Penrith Panthers fined, trainer banned for running in front of crucial Gold Coast Titans conversion attempt
Half-back Jayden Campbell was incensed when Bocking ran in front of him just as he was lining up for a sideline conversion that could have given the Titans a four-point lead in the final minutes on Saturday.
After Campbell missed the shot, Nathan Cleary kicked a two-point field goal that sent the game to extra time, where Blaize Talagi broke the Titans' hearts with the match-winning try.
On Monday, the NRL hit the Panthers with a hefty breach notice that factored in the four-time reigning premiers' previous trainer misconduct.
Bocking will be suspended for the Panthers' last five games of the regular season, with the club also needing to pay $50,000 — five times the financial penalty of their previous breach.
"It is alleged the trainer unnecessarily interfered with and distracted Gold Coast Titans player Jayden Campbell as he was attempting a conversion kick, in breach of the NRL operations manual and NRL code of conduct," an NRL statement said.
"The proposed penalty takes into account previous breaches by Penrith Panthers trainers.
"The NRL rules permitting club trainers onto the field will be monitored and strictly enforced by the NRL."
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary said at full-time that Bocking made "an honest mistake" and had been running to the bench to communicate a late change in substitutions.
The club released a statement on Monday afternoon doubling down on this claim.
"The club is adamant that the actions of the trainer were an honest mistake and there was no intent to breach the rules or gain an advantage. The trainer immediately apologised upon realising the error," a Panthers spokesperson said.
"The circumstances involved a late change and in-the-moment confusion, but we understand that does not excuse the outcome."
Penrith is reportedly likely to accept the sanctions as it aims for nine consecutive wins against Newcastle this Friday.
The NRL reviews all its rules at the end of each season but currently there are no firm plans to change rules to reward teams that are on the receiving end of similar incidents.
Earlier in the season, Penrith was fined $10,000 after trainer Shane Elford squirted water on the ball during a match against North Queensland, who was also fined as its trainer Mitch Dunn did the same thing.
The NRL memorably also fined Penrith $25,000 in 2021 when trainer Peter Green requested the semi-final against Parramatta be stopped so he could attend to an injured Mitch Kenny in the final minutes.
The Eels had been on the attack at the time and chasing a potentially game-winning try but had their momentum stifled by the stoppage, which was found to have occurred without Green performing a mandatory initial assessment on Kenny.
The Panthers held on to win the game and eliminate the Eels from finals contention but lost Green to suspension as they went on to win the 2021 grand final.
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