The drama surrounding players making contact with referees is one of the most controversial issues facing the NRL. Fans are unhappy and confused by the NRL’s stance, clubs are angered by apparent inconsistencies and players are concerned that they might pay a huge penalty for incidental contact. After listening to Todd Greenberg over the weekend, it’s become apparent that this could even place a club’s premiership campaign in jeopardy.
How Greenberg Sees Contact With Referees
Listening to Greenberg speak on radio over the weekend raised my ire as a rugby league fan. Importantly, I’m not viewing this from a club perspective, with Parramatta’s points penalty eliminating them from the finals race. Rather, as a supporter who’s interested in the best team winning on their merit, I’m alarmed that Greenberg cannot understand the implications of this rule.
For the bloke in charge of the NRL, the rule is black and white.
He stated that scenes of players getting in referees’ faces to challenge decisions cannot be tolerated and if that means having zero tolerance then so be it. In his opinion, the onus is on the players to avoid incidental contact.
No ifs, no buts, NO CONTACT.
This is surely examining the issue with blinkers firmly affixed.
Has This Hard Line Approach Been Successful?
All genuine fans despise referees having to contend with that rush of players charging at them to argue over decisions, especially when tries have been scored. Has this situation changed since the hard line about touching referees has been adopted? Remember, this is Greenberg’s intention.
Sam Thaiday demonstrates a bad touch.
Every weekend these same scenes are played out time and time again. Sure we have the comical vision of someone like James Graham putting his hands behind his back as he remonstrates with the referee, but isn’t his approach still questioning the referee in the very manner that the NRL is trying to avoid? Didn’t we still hear Jamie Lyon suggesting that a referee was favouring another team in his decisions? What consequences did these actions face?
The question needs to be asked: Have any of the suspended players been guilty of anything more than incidental contact?
This is where the punishments handed down to players become ludicrous and imbalanced. Accidents are punished and intentional acts of disrespect are ignored.
If the intent of the zero tolerance approach is to eliminate all contact with referees, then in the fast paced game of NRL with two referees on the field this approach is doomed to failure. Accidental collisions are always a risk of occuring and players will try to avoid such contact. Everybody accepts that it is human nature for a person to put their hands up or even to put them on the other person to minimise impact. How can such a spontaneous protective response be considered worthy of suspension? That was certainly the question that Dragons fans would be asking after the absurd suspension of Tyson Frizell.
The Inconsistencies
Further to the suspension of Frizell, we have since seen instances where the touching of a referee has looked far less incidental or accidental. Yet these well publicised instances have escaped even getting to the cited stage. So now we have shades of grey created by the NRL within the framework of a supposedly black and white rule. To the casual observer, Jarryd Hayne appears to have exemption from this no touching edict.
I’m not suggesting that Hayne’s contact deserves suspension. However, it does highlight the absurdity of other suspensions in comparison and the murky waters that the NRL risks wading into when their “black and white” rule is not applied to certain clubs or players.
The Solution
Let’s again consider that the intent of this rule is to protect the referees. Accordingly, they do not need protection from unavoidable, incidental contact. Rather they need protection when the context is intimidation.
It serves no purpose to suspend a player who, in the course of moving into position, gently brushes the referee to basically excuse themselves or to soften an accidental bump. I cannot comprehend the injustice that would be dealt if a player were to miss a grand final for such contact.
It is vital that Todd Greenberg uses common sense and reviews NRL policy in this regard. By all means, suspend players who make contact with referees when challenging decisions. Fans would probably accept high gradings for such offences. After all, the player has made the decision to deliberately approach the official and there is nothing accidental in that!
Todd, if you insist on maintaining your hardline approach of punishing players for incidental contact, then a system of fines would be much more appropriate.
This is not a black and white matter Mr Greenberg. There are shades of grey. However, those shades need to be made clear and it must be related to whether intimidation is involved. If you cannot understand that, then the grey that you will create will be the storm clouds of discontent in our great game.
Sixties
This decision by Greenberg reminds me of the Baird decision to destroy the Greyhound racing to appease the animal lobbyists. Greenberg should attack the real issue and address the referee whisperers and antagonists to protect the referees. Baird should weed out the trash committing the animal cruelty and turn the sport around for the benefit of the good people involved.
To end someones opportunity of playing in a GF because he accidentally and unintentionally touched a referee would be a travesty and beyond any reasonable response to a serious concern in the game.
Great piece Sixties – very timely.
I think there’s another context in which touching a ref should be banned (and I’m not going where you think I may be with this – you dirty dirty man.) Players should be unable to touch refs in a friendly or convivial manner. Refs need to maintain a professional distance, emotionally and physically from the players. The fans need to see this physically as they can’t hear all the conversations between the officials and the players. Allowing amicable contact may give the wrong impression to the fans when one or more players are demonstrating friendliness to the refs in a physical sense. Here’s where Greenburg has made his error and now has us all tied up in knots.
Tackles are judged, was it high, was it late and/or was it dangerous.
Ref touching needs to be judged, was it aggressive, was it friendly, was it disruptive. Simple.
It’s sometimes hard to admit you’ve made a mistake – particularly when it has cost an individual, or business, money and/or opportunity. It’s the kind of thing that leads to legal action. However Greenberg needs to treat this situation like a band-aid. Take a deep breath and rip it off (by admitting their mistake) so the healing can begin. Then move forward with some clear, simple rules. Trying to shoe horn an explanation of the rules so that all previous decisions are captured within it is destined to fail.
Frizell (and St George) needs to receive an apology and a reimbursement of their legal expenses and fines, so we can all move on.
Can you imagine Greenberg admitting he was wrong? He should – he won’t!
Bloody officials…
Sport needs more John McEnroe’s lol….If ya gonna get the shits, get the shits, don’t buggarise around..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8Nyc9jzSDg
Sixties I agree with this one; and also think the questioning on field needs to be dealt with asap. Hard sanctions in fact. They deemed Frizzel’s avoidable but Haynes was no different in my view.
Greenburg is becoming a typical politician sounding CEO in my view; he gives us these strong words but in all truth not much changes.
I am sorry but I have little faith in a guy, who’s been involved in some dodgy calls in the past (Barba for example).
This is just another way the NRL can keep control over the comp. This rule about touching refs is as clear as mud & that’s how they want it so they can decided what way they want to do depending on what team the player is from. No different to most of the rules in league over the last couple of years. The NRL commission should know all about match fixing to because they are the experts at doing it. Having said that, I’m so proud of the way the Eels have stood up this season because lets face it, apart from the off field drama’s they have had to contend with, The cheats at the NRL have obviously instructed the refs to make sure we don’t get any 50/50 calls.
Go The Mighty Eels.