Yeah if that's us its a penalty and a suspension. JWH got hit in the head - and they pretty much never take a player falling or bending over in consideration. Some huge % of swinging arms that get suspensions are on players that are falling over.
I thought it was a fantastic 'tackle'. Had it not been a finals match then it would certainly have been a penalty and placed on report. The rules change when the officials deem the match to be 'important'. There were no penalties in the final 20-minutes of that match (including the scrum where Tigers pushed). I'm happy with that, but it should be the same all season. There are too many soft penalties, and these days penalties invariably lead to tries.
After that tackle the tigers should have gone onto win that game ,pretty pathetic effort really not to stitch up the win.
Why did Heighington look at the ball for so long from the next scrum without trying to pick it up? On replay that looks weird.
I enjoyed watching that tackle on JWH, and I hope there are plenty more in store for the bloke. Add Tasi to that now, as well.
I enjoy watching a player with a bit of fire in his belly, as long as he can take what he dishes out. I actually miss that part of the game, I recognise the need for players safety but it's rugby league for Christ sake, not lawn bowls!
JWH did brace himself lower for the hit a couple of metres out, as did Dwyer. But watch Dwyer's upward movement immediately before impact. It's quite obvious from the front on shot of Dwyer at the start of the video. That is the reason JWH was knocked senseless. If they allow that and applaud that, expect many more "legal" head shots.
I agree that sort of stuff should always be allowed and no penalty drawn. It was neither reckless nor careless. However the way they have been penalizing these things all year, any contact with the head is a penalty whether it is the fault of the tackler or the tackled
The ball hit Dwyers foot and moved away from Heighny, gave Frank Paul Nuausala just enough time to dive on the ball......... FROM HOOKER????????????? That entire scrum was a joke, and the Tigers were robbed. Kennedy was standing between the Tigers prop and hooker before the ball was even in the scrum.
Scrum should never have been set. Contact to the head of an opposing player has been a penalty all year. It should have been a penalty and game over. Given the Tigers are the darlings with a penalty count heavily lopsided in their favour this season, I have no sympathy for them copping a raw deal on that scrum. Karma.
The ball hit Dwyers foot and moved away from Heighny, gave Frank Paul Nuausala just enough time to dive on the ball......... FROM HOOKER????????????? That entire scrum was a joke, and the Tigers were robbed. Kennedy was standing between the Tigers prop and hooker before the ball was even in the scrum. [/quote] Never a scrum and always a penalty, Matabele is correct. If you're going to ping that kind of tackle ALL SEASON you cannot just stop because it is the finals and/or Origin. Ridiculous.
And that is exactly what is wrong with our game at the moment. There is no way that tackle should be a penalty, regardless of if it was round 1 or the GF. If you are not prepared to cop one in the chops (accidentally) every now and then, go play another sport. JWH drops into the tackle, and Dwyer's feet remained planted. If JWH ran the ball like Martin Lang, he would have copped it on the chest. Have a look at Gavin Miller's head, do you reckon the Sharks got a penalty every time his face was re-arranged? ;D ;D
Head injuries are seen as a little more undesirable these days. I can't see the game regressing to the days when we had players who looked like Miller, Mark Broadhurst or Cliffy Watson. Alan Tongue is about the worst you'll get these days, maybe he cops more because he is quite short? Not sure, but a lot of forwards nowadays retire with facial looks mostly intact. Any relaxing of the rules about head contact would see a lot of problems with insurance claims, especially in junior and park footy.
Only wish that tackle had happened the week before Matai's then Matai would only have been done for a late hit.
