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The WA Football Commission has found West Perth in breach of its playing licence and has threatened significant financial penalties unless it removes a Channel 9 logo from its jumper for any matches broadcast during the finals.

WAFC chairman Murray McHenry said yesterday the club would not be banned from playing in any finals but wearing the logo would conflict with the broadcast agreement with rights holder Channel 7.

Mr McHenry said possible penalties included seeking damages for the commission, its broadcast sponsors and other WAFL clubs.

“The football commission has been very patient with West Perth having worked to resolve this for the past eight months,” he said.

“We have formed the view that WPFC is in breach of its licence agreement.

“It is now up to West Perth to rectify the matter and comply with that licence agreement.”

The Weekend West can reveal a timeline of events going back to February last year that shows West Perth and Channel 9 knew a sponsorship deal would be in conflict because Channel 7 would be the broadcast partner.

WAFC chief executive Gary Walton said West Perth was warned “well in advance” of the club signing a three-year $300,000 contract with Channel 9 that the deal would cause a conflict.

Mr Walton said that warning came on February 28 last year.

In the following days, West Perth provided a proposal, dated March 4, for the contract with Channel 9, which the station had not signed.

He asked the Falcons to include an opt-out clause for the 2015 and 2016 seasons while final details with Channel 7 were being confirmed.

Last month, when Mr Walton asked for another copy of the contract, he received it with the date removed and adjustments made to the initial document.

On March 14, all nine clubs and Channel 9 were formally advised that Channel 7 would be the broadcast partner from 2015.

On March 26, West Perth advised the WAFC an agreement with Channel 9 had been signed despite the warnings.

It was the only club not to attend a briefing on the timeline of events at the WAFC offices last month.

After hearing the details, the other eight clubs indicated they would support any action the WAFC took.

“We think this is a pity for all of the WAFL,” Mr Walton said yesterday.

“All WAFL clubs are urging West Perth to make the right call.”

Under clause 11 of the licensing agreement, clubs are not permitted to enter into any sponsorship deal that conflicts or “may potentially conflict” with major sponsors of the WAFC.

It also states sponsorships and apparel advertising must be agreed to by the WAFC, which has never ratified West Perth’s jumper logo.

It is understood Channel 9 rejected a compromise to change the logo to streaming service Stan, as well as a $50,000 buy-out package from McDonalds for all West Perth broadcast matches during the finals and next year.

West Perth yesterday responded to a 2pm deadline set by the WAFC by saying it was not “lawfully possible” to come to a final position by that time.

“The WPFC’s board and executive are doing everything within their power to conclude a lawful, commercial and timely resolution,” president Brett Raponi wrote.

Mr Raponi later toldThe Weekend West the club did not know about a deal between the WAFC and Channel 7 when it signed with Channel 9.

The club had lost $180,000 in 2013, making the new sponsorship deal an attractive offer.

Channel 7, part of Seven West Media which publishesThe Weekend West , has maintained it will not broadcast West Perth games unless the Channel 9 logo is removed.

West Perth finished second on the ladder.

The team will play Peel in a qualifying final tomorrow.

The West Australian

Removing the date from the origional contract is such a massive admission of guilt.

U r right outer the garlic scum are pathetic pieces of shit & deserve more than just financial sanctions....for the litany of lies the have told they should be expelled immediately from the competition...

I would go as far as banning the from this weekends final game & awarding peel the win...

We now know that anyone associated with them is pure pond scum

Being that the West is basically Ch7 now I wouldn't 100% believe what you are reading. May in fact just be propaganda designed to mislead. Lets wait for WP response.

Some one is telling porkies though......I guess it will all come out in the wash....but no one will admit guilt probably just a mere misunderstanding or an unfortunate oversight from one party. Wish some one would put their hand up and open say we simply farked up........

On the surface it looks like the tendering process was an absolute farce in the beginning

The whole shambolic process up to now is just a litany of fuck ups & conflicts of interest to the core

Well past time for this ridiculous WAFC to be pissed off

Brett Raponi ‏@Brett_Raponi 45m45 minutes ago
@WestPerthFC has not breached its licence. We completely refute that upon legal advice

Whilst they have the legal team on it, maybe check some comments in this post, make a bit of cash on the side

South4eva wrote: U r right outer the garlic scum are pathetic pieces of shit & deserve more than just financial sanctions....for the litany of lies the have told they should be expelled immediately from the competition...

I would go as far as banning the from this weekends final game & awarding peel the win...

We now know that anyone associated with them is pure pond scum

Dicks like you 4Eva are great candidates to work at the commission ! Clearly you are a dumb shit and believe what you read. Do you reckon we would have gone this distance if our timelines were questionable ???

kirbs wrote: Brett Raponi ‏@Brett_Raponi 45m45 minutes ago
@WestPerthFC has not breached its licence. We completely refute that upon legal advice

Whilst they have the legal team on it, maybe check some comments in this post, make a bit of cash on the side

And that is what, a response that is expected from the club and its president,

Let's start with the most glaring example of the incompetence of the WAFC. If one accepts the veracity of the report in today's West, and on balance that is a very dubious assumption, if the WAFC had not agreed or ratified the West Perth jumper how can you take until now to do something about it?

On that alone G Walton et al should be sacked.

Let us not forget this is the same person who did not want his views to be known to participants of this forum. I personally am thoroughly sick and tired on the direction that the current WAFC is taking the WAFL competition. By any metric we are going backwards rapidly under the current administration. Just have a look at the farce that the finals have become. We have the WAFC at odds with the WAFL clubs and we have one particpant in the finals tomorrow who will be fielding, in essence, a reserves' team against West Perth.

WHAT A JOKE.