No payout for Hasler, says Dib

CANTERBURY c hairman Ray Dib says the Bulldogs won’t offer Des Hasler a payout after they sacked the veteran NRL coach.

In a move that is sure to infuriate Hasler and his management, Dib told Bulldogs members in a video yesterday that the club owed “no liabilities” to the sacked coach over his contract.

There is already a suggestion the two parties could be headed to the courts over the dispute, after the club announced Hasler had signed a two-year contract extension to keep him there until the end of 2019 as recently as April.

But Dib claimed that deal was only a “heads of agreement” and it was “non-binding”, allowing the board to opt against keeping him on.

“Des’s current contract expires in October 2017, the board has decided not to renew that contract and going forward there will be no liabilities on the club for the next two years,” Dib said. “The board has made the decision with the best interests of the club with these changes.”

Dib’s claims come after club great Graeme Hughes savaged his former team, questioning how the administration could be trusted in the future.

Ahead of a February board election where Dib is expected to face a rival ticket led by former player Paul Dunn, Hughes said there had to be change at the top.

“I’m trying to work out how the chairman can announce the signing of someone publicly on a non-binding agreement,” Hughes told Fox Sports News.