Saracens are in the midst of appealing a heavy sanction imposed by an independent panel.

The English Premiership and European champions were hit with a 35-point penalty as well as a £5 million fine.

The punishment came after an investigation into investment and property deals involving their owner Nigel Wray and star players such as Owen Farrell.

The Current champions have been found to have exceeded the £7 million limit by more than £650,000.

An Independent Panel ruled Saracens failed to disclose payments to players over the previous three seasons.

A seven-month investigation into the club was led by Premiership rugby before it was passed on to sports arbitrators Sport Resolutions. The outcome of the probe was delayed so that England's Rugby World Cup campaign would not be affected.

Brian O'Driscoll was on Off The Ball, reviewing the Rugby World Cup final and touched on the Saracens issue.

"This (issue) has been touted for a number of years," he said.

Robshaw Reaction

"This is not a rumour that has sprung from nowhere. I read an article today from Chris Robshaw and he seemed particularly annoyed.

"As someone put it, there's not an awful lot that gets Chris Robshaw really riled up. But this was one thing."

O'Driscoll also spoke about the wider implications of the issue and how far it may reach.

"The talk is that there are other clubs that potentially have a case to answer as well and that this isn't solely Saracens that the inquiry is going to be around," he said.

"It's a pretty tough week for those Saracens core of players coming back from losing a World Cup final. They thought they were going to be showcasing the William Webb Ellis around London. And all of a sudden now, they've been hit with this five days later."

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