Wests Tigers could be forced to find a new major sponsor if the independent review of the club leads to the removal of chairman Lee Hagipantelis from the board.
The review was commissioned by the Holman Barnes Group, the controlling faction on the Tigers board, in response to a petition from about 2000 disgruntled supporters. The review is ongoing and there is no set date for the findings to be announced or implemented, but an update was given to the Holman Barnes Group at a scheduled board meeting on Tuesday night.
This masthead revealed that one of the likely recommendations is for the directors who commissioned the report to step back. Any requirement to refresh the board may also claim Hagipantelis, one of three independent directors.
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Hagipantelis or any other director.
As well as being the Tigers chairman, Hagipantelis is also the club’s major sponsor via his legal firm Brydens Lawyers. Brydens pays about $1 million a season to feature on the front of the Tigers jersey and the contract ends after the 2024 season.
Sources speaking on the condition of anonymity, given the report is not yet released, said there were concerns Brydens will not renew the deal if Hagipantelis is no longer the chairman or a director. The club would then have to go to market for a seven-figure backer after earning consecutive wooden spoons.
Tigers chairman Lee Hagipantelis.Credit: Getty
Hagipantelis declined to comment when contacted by this masthead.
The Tigers have made a play for the two biggest names on the open market, Jarome Luai and Addin Fonua-Blake.
The Tigers have tabled a four-year, $4.5 million contract for Luai, as well as offering him the chance to be the club’s chief playmaker. Canterbury are also a potential suitor, after News Corp reported that general manager of football, Phil Gould, met with the NSW playmaker on Wednesday.
Gould has made no secret of his desire to lure Fonua-Blake and was photographed in a meeting with the Warriors prop and his manager last week.
Jarome Luai is in demand.Credit: Rhett Wyman
The Tigers believe they have the salary cap space to accommodate Luai and Fonua-Blake without having to shift players, although contracted prop David Klemmer has been given permission to explore his options should a rival be interested.
Dragons coach Shane Flanagan has expressed interest in “AFB”, a pursuit backed by Red V front-rower Blake Lawrie.
“[After] the year that he’s had at the Warriors, he is a guaranteed top-three prop in the comp, if not number one,” Lawrie said last week.
“I don’t really want to comment too much because that’s Flanno’s [coach Shane Flanagan’s role] with recruitment, but to play alongside him it would make everyone’s job a lot easier because of the presence that he has and the sort of player he is.
“He’s a world-class player and he demands respect.”
There have also been attempts to broker a player swap between Tigers forward Shaun Blore and Melbourne centre Justin Olam, but the parties have been unable to come to terms.
