Ladies and Gentlemen,
Get your votes in now for the EGM to be held on Tuesday, 19 November 2024.
A vote AGAINST it, is a vote against Spagnolo's Syndicate. To keep him and his cronies OUT.
We don't need a return to the Dark Ages of 2010-2016. The Days of Spagnolo and Sharp. Our Darkest Days.
We need to keep moving forward, not backwards.
The Leagues and footy clubs are in the best shape financially than they have been for a long time. And we have recovered from the Dark Ages under Spagnolo and Sharp.
We are entering a new era, a transitional time, over the next few years after two poor on-field NRL seasons ending the Arthur era.
A brand new coaching team led by Jason Ryles, a new playing roster with a move to speed, skill and mobility away from the Arthurian "chasing the collision". We will also have some changes in the footy board soon with a new chairman inter alia.
The club has spent millions fighting Spagnolo in the courts over a decade to keep him out of the club, along with hundreds of thousands on this EGM.
If this EGM succeeds and if Spagnolo and his cronies get into the Leagues' board, it won't touch the footy board. Not now, not ever.
No-one in the footy board or in above-board corporate circles trusts Spagnolo or his cronies. Nor ASIC. Nor the ILGA who found Spagnolo and some on his cronies on this EGM syndicate unfit to be directors.
But if eligible Parramatta members leave the door open to this mob and it succeeds it will lead to internal decay. Division, disunity, and distrust. A return to the stench of the Dark Ages' dysfunctional factionism that almost destroyed us.
Spagnolo plays up "factionalism" as people having a "crack" and reckons he did a "good job" at the helm (mid-2009- mid-2013). He even credits the 2009 grand final as his. But it's misleading. Bollocks, really. He took over mid 2009. So, it was set up by his predecessors in the Fitzergerald era.
Under Spagnolo in just three years: we won two-almost-three-straight wooden spoons. The worst on-field performance since 1961.
Under Spagnolo, in just three years, this is what happened. Daniel Anderson was sacked (after a half a million dollar payout). His coup de grace and epic masterstroke followed: Stephen Kearney. Then, the Ricky Stuart Show came like passed gas.
It was one well-intentioned disaster after another.
We need to keep the current wheels in motion, not derail it and drag it feet-first back into the stench of the darkest tunnel we just came out of.
A snapshot of Our Darkest Days in 2010-16: under Spagnolo and Sharp
No Finals footy
$50m in losses
Salary cap scandal
We almost lost our NRL licence
A revolving door of 25 directors
A revolving door of 5 CEOs
A revolving door of 4 head coaches
5 salary cap breaches
Over $1m in fines due to poor governance
Under Spagnolo, in just three years we had two almost three straight spoons (2011-13);
Under Spagnolo, in just three years, Daniel Anderson was sacked, Stuart came and went like passed gas, and then there was the Stephen Kearney masterstroke. One disaster after another.
Who are the people in Spagnolo's EGM Syndicate?
A yes vote is a vote to leave the door open to let these individuals into the club.
The All Star Cast. If it were a pizza, we could call it a Spicy Mafitalian. Point blank, I'm not sure sensible-minded people would want these colorful personalities running a $200m sporting organization.
Roy Spagnolo: former Eels head; found unfit to be a director by the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority, and has a ASIC file noting improper corporate conduct including his companies getting suspended. It took months before Spagnolo came clean on his involvement in this EGM.
Michael Barillaro is the syndicates' ambassor and "social media" face: a former pizza cafe owner and security guard according to his own Linkedin profile.
Mario Libertini: "who once served on Spagnolo’s Parramatta board and was also found unfit to be directors by ILGA". Apparantly according to his LinkEdin profile he is a Bankstown pizza owner.
Another pizza owner on this syndicate.
Leba Zibara: the "former Eels clothing supplier who the NRL found was connected to undisclosed player payments, as well as corrupt ex-NSW minister Joe Tripodi."
Tony Zappia: the former Sharks CEO was left reeling on JobKeeper payments after punching a woman in the face and a fraudulent invoice - reminiscent of the Sharp era in the Dark Ages.
Eddie Obeid jnr: "The son of the disgraced and jailed former Labor powerbroker from whom Eels players allegedly received off-the-books payments before the club was stripped of 12 competition points and fined $750,000 in 2016 for salary cap cheating," as as reported by the SMH.
Sources and media articles on Roy Spagnolo:
Kate McClymont and Jacquelin Magnay (4 July 4 2009), Italian connection comes under scrutiny, Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Link. Kate McClymont and Jacquelin Magnay trace a tangled web of failed property deals that all lead back to Eels chairman Roy Spagnolo, his dogdy property development failings, short changing of the ATO, colorful associates part of royal commission, Woodward royal commission as a money launderer for the Griffith Mafia.
Kate McClymont and Stuart Goodman, (24 July 2015), Who Is Roy Spagnolo?, Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Link.
Matthew Benns (27 December 2023), Look out Parramatta: Former Eels chairman Roy Spagnolo is standing for re-election to Parra Leagues Club board, Link.
Chris Barrett (15 September 2014), Eels scandal deepens with allegations of intimidation, The Leader, Link.
Chris Barrett (2 November 2013), Lies, deceit by Spagnolo at the Paramatta Eels, Stuff.
Replies
I know it's a time we'd all like to erase from our memories , but Stuart came after Kearney 😜. I know it's like asking if you'd like aids or cancer , but just sayin .. lol.
Exactly, Wiz. It's like recalling which deckchairs on the Titanic went under first.
When this thing kicked off we were told that there was big news to come from those involved. Just wait and see they promised. Since then it's been complete silence. The entire farce is an exercise in pure BS.
You misunderstood Wiz, you have to vote for these dodgy and damaging resolutions FIRST and then they'll tell you all the good news.
They'll also sell you the Golden Gate Bridge for $10 and have some waterfront property on the Moon going cheap.
As with any democratic vote (ie not one where Spags and his crew try to rig it with fake backdated members) - we get what we deserve.
Parramatta deserves MUCH better than this cast of proven failures. Here's hoping the voting membership have been smart enough to see through the puppetmaster and have voted AGAINST emphatically.
Huh ? ....
There's no two ways about it, voting for these resolutions is voting for proven and demonstrated failure.
Please be smart everyone and inform yourself before you vote.
15 minutes of reading the history of these characters and it becomes clear that a vote for their resolutions is a vote that will destroy Parra for another decade.
Evolution, not revolution. Please vote AGAINST.
I have no skin in the game other than being an Eels tragic and I can't deal with another decade down the drain with clowns like this in the drivers seats. We've suffered enough!
I have faith in the Eels collective. We're smarter than Spagnolo thinks. These resolutions will get defeated by smart members voting AGAINST.
All the evidence about Spagnolo has been laid out for us to see. No one could seriously view this chump as anything other than a guy who is in the 'Game' for his own benefit and is totally unfit to have any say in the running of our club. So, please dont vote for him and his gang and keep our club out of his clutches.
Any ideas on time frames to find out the results.
I was just about to ask the same
We should know tonight.
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