The internal investigation was launched on Tuesday as theHerald andThe Age revealed a member of the NRL executive team had been seen allegedly recording conversations at last Friday’s annual Leaders in League conference,.
Latrell Mitchell and Jack Wighton spoke in New Zealand after their arrest in Canberra.
The matter was raised in an email from Rugby League Players Association chief Deidre Anderson to Australian Rugby League chairman Peter V’landys and his board,accusing an NRL executive of “covertly recording the session”. TheHerald andThe Agehave chosen not to name the executive for legal reasons.
Sources with knowledge of the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity to protect the integrity of the investigation told theHerald andThe Age that Abdo had been unaware of the alleged recording until after he had finished a question-and-answer session with the players.
The sources said the person who allegedly made the recording was acting on the instruction of another NRL executive. The sources added that the second executive had requested audio be taken only of Abdo’s speech.
In her email,which has been seen by theHerald andThe Age,Anderson detailed how the RLPA had been surprised when an uninvited NRL employee had arrived at the conference without warning.
“Upon arrival,Andrew[Abdo] was accompanied by[an NRL employee] … this was disappointing given[the employee] was not invited,nor had Andrew given any forewarning that[the employee] would be attending,” Anderson said in the email.
“Nevertheless,RLPA management (with the consent of player leaders),allowed (the employee) to sit in on Andrew’s discussion out of respect for[their] role ... To ensure an open and honest environment for Andrew and the players,no filming or recording of this session was permitted and no media representatives were present.
“What then followed is nothing short of illegal which,on its face,seriously calls into question the integrity of the NRL,its executive and its culture. I am instructed that a player (who I will not name),raised concerns with RLPA staff that (the employee) was covertly recording the session on[their] phone. The player raised the concern based on their understanding that attendees were not permitted to record these discussions.
“An RLPA staff member queried with (the official) as to whether[they were] recording,which (the official) denied (twice). Upon further inquiry by the staff member,[they] lifted[their] phone (which was face down) and realised that the screen clearly showed that a recording was taking place.[They] then asked to speak to the staff member outside,and the two left the room in full view of all players in attendance.
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo fronted the players on Friday.SMH
“Once outside,(the official) admitted to recording the conversation and acknowledged it was inappropriate for[them] to be doing so. Further,(the employee) stated that[they] had been acting under the instruction of another NRL executive. After the session,[RPLA CEO] Clint[Newton] addressed the matter separately with (the official) and Andrew,and advised that the playing group and the RLPA are aware of the incident due to the public nature of what unfolded,and that the RLPA will need to appropriately consider our options with next steps given the seriousness of the matter.
“Now I don’t feel I need to state how concerning these actions were. The deliberate and covert nature of the recording is breathtaking. It is immoral,unethical and illegal. There was no consent granted to record. In fact,no attempt to seek consent occurred.”
RLPA boss Clint Newton has told some of his representatives he was disappointed the letter had become public and was concerned for the implications on negotiations.
V’landys told theHerald andThe Age he would investigate the matter.
“We’ve received a private and confidential letter,so I don’t wish to comment on the letter,” V’landys said. “But I have given commitments to the chairman of the RLPA and one of the player representatives,and I will follow through on that commitment. I will 100 per cent delivering on my commitment to them.”
TheHerald andThe Age has spoken with players who were at the conference who have confirmed the events. One player,who did not wish to be named,said:“This is really disappointing,coming at a time when we were hoping to build trust with the NRL.”
Anderson,in her email,said last week’s meeting had been productive but added:“It is unfortunate though that we are still not aligned on the important role of the RLPA in representing the players. To that end we must agree to disagree on several of the issues that you have raised.
“I cannot stress enough our concern for how far our sport is lagging the other codes,especially in terms of player rights,and if we do not close this gap it will only widen over the next five years.”
Abdo and Newton declined to comment when contacted by theHerald andThe Agelast night.
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