If a player throws a ball deliberately into another player there will be a penalty

[Bronco18]

This should be called the Ennis rule. He was famous for throwing the ball at players, tripping over with hands outstreched plowing his sizeable chin into the ground.

Glad you picked up on this. One of many sneaky tricks up his arsenal, he was the best at running into offside players and using them as a shield into he defensive line as well.

I thought it was great gamesmanship from him. Probably says something about how shit of a job the refs have when I can actively applaud a player for stretching the rules.

 

[wibble]

This rule exists, and predictably was used in a crucial knock out final, simply because the referees are incompetent.

When a dummy half tracks down some poor prone defender and pegs the ball at them in a manner that shows they had no intention of passing, the referees simply had to call play on (maybe with an added snigger at the attacker's pathetic attempt to milk).

This obvious and sensible response from referees would have ended the issue years ago.

It takes a special kind of administration to not do the obvious and sensible, and instead create a new rule with just as many glaring issues as rewarding the milking attacker with a penalty.

Please let Annesly restore some sense to the NRL, because they are so out of whack with reality at the moment we might have Top Ball next year.