Adelaide Crows building their case

Crows players, from left, Patrick Dangerfield, Kurt Tippett and Nathan van Berlo were involved in a third-party deal with former board member Alan Sheppard. Picture: Sarah Reed. Source: adelaidenow

A THIRD-party deal between players Kurt Tippett, Patrick Dangerfield and Nathan van Berlo and a former Crows board member, Adelaide builder Alan Sheppard, was adjusted to fit within AFL guidelines.

The Sunday Mail can reveal an initial deal was to have the players work for Alan Sheppard Constructions but the parties involved soon realised it would not fit the criteria for third-party deals. One of those criteria is that it needs to be a bona fide, commercial transaction.

Short of calling the players duds as builders, the parties were advised to find another way for Sheppard to use the Crows' players outside of the salary cap.

Initially, an arrangement was drawn up with the three players to have a work placement at the firm - even though they were not qualified or undertaking an apprenticeship, a club source revealed.

But once it was realised the estimated $20,000 per year they were paid didn't match their building expertise it was redrawn.

Instead, Alan Sheppard Constructions signed the trio on in promotional roles - believed to be on the advice of league administrators - and the independent agreement was signed off by the AFL.

In line with the AFL Player Rules, clubs cannot play any organising role in third-party deals, but are allowed to know about them, which can turn each deal into a potential minefield.

In the complex world of football agreements, the Sheppard case is one of the examples the Crows would use in their defence when all of their third-party agreements are scrutinised by the AFL investigations unit, the club source said.

The altered Sheppard deal is likely to be used as an argument by the Crows and their sponsors that they wanted all of their affairs to be above board and open to scrutiny. Meanwhile, in other developments:

THE much-talked about arrangement of Tippett being allowed to move to the club of his choice for a second-round draft pick will be disputed by the Crows. The Sunday Mail understands the actual wording of the clause was that Tippett would be traded for a "minimum second round draft pick"; the clause seeks to set a minimum value rather than a maximum value

SA FOOTBALL Commission chairman and SANFL president John Olsen has thrown his support behind the Crows' defence of their dealings under chairman Rob Chapman.

ADELAIDE, which starts its pre-season this week, will argue it turned down a proposed trade of Tippett with Sydney for pick No. 23 and player Jesse White because the club had always sought to find a "fair and reasonable trade" for Tippett and didn't see that condition met by the deal on the table.

THE CROWS are adamant the club remained under the salary cap at all times this season, and that all third-party deals were signed off by the AFL.

What is in dispute is how those third-party arrangements were first organised and whether the club played any part in overseeing them.

Under AFL Player Rules, the club can do neither.

jesper.fjeldstad@news.com.au

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