Suzuki to weather the Storm

The Melbourne Storm rugby league football club at the centre of a salary cap scandal appears to have some clear sky on the horizon.

Japanese car maker Suzuki, one of the club's flagship sponsors, has vowed to support the team beyond the saga, even though they are destined to finish at the bottom of the premiership ladder after being stripped of the ability to score points.

The general manager of Suzuki Australia, Tony Devers (pictured), told the Carsales Network: "We will stick with them. We are waiting to talk to the [team's] board, which we expect to happen in a matter of weeks, but our feeling is that we will stand by them."

He added: "News Limited has said categorically that they are going to support Melbourne Storm, the NRL and the Victorian Government are going to support them and, unless something else comes up that we don't know about yet, we too will be there."

Devers said he was in disbelief when he found out that the team had breached the salary cap for its players.

"I was on a plane from Sydney to Melbourne when a passenger told me. At first I didn't believe it," he said.

"I had no idea there was a problem of this magnitude, there was never a hint of a problem. On the day the news broke I got a phone call saying that the Storm was going to meet with the NRL and there were some important issues going to be discussed, but I never in a million years thought it was going to be this."

Suzuki took over as the automotive sponsor of the Storm three years ago, after the contract with rival Japanese car maker Honda ended.

Honda began sponsoring the Storm when Tony Devers was in a senior management position at that company. But after Devers joined Suzuki as general manager he took over the automotive sponsorship of the Storm at the first opportunity.

Suzuki's sponsorship of the Storm comes in the form of cash, 14 loan cars for key team members and staff, and cars that can be given away to raise funds for the club.

Devers said Suzuki was yet to receive any negative feedback about the company's involvement with the troubled club -- and had received "hundreds" of phone calls, letters and emails of support from customers, fans and Suzuki car dealers.

"There is a lot of support out there for them and we've not had one negative letter whatsoever," said Devers. "People are pleased that we're sticking by them but obviously there is still a lot to play out.

"I'm disappointed about what has happened but I also believe in the club.

"The Storm are great at spotting and developing young talented players into first grade players, and there is talk of some of the top guys taking a pay cut in order to stick together."

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