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By Iain Payten and Jim Tucker
June 29, 2009 THE Australian Rugby Union has defended the cloak of secrecy thrown over a disciplinary investigation last week that turned out to be an inquiry into a food fight among Wallaby players.
And, unperturbed by criticism it should have been more transparent, the ARU admitted it was conducting inquiries into a second code-of-conduct breach but would again not supply any detail.
The revelation that three Wallabies players - James O'Connor, Quade Cooper and Josh Valentine - have been fined by the ARU for food fight in a hotel room finally put to rest speculation about the mystery investigation.
The ARU confirmed last week it was dealing with a breach of ARU protocols but would not reveal any details, prompting widespread debate and speculation about who the culprits were and talk about possible alcohol or sex scandals.
The real crime bordered on trivial, with the Wallabies trio making a mess of a hotel room in Canberra three weeks ago while there to play Italy.
The room required additional cleaning at a cost but a spokesman for the hotel described the incident as "minor".
"We are happy with the response of the ARU and Wallabies," a Crowne Plaza spokesman said.
The ARU would not reveal how much O'Connor, Cooper and Valentine were fined but it is believed to be several thousand dollars each, along with separate penalties imposed by the Wallaby squad.
Valentine said the incident was "pretty small" but declined to detail the food involved.
"We've copped a fine in-house and it's significant punishment," Valentine said.
"It's definitely disappointing from us. No one wants a mark against their name. It's been dealt with and I've moved on."
Rugby's governing body stood by its handling of the case, despite the fact a lack of information over the matter led to allegations of a cover-up.
"ARU was conducting inquiries and would not make any comment until those inquiries were complete," a spokesman said.
"We have simply followed due process. That will be the same for any inquiries we conduct."
The second inquiry is as secretive as the first, although its believed the 1am sighting of several Wallabies in the Crown Casino two weeks ago is not under scrutiny.
The food fight is minor but does serve to tarnish O'Connor's gleaming reputation.
The teenager scored three tries on debut against Italy in Canberra.
The investigation only came to light because an unrelated rumour was posted on a website last week, prompting media calls to the ARU.
The ARU confirmed it was looking into a breach of team protocol but then kept silent until the investigation was finished, confusing the two matters.
In a month where the Football Federation of Australia was accused of a cover-up for a three-hour investigation into Tim Cahill's nightclub ejection, the ARU could have been spooked into being overly thorough at the risk of unnecessary mud sticking to the ARU brand.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,...-23217,00.html
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