Saracens chief executive Griffiths issues denial following UK newspaper allegations

New Saracens chief executive Ed Griffiths has denied working as a cricket agent, following claims he has been reported to the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Griffiths has rejected any wrongdoing after reports in a UK national newspaper that the ECB is investigating a possible conflict of interest over his consultancy role with Middlesex.

The former South Africa Rugby Union adviser has rejoined Saracens to help steer the Gallagher Premiership club through the salary cap scandal that resulted in the London side accepting the punishment of relegation at the end of this season.

“I am not an agent, I have never acted as an agent and I have never received a commission to work as an agent,” Griffiths told the PA news agency.

“I have worked as a consultant acting for Middlesex for the last three years, helping players there with areas beyond cricket, and that’s involved doing lots of things that would perhaps in other circumstances be thought of as things an agent would do. But I have only ever been acting on behalf of and for Middlesex.”

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Eddie Jones insists the Saracens scandal could be beneficial to England

Griffiths played a key role in South Africa hosting the 1995 Rugby World Cup before his first stint as Saracens chief executive between 2008 and 2015.

He has returned to Saracens to help the English club deal with the fallout from the salary cap breaches that will lead to relegation at the end of the current campaign.

An independent panel’s 103-page judgement into Saracens’ salary cap breaches has this week condemned the club’s “egregious” conduct.

It's an exhaustive read… here are some of the takeaways https://t.co/fHkuYZTI4A

— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 24, 2020

Saracens were found guilty of “reckless” failure to comply with the £7million salary cap, in the initial investigation that led to a £5.36million fine and a 35-point deduction.

Saracens have since been handed automatic relegation over failure to meet salary cap regulations for the current campaign.

Griffiths insisted there has been no conflict of interest in his dealings with Middlesex, adding: “I have never received a commission or a payment from a player at all. I have contacted the ECB and spoken to the head of integrity about this.” Both the ECB and Middlesex declined to comment when contacted by the PA news agency.

The ex-England and Harlequins No8 has an idea for Saracens when they drop down a division https://t.co/Kxt3uPuIFD

— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 24, 2020

Meanwhile, Premiership Rugby’s handling of the Saracens salary cap scandal could be the subject of a parliamentary inquiry.

Conservative MP Damian Collins, who is standing for re-election as chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee, has criticised Premiership bosses for allowing the crisis to unfold and says it is “right to challenge” how they handled it.

“The situation at Saracens has clearly been a problem for a long time,” he said. “Things should never have been allowed to develop in the way they did and it’s right for people to challenge the Premiership as to why it didn’t take more effective action sooner.

“It has, though, now given Saracens the heaviest punishment it could, which gives a clear warning to others.”

– Press Association 

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