Saracens have said that they are considering their position after an alleged undeclared conflict of interest related to the disciplinary process surrounding the 2019 salary cap scandal.
The north London club were fined £5.36m and relegated to the Championship following a double points deduction having been found to have breached the Premiership’s salary cap in three seasons.
Reporting from The Telegraph has, though, now alleged that an accounting firm used by Premiership Rugby Limited (PRL) during the disciplinary process was the auditor of fellow club Sale Sharks at the same time as it gave “impartial expert advice” on the suggested breaches.
There is no suggestion of deliberate wrongdoing on the part of Saffery Champness, which is reported to have advised PRL on Maro Itoje’s image rights and the contract of Chris Ashton.
Sale are said to have received in excess of £350,000 as the club’s share of the fines paid by Saracens.
In a statement, Saracens said: “The allegation has been made that Saffery Champness had a conflict of interest in this matter due to providing ‘independent’ expert advice to PRL on seven out of the nine charges, at the same time as being a service provider to other parties, who benefited financially from the outcome of the panel’s determinations and that the conflicts in relation to the other parties were disclosed neither to the panel nor Saracens.
“The club will consider its position once those affected by this allegation have had an opportunity to respond.”
Saracens had won the Premiership in four of the previous five seasons before the scandal broke after the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
Saffery said in a statement: “We take matters of professional independence and conflicts of interest extremely seriously and operate under strict ethical and regulatory standards.
“There is no suggestion of deliberate wrongdoing in the advice provided. Nonetheless, we are reviewing the matters referenced in the reports and will cooperate fully with any appropriate enquiries.
“As this relates to confidential client matters, it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage.”
A Prem Rugby spokesperson said: “PREM Rugby is unable to comment on matters of a confidential nature.”
