Manly claim they have strong grounds for appeal against the NRL after they were hit with two years of salary cap deductions and heavy fines for widespread breaches.

NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg announced on Monday the club had been found to offer a combined $1.5 million in payments outside of the cap to players during the past five years – claims the Sea Eagles have long denied.

“At this stage, our club believes that there are strong grounds to appeal, based on the material presented today. The club is awaiting preliminary legal advice and will respond in more detail once that advice has been received,” Manly said in a statement.