs.
Surely the NRL should step in here and lay some foundations for how these issues should be dealt with. If they are serious about letting Parramatta move on from this year's debacle, the NRL need to let us pay out Watmough outside the salary cap in this instance and ensure that deals like this won't be approved in future. In the end the NRL agreed to this contract, so they are partly to blame.
I don't know this guys background at all but is there any reason he couldn't stay on? He seems like he is crystal clear in his views and someone that as an employee you know where you stand, much like BA.
I have to say having Mighty Max and the Burns Department in control is very exciting for our club.
Actually Max stated that if he did his job properly, we would do himself out of a job. That sounds like he won't go anywhere until the system can take care of itself. It would great to see him stay on as an independent director but I doubt he would have the time to commit to this.
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