'Officially lost the plot': Premiership winners level damning accusation against NRL
The first occurred when Cronulla were awarded a penalty try when the Bunker official ruled that Tyrell Sloan tackled Teig Wilton in the air and prevented him from scoring. Sloan leapt to try and catch the ball, and ended up holding Wilton up over the line when the Sharks winger came down with it.
But the Bunker official ruled the Dragons winger deliberately switched from trying to catch the ball to tackling Wilton in the air, which would have been extremely difficult in a split-second. The call to award a penalty try went against the precedent set all year, in which similar incidents have drawn penalties or sin-bins but never a penalty try.
Taking to social media, Dragons premiership winner Soward declared the NRL and it's officials have "officially lost the plot". He wrote: "WHAT A JOKE. No contact on kickers. No contest in the air. What are we doing?"
In commentary for Fox League, legendary premiership winners Kevin Walters and Steve Roach were both dumbfounded. "Come on. That is breaking new ground now," Walters said in relation to the ruling.
Roach added: "That is a ridiculous try being awarded there. That is terrible. It wasn't dangerous. One of the great things about our game is not only those who score the tries, but the blokes who can stop them."
Dragons coach Shane Flanagan was exasperated despite his team scoring a 22-14 victory. "I'll have a busy day on Monday (speaking to the NRL) because it's making it so hard on us," he said after the game. "I won't say any more on it, but I was really disappointed with a lot of decisions."
Sin-binnings cause controversy in Roosters-Dolphins game
Unfortunately for the NRL it wasn't the only drama to come out of Saturday's games. There was also controversy when two players from each team were sin-binned early in the Roosters' 64-12 thrashing of the Dolphins.
Roosters prop Spencer Leniu sparked a melee when he squared up as if to fight Aublix Tawha after his side's second try. Leniu and Tawha were sent to the bin for 10 minutes, as were Naufahu Whyte of the Roosters and Francis Molo of the Dolphins.
RELATED:
Raiders rocked as young Canberra star signs with Penrith Panthers
Jett Cleary could be handed NRL debut in stunning development
Speaking after the game, Dolphins coach Kristian Woolf questioned why any of his players were binned. 'A couple of minutes before that we had a very slightly high tackle and blokes run in everywhere to get a penalty," he said.
'I don't get how we're allowed to do that. And the opposition score, two of their players come over with pushing, we're standing in the dead-ball area, two guys come over pushing and shoving and shaping up. I don't know what our blokes are supposed to do, so I just can't understand those sin-binnings at all.'
Referee Gerard Sutton had warned both captains just before the incident that players would be binned for running in. Roosters coach Trent Robinson agreed that "four off was a lot" of players to bin. 'It seemed like possibly one from each side would have been enough because nothing really happened," he added.
Soward was once again left fuming, declaring the four sin-binnings changed the complexion of what had been a brilliant start to the game. "Not one punch thrown," he wrote. "2 desperate teams with the season on the line. Surely we have to expect some intensity in the game. That is a joke. 4 players in the bin. Seriously we have lost the plot."
We have officially lost the plot on the tackled in the air. WHAT A JOKE No contact on kickers.No contest in the air.What are we doing?
— Jamie Soward (@sowwowofficial6) August 9, 2025
Not one punch thrown. 2 desperate teams with the season on the line. Surely we have to expect some intensity in the game. That is a joke. 4 players in the bin. Seriously we have lost the plot.
— Jamie Soward (@sowwowofficial6) August 9, 2025
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Walters draws on 2020 six of best for Broncos switch
Brisbane coach Michael Maguire can have confidence Billy Walters will shine in his switch to five-eighth because he has done it for him in emphatic fashion before. Walters, a hooker in recent seasons, had one of his best games as a playmaker in 2020 while at Wests Tigers when Maguire was the coach. In round 10 at Leichhardt Oval, the Tigers beat the Broncos 48-0 with Walters wearing the No.6 in a stunning display. The Broncos may have been meagre opponents who took the wooden spoon that year, but Walters, who will play No.6 against the Dolphins on Saturday night in place of the injured Ezra Mam, still delivered a masterclass. In the first half he held up a pass to perfection to put second-rower Luciano Leilua in to score. His running game throughout was busy and incisive with 13 runs yielding 96m. Walters also was a defensive rock defending on the left side with 38 tackles and one missed. His second-half try showcased enthusiasm, skill and competitive spirit. Half Benji Marshall put up a bomb. Walters was first on the scene and deftly volleyed the ball towards the in-goal area. He was the first one there in a show of never giving up on the play to score. The other impressive aspect of his performance was that he allowed Marshall to control proceedings. He did not try to overplay his hand, but chimed in and played a team game. It is the same ethos that he will bring to the table playing alongside the experienced Ben Hunt, who will be the main playmaker against the Dolphins. Hunt moves from starting hooker to half to replace captain Adam Reynolds, who like Mam is out of action with a torn hamstring. Dual Broncos premiership winner Kerrod Walters said his nephew had the game and the mentality to shine at No.6. "I remember that 2020 game for the Tigers where Billy went really well but he grew up playing in the halves," he told AAP. "He defends well, his kicking is good and his passes are timed very well. "He has got good game awareness and will understand his role is to add to what Ben Hunt does to make sure the partnership is successful. "Billy is also a competitor and a great team player who will do whatever it takes for the team to win. "Even when he got demoted to the bench behind Cory Paix this year he didn't let it affect his commitment to the team. Wherever he plays he brings a lot of skill and enthusiasm." Walters trained in the halves in the 2025 pre-season and played two trials as a playmaker. He made his debut for Melbourne in 2019 at No.6 and was initially brought to the Broncos in 2022 as a playmaker. His first game for the Broncos was also at five-eighth before he transitioned to hooker, where he played in the 2023 grand final. "He will do well at six but his best position is nine. His form the last two months has been outstanding," Kerrod Walters said.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'Something wrong': Roosters players raise fresh concerns around $828 million issue
Roosters captain James Tedesco has led calls for the playing surface at the $828 million Allianz Stadium to be fixed amid fresh concerns over the ground ahead of an action-packed weekend of footy. Roosters teammate Lindsay Collins also insisted that there is 'something wrong' with the Allianz Stadium surface that has come under fire numerous times, and will play host to four games of footy over the coming weekend. Players have described the playing surface as 'slippery' and 'not too crash hot', and ground staff have been working around the clock to get it right for an action-packed weekend of sport. The Sydney venue is bracing to host four rugby league games in just three days after weeks of heavy downpours that have raised fresh concerns around the state of the ground that has struggled to cope with rain in the past. Sydney has been inundated with almost 200mm of rain over the last few weeks, although the forecast is clearing for the weekend and stadium officials are confident they can get the playing surface up to scratch. The Roosters host the Bulldogs on Friday night, meaning the ground will have had a 19-day break from the last NRL match played there between the Dogs and Manly in round 21. On Monday morning, ground staff employed giant heat lamps to bake the grass and try to remove some of the water at the northern end of the venue. A sprinkler with a heat lamp was also set up over a bare patch of grass in the north-western corner. RELATED: Beautiful family detail as Maroons Origin player signs with Dragons Titans make big call on Des Hasler in bid to keep Gold Coast captain NRL world divided over Mitch Moses' furious act towards teammate Allianz Stadium has already been turned into a swimming pool several times since it reopened, with serious questions raised about whether the drainage at the ground is adequate. The first time it occurred was during last year's NRL game between the Eels and Roosters, and officials insisted it wouldn't be an ongoing issue. But the ground came under fire again during Game 2 of the women's State of Origin series in May, as puddles of water pooled all over the field. James Tedesco wants Allianz surface fixed amid new concerns The recent downpours in Sydney have forced the Roosters to train elsewhere in the lead-up to Friday night's game and Tedesco admits he's more than a little worried about how Allianz will hold up this weekend. 'I'm glad we're playing the Friday game because I don't know how the other games will go,' he told reporters on Monday. 'It's tough because we're meant to be training a lot of the time throughout the year, but most of the time we don't because the surface isn't good enough and there's so much traffic on there with rugby, soccer and so many games in general." And the Roosters captain called on officials to fix the playing surface ahead of next season. 'I think they're doing something in the off-season to get the pitch better, but I feel like the surface in general hasn't been beneficial for us," he added. I'd love it to be re-turfed and be ready to go for us next year. I'd love a dry track because every time we play here, I feel like it's slippery and it's wet and it's tough conditions.' Roosters forward Collins also hit out at the surface and bemoaned the fact that original plans to have a roof over the stadium proved too cost-prohibitive. 'There's something wrong with this field, it's not crash hot,' Collins said. 'We've just got to deal with it. You can only control the controllables, and this is something I can't control. We were saying they should have put a roof on it, which I think was the original plan. With the money they're going to invest to rip it all up, they probably could have put a roof on.'
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Aussie women's Cincinnati chances over as US Open looms
Australia's female tennis players will head towards the US Open in patchy form after Maya Joint completed their elimination from the last big warm-up event, the Cincinnati Open. After a bright start the teenager was outgunned by Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4 6-3 in 75 minutes on a sweltering day in the midwest city. Opening Monday's play (local time) on a sparsely-attended court 3, the 19-year-old gained an early break in the last-32 third-round tie, and was 2-0 and 4-2 up. But the 12th-seeded Russian stepped up the power to take the set with two breaks. The second stanza was more closely contested until Alexandrova won the sixth game to take a 4-2 lead and served out, concluding with an ace. Joint had forced five break points but took only one while Alexandrova won all three break points she created. Taking care of business 💼Ekaterina Alexandrova books her place in the Round of 16.#CincyTennis — wta (@WTA) August 11, 2025 Compatriots Daria Kasatkina, Ajla Tomljanovic and Kimberly Birrell all lost their second-round matches on Sunday. But being ranked within the top 100 all should be confirmed in the main draw for the US Open which begins on August 24. However, Joint's chances of joining Kasatkina among the seeds in New York, which might have been achieved with a deep run in Cincinnati, have gone, Joint, who was born and grew up in the neighbouring state of Michigan, is currently entered for another Ohio event next week, the WTA 250 in Cleveland. She will hope to pick up the form that enabled her to defeat 18th-seeded Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia in Cincinnati on Saturday. Two Aussie men are still in the Cincinnati Open, Adam Walton and Alexei Popyrin, with both due to play their third round matches on Tuesday (local time).
