BRAD Morrin described his bite on Parramatta centre as not "that bad'' after telling team-mates he was semi-concussed and couldn't remember what happened.
The Bulldogs forward is set to use provocation as a key plank in defence. "It's a bit unfortunate, I didn't think I did it that bad,'' Morrin said in an interview published late yesterday.
"I had my hands caught underneath and I more or less did it to get him off me. The main thing is that I got slammed into the ground.
"When I was in that position I had both my hands underneath and if I had my hands free I would have pushed him off me. More or less I gave him a nip to get him off but I was more shocked than anything when I saw the mark it left.
"I didn't think that I could do it that hard with my mouthguard in. I did go and apologise to him after that. It was a bit of a brain snap . I haven't done it before and I dont think I'll do it again.''
Morrin's explanation is unlikely to help his cause with Bulldogs fans, who yesterday demanded club officials rip up his contract.
He completed a one-hour recovery session with his team-mates at Belmore Oval yesterday. The replacement forward was placed on report after Tahu accused the 25-year-old of biting his arm just before halftime in Friday night's 34-22 loss to the Eels at Telstra Stadium.
Morrin was shattered after the match, bewildered by his actions. It's believed he told team-mates he had little memory of the incident, after copping a couple of heavy knocks including an alleged head-slam from Tahu.
The tackle was not put on report by referee Sean Hampstead. NRL match review commissioner Greg McCallum confirmed the biting allegation would be scrutinised before a possible charge tomorrow.
"We'll gather all the evidence and make a decision,'' McCallum said.
It's likely that Morrin will be sent straight to the judiciary, where NRL prosecutor Peter Kite is tipped to recommend a season-ending ban.
Bulldogs chief executive Malcolm Noad yesterday appealed for the NRL to take the Tahu head-slam into account before deciding on the severity of any suspension.
"We'll let the panel decide if there is any truth to the allegation,'' Noad said yesterday. "But we do hope they look at the head-slam.''
Coach Steve Folkes said he would leave the matter in the hands of the match review committee.
"It's on report, I'd rather not say too much. Obviously the review committee will have a look at it,'' Folkes said after the game.
Tahu was due to receive a tetanus shot yesterday and Parramatta have extensive photos of a wound on the centre's arm. The bite, which pierced Tahu's skin, was measured at halftime by the Parramatta medicos.
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