Beating Ossie to the punch: New Zealand representative has family reunion counted towards club salary cap
Matthew Pope
compassion-for-fuifui-moimoi/story-e6frexnr-1225799017339
Fuifui Moimoi family reunion charged to Parramatta Eels' salary cap
By Josh Massoud
From: The Daily Telegraph
November 18, 2009
IT BEGAN with a random phone call. In late August, little Sani Moimoi
grabbed his mum's mobile, flicked through her contact list and dialled
Eels chairman Roy Spagnolo.
The nine-year-old waited patiently for the dial tone to connect him from
Auckland to Sydney. When Spagnolo answered, Sani only wanted to discuss
one topic.
His dad, Fuifui.
In the previous five months, Sani had only seen his old man on
television from across the Tasman.
Knowing the family intimately from his time as Moimoi's manager,
Spagnolo could sense the boy's need.
The rugby league world was falling in love with the big prop's
dreadlocks and devastating charges, and young Sani deserved to be part
of something so patently special that was about to unfold.
Soon after hanging up, Spagnolo spoke to Sani's mother, Vai, and mutual
friends in Australia.
They knew straight away what needed to be done.
Within a week Sani was headed to Mascot as an unaccompanied minor on
board QF142. He was collected at the gate, whisked to Parramatta and
fastidiously hidden from Moimoi until the agreed time.
All this happened on August 28, the day of Parramatta's must-win western
derby against Penrith.
A win would shoot the Eels to a miraculous top-eight berth, but was also
vital to the success of Sani's clandestine journey to Sydney.
Spagnolo wanted Moimoi to know nothing about Sani's presence at
Parramatta Stadium until the full-time siren. He wanted it this way to
make their reunion as emotional as possible.
This was not an incentive for Moimoi to lift another gear in the finals
- as he eventually did. Nor was it an incentive for him to spurn rich
offers from the UK Super League. It was a simple idea - conceived
spontaneously - that ensured Sani Moimoi would share his dad's proudest
hour.
And the photos of Moimoi's animated, teary face upon embracing Sani
after Parramatta's 48-6 romp were priceless.
Priceless to everyone except NRL salary cap auditor Ian Schubert.
Last week, Schubert put a price on a gesture that everyone else thought
had salvaged the spirit of club loyalty and kinship that had mostly
evaporated when the game evolved into a business a decade ago.
Schubert's price was $1500 - every cent of which the auditor told
Parramatta to include as part of their 2009 salary cap.
According to Schubert, Sani's trip amounted to a benefit for Moimoi.
After stripping all the good intentions and human kindness that
motivated it, Schubert tapped his big stick against the cold reality of
dollars and cents that has consigned one-club players to virtual
extinction.
When viewed through a calculator screen or the bars of an abacus, it was
a scheme that might give Parramatta beneficial bargaining power when
Moimoi becomes a free agent next year.
He judged that benefit at $1500.
The cost of Sani Moimoi's airline ticket - including taxes - was
$134.15.
Ignoring the mystery of how Schubert arrived at a value more than 1000
per cent in excess of the actual price, consider the corrosive effect
this new human marketplace has on the players.
Schubert might have negated any perceived advantage Parramatta gained,
but what resentment does this cold-bloodedness leave behind for Moimoi?
Can he help but think about the NRL's attitude when those big English
offers start rolling in next year?
Although upset, Parramatta found room to include Schubert's $1500 in
last season's cap. Some cynical officials are now wondering why he
didn't demand that Moimoi's $35 chocolate birthday cake from Abla
Pastries be included as well.
Ditto at the Bulldogs, who presented Brett Kimmorley with a 33rd
birthday cake that made the veteran half gush about his feelings toward
the family club.
Schubert was unavailable for comment last night but an NRL spokesman
said: "There are established rules that cover the provision of travel.
"The provision of airfares is a financial benefit [and] aside from the
emotion of any individual circumstance, it has to be looked at in terms
of the rules that apply to everyone.''
viper
"Matthew Pope" <matt&samatNOSPAMiinet.netdotau> wrote in message
news:Xns9CC7B5D269DD3ma...@216.196.97.142...
And exactly what accounting/commercial/business qualifications does Ian
Schubert
have ? He'd be the joke employee of the NRL, but for the fact that Mario
Fenech
is also on the payroll.
Did you expect anthing better from 'Meathead Corp' ?
Viper
Qu0ll
news:Xns9CC7B5D269DD3ma...@216.196.97.142...
Speechless!
--
And loving it,
-Qu0ll (Rare, not extinct)
_________________________________________________
Qu0llS...@gmail.com
[Replace the "SixFour" with numbers to email me]
Matthew Pope
news:WIWdnSQn3o6ST5nW...@westnet.com.au:
Bunch of c$#@s eh wot?
alvey
snip.
Something smells here.
I'm assuming that Moimoi is on pretty good money. So why didn't he pay for
an ocassional visit from the sprog himself?
alvey
Here's Johnny
professional. If there are rules, they must be enforced. Schubert was damned
if he did, damned if he didn't. Crying fathers and heart-string-tugging
stories of little kiddies who haven't seen their dads for five months make
it pretty hard to Schubert to do his job. Alvey rightly points out that
something stinks in that little factoid alone. NOTHING could stop me seeing
my kiddy for five months, particularly if I was on the sort of money Fuifui
makes.
Anyway, if travel is something that can be used to rort the cap, Schubert
has to act. Ask the Bulldogs how trustworthy clubs are in relation to salary
cap rorting. How much leeway should the clubs get, armchair "experts"? And
if it was your job to keep them honest, why on earth would you go soft?
What's the logical result of turning a blind eye the first time? Next thing
you know, some player's entire family is being flown somewhere. That might
still be okay, but the next time after that, a player and his family are
going to Fiji for a week. All of a sudden, we have a problem, right?
Maybe, just possibly, people who do things for a living that you don't like,
have reasons for doing so that outweigh the brainless emotional manipulation
of some hack journo.
Finally, as if the inclusion of the $1500 makes any frigging difference. It
doesn't *cost* the club anything. They're simply required to report it and
include it in their salary cap.
Storm in a fuckin' teacup, for mine.