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| - Saracens were "reckless" in their approach to salary cap rules and are now paying the price for their approach, according to a damning independent report into the English Premiership champions. Premiership Rugby Limited (PRL) published Thursday the report that led to the double winners being fined £5.36 million ($7.02 million) and docked 35 league points for breaking the salary cap for the past three completed seasons. The report does not cover the current campaign, at the end of which Saracens are to be automatically relegated for once again exceeding the £7 million limit. Under salary cap regulations, the decision of the panel, chaired by Lord Dyson, had previously remained confidential. The English and European champions have now been in breach of salary cap regulations for five of the past seven seasons. In a summary of its decision, the panel said Saracens "continuously and recklessly failed to comply with its obligations to cooperate with the SCM (salary cap manager). "This failure was all the more serious because in 2015 Saracens settled an earlier charge by PRL of failing to cooperate with the SCM." Also, the breaches for 2016-17 and 2018-19 were "several and not isolated and involved Saracens massively exceeding the cap for these two years". The three-man panel rejected the argument of former Saracens chairman Nigel Wray, who bankrolls the club, that investment is not salary. The report details how Wray entered into property investments with a number of players, which he said totalled four, whose names have been omitted. It says "we are satisfied that these capital contributions were salary". Wray has released a long statement in response to the report, saying: "I am really sorry for the heartache that I have caused you due to my ill-considered approach to matters relating to salary cap compliance." He said his intention with the property deals was to "support players beyond their playing careers" and that the "reckless" accusation was on his shoulders. The panel found that Saracens acted, at best, carelessly, in attempting to break the salary cap, adding that their conduct was shocking. "We do not accept that Saracens' breaches can all be characterised as merely negligent," the report said. "Its failure to cooperate with (SCM) Andrew Rogers and seek clarification was egregious, particularly in light of the events leading up to the 2015 settlement. It took risks and is now paying the price for doing so." Rogers received information supplied by Saracens' Premiership rivals including Harlequins during his investigation and his verdict on the club's conduct is damning. "I disagree with the suggestion the club has been open and transparent," Rogers said. "In a number of ways... Saracens over the years has been reckless in its approach to the salary cap and the related rules and has frequently crossed the line into breach. "At best the club appears to accept the risk of breaching it. This has been compounded by a reluctance to cooperate and failure to communicate information." jw/smg/td
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