Controversy Again in NRL
May 23, 2009
The Australian National Rugby League has seen its fair share of controversy this season. It is enough to have the financial crisis having a squeeze on sponsorship money, but when players stuff up that also hurts the game.
Recently there has the Matthew Johns sex scandal and just this week Cronulla’s Reni Maitua was banned for testing positive for a banned substance.
On the field there has also been plenty of controversy. Friday last week we witnessed a thrilling game between the Bulldogs and Saints which ended with a no try for the Bulldogs after the video ref ruled obstruction way back near the halfway line. Many were amazed by the call and the Bulldogs had a win snatched from their hands.
Last night there was once again an ending that puzzled fans. The Parramatta Eels were playing the South Sydney Rabbitohs. The scores were locked at 16 all after regular time. The match then went into golden point extra time. The Eels went close to grabbing the win as a Jarryd Hayne field goal attempt crashed off the crossbar.
As time wound down it appeared that the Rabbitohs would have one last shot at victory. A scrum was set about 10 metres out from the Parramatta line. There was nine seconds on the clock when the ref called time-off. Souths Craig Wing then went to grab the ball. As he did this the ref called time-on and just as Wing got back to the scrum the final hooter sounded. Game over.
Should the ref have waited until Wing had the ball and was standing at the scrum for starting the time again? Most would think so. The ref didn’t and the game was over. The teams get to share the points and the fans have something to talk about during the week.
What do you think should have happened? Leave your comments below.
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