Business partners 'swindled millions': Dermott Brereton AFL great Dermott Brereton is suing his Melbourne business partners, claiming they wrongfully took millions of dollars of company profits. Mr Brereton, 49, claims Desmond Smith and Neil Wrigley, with whom he co-owns Melbourne Panel Repairs (MPR), changed the directors' agreement without his knowledge or consent. In documents lodged to the Victorian Supreme Court this week, Mr Brereton claims that between 2003 and 2012, Smith and Wrigley paid themselves more than $2.2 million in company dividends. Mr Brereton says he only received $575,000 in the same period, and says he has not been given any documents to explain the discrepancy. He is seeking orders for Smith and Wrigley to repay the dividends and to buy him out of the business. Mr Brereton says his standing as a footballer helped to build the company's profile when it started. "As a VFL/AFL footballer, I was able to attract significant business to MPR in the early mid-1990s and beyond," he said in the court documents. This was invaluable to MPR gaining the profile, recognition and traction needed to succeed in the panel repairs business.