NRL chief executive Dave Smith says there are no plans to move Cronulla to Queensland but said the code’s governing body are carefully monitoring the financial viability of the club.
League powerbrokers have reportedly discussed the option of relocating the Sharks north of the Tweed should the cash-strapped club be hit with a multi-million dollar fine arising from the ASADA probe into their 2011 supplements program.
“The clear fact is we have no plans to relocate any team,” Smith told Fox Sports NRL 360 show on Wednesday.
“The story stems from speculation to the outcome of the ASADA investigation.
“I have been very clear about the ASADA investigation and I am not going to speculate about that outcome and don’t know where it will land.”
The Sharks are one of the poor relations of the NRL and Smith said the ARL Commission are fully aware of each club’s financial health and discussions have taken place about the governance of all 16 clubs.
“We are all over the numbers now as a commission. We have benchmarked the clubs where their relative positions are,” he said.
“There are continued discussions about good governance in clubs and sustainability.
“One of my ambitions is that we make sure that we have 16 sustainable clubs in the competition for the next 20 years.
“There are often discussions about the clubs and the different footprints we operate and things that come up from time to time.”
Smith also said he was happy with the report commissioned by the NRL integrity unit regarding the conduct of Canterbury following the standing down of Ben Barba earlier this year.
The NRL’s recently-appointed head of football Todd Greenberg and the Canterbury Bulldogs have been cleared of any wrongdoing in relation to allegations of domestic violence against Ben Barba earlier this year.
Greenberg and the club he served as chief executive, before being head-hunted by Smith, were under the spotlight after a newspaper published pictures of Barba’s ex-partner Ainslie Currie with a cut to her face – prompting claims of a cover up by the club for failing to inform the NRL about the incident.
However, Tony Bannon SC, who produced the independent report said there was no case to answer and Smith said it was time to move on for the sake of Barba and his young family.
“The facts of the matter are that there was proper disclosure,” Smith said.
“Todd continues with the job he’s got. I trust him and I couldn’t work with someone unless I could trust them.
“I am very comfortable with Tony Bannan … he’s very well regarded and went through a very thorough process.
“For me it’s time to move on and give the family the grace and the privacy they deserve.”