3 points he made in his Herald column today are all pretty much sticking up for the Sharks:
5. The game clock debacle
There has been considerable hysteria following the awarding of a seventh-tackle try to Cronulla in their semi-final against North Queensland. Undoubtedly it was a big mistake by the officials, embarrassing for the game, and those responsible have been held accountable. However, it was simply a human error, a number of which occur in every game of rugby league. I accept human error from on-field officials. It's part of the game and the difficulty of the job. I'm far more concerned with errors made by video referees who get it wrong despite having umpteen looks at a video replay. To my mind, the game clock debacle in the dying stages of that match, where timekeepers did not restart the clock once play had resumed, represented a significantly greater blunder. Had the Cowboys snatched victory in the dying moments as a result of the extra time, it would have been a disaster.
6. Seven tackles didn't beat the Cowboys
Let's get this straight. The seventh-tackle try did not cost North Queensland the game. The incident occurred in the eighth minute of play. There was a lot of football played from this point until full-time. All players from both teams were blissfully unaware of the missed tackle count at the time and all were simply playing to the whistle. No player was confused or inconvenienced because of the extra tackle. It wasn't like when players stop because they have seen an obvious forward pass or knock-on. When you consider the fact that teams regularly defend seven-tackle sets during the course of a game due to the zero tackle option; and sometimes are forced to defend, 9, 10 and 11-tackle sets after a referee has incorrectly signalled "six again" during a set, the fact this defensive set went one tackle too long did not even raise an eyebrow with the Cowboys' players. North Queensland led twice more in the contest after this incident (including a penalty goal after a dubious stripping call) and they had every chance to win the match. Every time they got to the front, Cronulla found a way to come over the top of them and regain the lead. I am not trying to downplay this incident, and one must have enormous sympathy for the Cowboys, but it is a rare occurrence and I dare say the rage of many in response to it has had little to do with the actual mistake.
7. Seriously, you can't be serious
Suggestions that the seventh-tackle try was all part of a conspiracy to remove Queensland teams from the finals series in favour of Sydney teams, or that such a conspiracy exists as payback for Queensland's eight seasons of State of Origin dominance, would have to be the most ridiculous comments I have ever heard in all my time in football. I can only put such rubbish down to the emotion and stress of losing such a close match. I get it that the North Queensland fans are still fuming after the Kieran Foran incident last season; and so they should, because that mistake by officials was completely unforgivable and infinitely greater than the missed tackle count call on the weekend. However, these insane conspiracy accusations as to why these events have occurred are far worse than the actual abuse itself. Surely they can't be serious.
He also has this to say about this weeks game:
Manly vulnerable this weekend
Manly's performance last weekend against the Roosters, without the services of their star fullback Brett Stewart, was nothing short of brilliant. However, the brutally physical nature of that contest could well leave them vulnerable when they take on the Sharks this weekend in a sudden-death encounter. My mail is that the Rooster players claim they have never been so sore after a football match and are extremely grateful they don't have to play again this weekend. I can only imagine the Manly boys are feeling it, too. The Sharks' match on the same day against the Cowboys was solid as well, but nothing like the physical battering Manly and Roosters subjected themselves to only hours later. If Manly can reproduce the physical effort I think they will be too strong for the Sharks. However, the Cronulla team is full of very experienced hard heads, all of whom who could make life very difficult for the bruised Sea Eagles. I will say Manly by 2.
5. The game clock debacle
There has been considerable hysteria following the awarding of a seventh-tackle try to Cronulla in their semi-final against North Queensland. Undoubtedly it was a big mistake by the officials, embarrassing for the game, and those responsible have been held accountable. However, it was simply a human error, a number of which occur in every game of rugby league. I accept human error from on-field officials. It's part of the game and the difficulty of the job. I'm far more concerned with errors made by video referees who get it wrong despite having umpteen looks at a video replay. To my mind, the game clock debacle in the dying stages of that match, where timekeepers did not restart the clock once play had resumed, represented a significantly greater blunder. Had the Cowboys snatched victory in the dying moments as a result of the extra time, it would have been a disaster.
6. Seven tackles didn't beat the Cowboys
Let's get this straight. The seventh-tackle try did not cost North Queensland the game. The incident occurred in the eighth minute of play. There was a lot of football played from this point until full-time. All players from both teams were blissfully unaware of the missed tackle count at the time and all were simply playing to the whistle. No player was confused or inconvenienced because of the extra tackle. It wasn't like when players stop because they have seen an obvious forward pass or knock-on. When you consider the fact that teams regularly defend seven-tackle sets during the course of a game due to the zero tackle option; and sometimes are forced to defend, 9, 10 and 11-tackle sets after a referee has incorrectly signalled "six again" during a set, the fact this defensive set went one tackle too long did not even raise an eyebrow with the Cowboys' players. North Queensland led twice more in the contest after this incident (including a penalty goal after a dubious stripping call) and they had every chance to win the match. Every time they got to the front, Cronulla found a way to come over the top of them and regain the lead. I am not trying to downplay this incident, and one must have enormous sympathy for the Cowboys, but it is a rare occurrence and I dare say the rage of many in response to it has had little to do with the actual mistake.
7. Seriously, you can't be serious
Suggestions that the seventh-tackle try was all part of a conspiracy to remove Queensland teams from the finals series in favour of Sydney teams, or that such a conspiracy exists as payback for Queensland's eight seasons of State of Origin dominance, would have to be the most ridiculous comments I have ever heard in all my time in football. I can only put such rubbish down to the emotion and stress of losing such a close match. I get it that the North Queensland fans are still fuming after the Kieran Foran incident last season; and so they should, because that mistake by officials was completely unforgivable and infinitely greater than the missed tackle count call on the weekend. However, these insane conspiracy accusations as to why these events have occurred are far worse than the actual abuse itself. Surely they can't be serious.
He also has this to say about this weeks game:
Manly vulnerable this weekend
Manly's performance last weekend against the Roosters, without the services of their star fullback Brett Stewart, was nothing short of brilliant. However, the brutally physical nature of that contest could well leave them vulnerable when they take on the Sharks this weekend in a sudden-death encounter. My mail is that the Rooster players claim they have never been so sore after a football match and are extremely grateful they don't have to play again this weekend. I can only imagine the Manly boys are feeling it, too. The Sharks' match on the same day against the Cowboys was solid as well, but nothing like the physical battering Manly and Roosters subjected themselves to only hours later. If Manly can reproduce the physical effort I think they will be too strong for the Sharks. However, the Cronulla team is full of very experienced hard heads, all of whom who could make life very difficult for the bruised Sea Eagles. I will say Manly by 2.
