New Zealand Warriors - 2006

The Warriors started the 2006 NRL season way behind the eight-ball thanks to dodgy salary cap dealings.

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Taking the reins of an NRL team that had scratched together just 16 wins in the previous two seasons, bid farewell to several club greats and recruited only modestly would be a daunting prospect for any 34-year-old rookie coach.

But the enormity of Ivan Cleary’s task was exarcebated by a pre-season setback that blindsided the Warriors like a late shoulder-charge.

The club was found guilty of breaching the NRL’s salary cap by almost $1 million in 2004 and ’05. The Daily Telegraph reported the Warriors’ transgressions included: ‘Funnelling payments to players through club owner Cullen Investments; offering stars highly paid employment after retirement; paying for player agents to fly to and from New Zealand whenever they wanted to; helping players secure commercial arrangements and only partially declaring them to the NRL.’