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Bite or No Bite - that is the question

Did Proctor bite Johnson?

  • Yes

    Votes: 56 58.3%

  • No

    Votes: 20 20.8%

  • Can’t tell

    Votes: 20 20.8%
  • Total voters
    96
L

lazza

Juniors
Messages
703
The bite was more of a nibble just to get his arm out of his face. Not really worth 8-12 weeks as some are quoting.

I think it's worse to cannon ball someone where someone does an ACL or a high tackle that breaks someones jaw. Yet those are only a couple of weeks.

Not his go.
 
A

AJB1102

First Grade
Messages
6,339
Chimp said:
For what it’s worth, I don’t think it was a bite in the traditional sense - he didn’t chomp down on a chunk of his arm. But I do think he had a brain snap moment - was pissed at the arm across his face, and has used his bottom row of teeth almost like a saw into the arm, he appears to drag his teeth along his arm rather than biting down.
Bit of a sh*tty thing to do, but so are the whole grapple type moves. I’m comfortable if you wanna grapple somebody and put your arm across their mouth, then there may be a consequential reaction that involves the teeth.... wouldn’t want to see him rubbed out for weeks for that.
This is one of those things that would be eradicated if the players were allowed to throw a punch. There’s no way Johnson would be brave enough to be grappling his head if there was a chance Proctor would get up and snot him for it. And if he is brave enough, then let natural justice occur and he can have one on the chin if Proctor so wished.
All grapple is grubby, biting is grubby, ‘hip drops’ are grubby, gouging in grubby etc etc - would all be resolved with the very real threat of a retaliatory right hook to the chops by an enforcer.
Click to expand...

A grapple usually involves the tackler wrapping the arm around so the neck is in the crook of the elbow then squeezing the forearm towards the bicep to apply pressure. Johnson's hand had hold of Proctor's shoulder it never wrapped around, his arm remained pretty straight and never did the neck or head end up in the crook of the elbow.

If Proctor was "fighting for his life" he could've (would've?) dropped the ball and used his arms to push the deadly suffocating forearm of Johnson away.

Proctor must freak out under the shower. Was like 4 seconds that they were in that tackle - if his breathing is that bad his post game career option of shoving a stick up his arse being a mop is not looking promising.
 
C

Chimp

Bench
Messages
2,872
AJB1102 said:
A grapple usually involves the tackler wrapping the arm around so the neck is in the crook of the elbow then squeezing the forearm towards the bicep to apply pressure. Johnson's hand had hold of Proctor's shoulder it never wrapped around, his arm remained pretty straight and never did the neck or head end up in the crook of the elbow.

If Proctor was "fighting for his life" he could've (would've?) dropped the ball and used his arms to push the deadly suffocating forearm of Johnson away.

Proctor must freak out under the shower. Was like 4 seconds that they were in that tackle - if his breathing is that bad his post game career option of shoving a stick up his arse being a mop is not looking promising.
Click to expand...
Agree 100%, the can’t breath/choke excuse is a shocker, it’s absolute rubbish. He didn’t like the tackle though, and reacted. Not an excuse, he was in the wrong, but hardly worth missing loads of time for. Send off sufficient in my opinion.

Would have been better to get up, stick one on Johnson’s chin and take the 10 in the bin - hopefully other players learn from this.
 
Aragorn

Aragorn

First Grade
Messages
6,764
Biting is right up there with sticking your finger up someone’s butthole

unless you had a brain snap

you just don’t do it
 
Last edited:
A

AJB1102

First Grade
Messages
6,339
Chimp said:
Agree 100%, the can’t breath/choke excuse is a shocker, it’s absolute rubbish. He didn’t like the tackle though, and reacted. Not an excuse, he was in the wrong, but hardly worth missing loads of time for. Send off sufficient in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Yeah certainly happy for it not to be a big suspension. He'll get sideline time though.

I don't think that tackle would even warrant a punch. Its an "oztag" halfback on an ex-Storm backrower. Kev has the size, weight and experience.
 
E

Eelectrica

Referee
Messages
21,134
No bite.
To me a bite is something like biting into an apple or something. I don't see that.
Johnsons arm was wrapped around Proctors face where it shouldn't be.
 
C

Chimp

Bench
Messages
2,872
AJB1102 said:
Yeah certainly happy for it not to be a big suspension. He'll get sideline time though.

I don't think that tackle would even warrant a punch. Its an "oztag" halfback on an ex-Storm backrower. Kev has the size, weight and experience.
Click to expand...
Again, I agree - I don’t see any need for such a reaction from Proctor, but that being said, he obviously was pissed at something, and given the circumstances, he’d have been better getting up and throwing one.... And I suspect, if punching was ‘allowed’, he’d not have bitten, he’d have got to his feet ready to throw one, had that second or 2 for the initial red mist to clear a little, would have seen that it’s his little cheeky half-back kiwi mate and not bothered with the punch, and more likely just stored it in his pocket for a settler in a tackle later in the game and a chuckle about it together afterwards. Deal with it like proper men, like we used to in our sport.
 
Babyface O'reilly

Babyface O'reilly

Coach
Messages
12,501
Wests is Best said:
I think he tried to bite him but it didnt really cause any harm. He was wearing a mouthguard on the top teeth. Try eating a steak with a mouthguard on!
SJ just wanted a penalty so reacted to it but now there is a major issue for Proctor and SJ wants to back away from the accusations.
IMHO SJ needs to be punished as well as Proctor. This milking shit needs to stop
Click to expand...


A mouth guard only covers the top teeth, though. A bite is when the lower and upper teeth come together so you’d think the lower teeth would’ve left a mark of some description. Like you, I think SJ should be made to give evidence. We need to know if we’re dealing with a bite or gamesmanship or both.
 
A

AJB1102

First Grade
Messages
6,339
Johnson sticking to 'what happens on the field, stays on the field'.

Proctor got himself in this position, he's on his own to get out.
 
D

Dingo_dan

Juniors
Messages
168
Biting a player is a dog act (no pun intended). Its one of the lowest things you can do.

It was a bite. There's no disputing that. We literally see the bite. We see Johnson react (both screaming in pain and the way he goes to the ref, his argueing with proctor) The ref sees the bite marks. Proctor admits to it on field with his weird display of biting his own arm. Once it settles down he defends himself by saying he feared for his life when he was by being choked. Mal Meninga, on brand for his brain strength, doubles down on this defence.

It's a bite.

Players have a unspoken code to protect each other. Like an old Mafia code of silence. Players defend each other all the time in cases where its unclear whether an act was committed. Johnson stupidly believes he has to do that as well. Except when he defends Proctor in a quite clear case of Biting he is pretty much undermining that code. Its obvious he is saying it to defend a friend. Its been implied that Players do that in the past, but there always been a bit of plausible deniability when a player defends an opponent. What Johnson is doing is pulling down that vale, a Players defence will mean diddly squat in the future.
 
Valheru

Valheru

Coach
Messages
19,209
It was a bite, not sure how anyone can deny that.

Having said that he will get off because Johnson is refusing to testify. He should be made to testify IMO.
 
Walpole

Walpole

Juniors
Messages
2,460
Of course he bit him.

But rugby league being the weird and wonderful sport it is, we get to hear and possibly be swayed by the opinions of mental giants like Meninga and Gallen.

In real life, if you asked Gallen what day it was you wouldn't have any confidence he'd get it right, you'd certainly be checking for yourself.
 
Exsilium

Exsilium

Coach
Messages
10,347
In the heat of the moment, there's a lot of possibilities when it comes to a 'brain snap' moment. Biting is probably the worst reaction you can have.

I don't think many can genuinely say it wasn't a bite but it certainly lacks the biting down or clamping motion.

It's out of character and it needs to be punished but its no Luis Suárez type incident.
 
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