Saracens have confirmed they will not be appealing against the £5.4million fine and 35-point penalty imposed for breaching the Premiership Rugby salary cap.
The back-to-back Premiership winners and reigning European champions had initially announced their intention to contest what they deemed to be ‘heavy-handed’ punishments, with club chairman Nigel Wray describing the sanctions as ‘absolutely devastating’.
But Saracens have now taken the decision to accept the verdict, which was made by an independent disciplinary panel.
The points penalty comes into immediate effect and drops Saracens from third to the bottom of the Premiership table.
They now sit on -22 points, 26 adrift of Leicester, and in a huge fight to prevent relegation with 18 games to play.
“We have made mistakes and so, with humility, we must accept these penalties,” said Saracens chief Wray.
“As a club, we will now pull together and meet the challenges that lie ahead.
“We confirm our commitment to the salary cap, and the underlying principle of a level playing field, and will continue to work transparently with Premiership Rugby in this regard.”
The breaches relate to the seasons 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19, and charges were brought against the club following a nine-month investigation by Premiership Rugby.
The charges were referred to an independent panel, chaired by Lord Dyson, who found that Saracens had both failed to disclose payments to players and exceeded the ceiling for payments to senior players in each of the three seasons.
Darren Childs, Chief Executive of Premiership Rugby, said: “We welcome Saracens’ decision to accept the verdict of the independent panel and are pleased the club has crucially reaffirmed its commitment to the Premiership Rugby salary cap.
“This is the right outcome for English club rugby. Bringing this process to a conclusion means that we can focus on working in partnership with all clubs to continue to build a competitive and successful league.”
