First Buzz Rothfield reported it last year and Now Paul Crawley. Crichton is 100% the protected species. I have not seen anything like this. Do you agree?
Don’t be fooled by Dogs’ mind games — Crawls
Paul Crawley from Fox Sports
March 30th, 2026 4:16 pm
I have never seen an NRL player get more 50/50 calls go his way than Bulldogs skipper Stephen Crichton.
For some time now Crichton has been jokingly referred to as a “protected species”, or the “Teflon Bulldog”.
Even when he’s on the losing team, Crichton has an uncanny knack of coming up trumps when it comes to getting the rub of the green on contentious calls.
It happened again in the
Bulldogs’ shock loss to Newcastle over the weekend with more baffling decisions that went Crichton’s way.
Newcastle coach Justin Holbrook would be within his rights to contact the NRL referees’ boss this week just to clarify that Crichton still plays by the same rules as every other player in the game.
Go back and look at the forward pass from Crichton that hit Matt Burton on the melon when Jacob Kiraz scored late in the game.
Even allowing for the fact the Bunker is not allowed to rule on forward passes, Kevvie Walters spoke for the majority in the
Fox League commentary box when he questioned how it was not called back by the match officials on the field.
That of course came on the back of the Knights losing their captain’s challenge for a stripped ball by Sandon Smith also involving Crichton.
On that occasion there was no question Smith had his hand on the ball.
But replays clearly showed that Crichton let go of the ball in what looked an obvious attempt to milk the penalty.
How the Bunker determined there was a stripping action from Smith I’ll never know.
They’ll tell us this was just one of those 50/50 calls we see every game, and it could have gone either way.
Put that to a pub test and see what results come back.
Throw in the number of times Crichton got away with slowing down the ruck.
It reminds me how Cameron Smith used to get away with pretty much whatever he wanted at the peak of his powers when it came to ‘ruck control’.
There was also a crucial moment in last week’s win over the Raiders where Crichton also made a blatant ruck infringement involving Xavier Savage.
That was late in the game and cost the Raiders vital tackles in great field position when the match was still in the balance.
Once again, luck was on Crichton’s side.
Just as it was back in round one in Vegas when Crichton escaped the sin bin for that dangerous high shot on young Dragons winger Setu Tu.
Sure, Tu was falling in the tackle, but there is supposed to be a duty of care from the defender — and Crichton clearly hit him high and with force.
Not so much as a fine from the match review committee.
What makes it worse is that there have been numerous similar incidents in previous years.
There was the grubby face massage on Ryan Papenhuyzen last season that caused widespread outrage (Crichton was not only not penalised but escaped with a $1000 fine).
On another occasion he dangerously led with his knees trying to stop Dragons winger Christian Tuipulotu from scoring (he also escaped with a fine on that occasion).
What about when Crichton jammed his nose into Kyle Flanagan’s mouth when Flanagan was pinned to the ground.
Flanagan copped a four-match suspension for biting, Crichton again the ‘victim’.
While the incidents on the weekend didn’t involve dirty tactics, it’s just another series of examples that creates this perception that the ‘Teflon Bulldog’ is a “protected species”.
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Teflon Bulldog: Canterbury captain Stephen Crichton proves he’s a protected species in 2025
Phil ‘Buzz’ Rothfield has put Canterbury skipper Stephen Crichton’s history of controversial acts under the microscope after another grubby incident goes unpunished. See the receipts.
Phil Rothfield
https://archive.md/o/zpdCp/https://twitter.com/BuzzRothfield
August 25, 2025 - 5:00AM
News Sport Network
https://archive.md/zpdCp/again?url=...ory/637e8c236898470c7134b56362270da4#comments
Bulldogs skipper Stephen Crichton has become a protected species.
How else do you explain him avoiding a charge for attacking the head of
Storm fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen on Friday night at AAMI Park.
It’s the third time this year he has avoided a suspension for foul play.
Look at the video and look at the still frames.
In my view, it’s intentional and careless foul play – second man into a tackle and a really grubby act.
Crichton even escaped without being penalised but the bunker picked it up a minute later and placed him on report.
Stephen Crichton attacks the head of Ryan Papenhuyzen
Then the match review committee studied the video on Saturday morning.
Inexplicably, it ignored it. So, we’re left with no grading, no fine and no on-field penalty.
If this is deemed an acceptable practice, god help us.
On Saturday, I reached out to Glenn Jackson in the NRL media department to seek an explanation from the match review committee.
He revealed Crichton would get a ‘concerning act’ notice.
Wow. Isn’t that big of the NRL.
In the same game, Melbourne Storm skipper Harry Grant connected with his shoulder on Bulldogs forward Harry Hayes.
It wouldn’t have knocked over your 67-year-old columnist, such was the lack of force.
Yet Grant gets sin-binned, a two-week suspension and will miss the final two rounds.
Last year, Crichton did a shoulder charge much worse on Roger Tuivasa-Sheck.
The Warriors winger stumbled and collapsed to the ground.
Harry Grant has been seen to the bin for an alleged shoulder charge
Yet Crichton stayed on the field for that incident, much worse than Grant’s. Not even a sin bin.
I’ve called out Crichton previously over the niggle and nastiness in his game.
Against St George Illawarra this year when he led with his knees trying to stop Dragons winger Christian Tuipulotu from scoring.
He got a fine.
Or the cheap shot on Lindsay Collins against the Roosters in round 11 when he whacked the front-rower while he was on the ground. He got a fine.
And you’ll remember the Kyle Flanagan incident at Kogarah Jubilee Oval last year.
Remember him lying over the top of the St George Illawarra halfback and then ramming his nose into Flanagan’s mouth.
And he wondered why he got bitten. Please.
Crichton has received much praise and credit for his leadership at the Bulldogs since being appointed captain last year. And deservedly so.
Yet right now, he’s running the risk of costing Canterbury a big game in the finals.
The match review committee and judiciary will eventually catch up with him, even if they’ve been reluctant to do so in the past.
www.zerotackle.com
