I would hope that people who’ve read my posts over the years can see that while I love my club, I am not afraid to call out problems that need to be addressed. I try to be fair and balanced and when I see my club do things that are counterproductive and diminish team performances, I try to fairly and logically call it out.

Of course I only ever offer an opinion and I never believe that it speaks for the majority of fans, or that my opinion is any more valid than any others.

However, today I will be writing on a broader topic that I believe will resonate with fair minded Rugby League followers from many different clubs. It is something that I’m passionate about and many others will feel similarly.

I decided upon the topic of rule or interpretation changes, communication, and integrity part way through the first half of the Eels clash with the Rabbitohs. It came on the back of an “interesting” call by the bunker officials bringing in a seemingly new rule or interpretation. 

I actually replayed the coverage to make sure that what I heard the first time was right. It was. I am referencing the decision made by the bunker official when deciding that players can legally make a tackle on a player in the air, in this instance Jordan Samrani, as long as they are “tackling the ball”. 

To my recollection, this was the first time that we have heard these words in a try decision when such a tackle has been referred to the bunker.

Jordan Samrani

The question must be asked: How does a player tackle the ball without tackling the person whose arms are carrying that ball?

I personally never liked the tackle in the air rule/interpretation because being able to tackle a player to stop them scoring a try is a fundamental, desired outcome in our game.

Common sense dictates that the rule should be you cannot tackle a player mid air and put them in a dangerous position. It delivers a consistency across all tackling scenarios, that the tackler cannot put another player in a dangerous position.

However, that is not the rule. Therefore, not being able to tackle a player in the air is relatively black and white, and so there have been numerous occasions this year when the bunker has intervened and made the determination (correctly) that a player went up to contest the ball and mid play realised they could not catch the ball and therefore they changed to a tackling motion. Penalty called.

This was exactly what happened last Saturday. It was a straightforward decision. Well at least I thought it was. Instead, the “new interpretation” of tackling the ball and not the player was suddenly introduced to bunker official terminology. All clear given. Nothing to see here.

And here it is, a month out from finals football!

So whilst I was dismayed at its use in ruling against a potential penalty to the Eels, or even a penalty try, the decision made in this game has much wider implications for the remainder of this season.

Why? Because it could almost be guaranteed that before last weekend, were you to ask any NRL player, coach or fan, whether there was any circumstance under which a player could be tackled in the air, the answer would be a universal no.

The Bunker

But now it seems we are now wrong.

Does this mean that we are now going to see teams train to tackle the ball in the air?

And of course, why would the NRL seemingly allow a change in a rule or its interpretation so late in the season?

You will notice that I did not name any officials from the “rule change” incident. This is because my intent is not to criticise any individual match official. Rather my real purpose is to highlight the dangerous path I feel the NRL is going down.

For any sport to be taken seriously and maintain popularity and strength it must seem to be fair and have integrity. Notice the word seem.

Once a sport or official starts to be seen by people as unfair or “consistently inconsistent”, their integrity comes under the microscope. Sports Australia defines integrity in sports as including a number of factors that weave together to create a general sense of the sport upholding core integrity.

These include:

• Builds trust: Fans and players must believe the game is real and fair.
• Keeps people safe: Stops abuse, bullying, and dangerous drug use.
• Protects the game: Stops match-fixing and cheating from ruining the sport.
• Includes everyone: Makes sure all people are treated with respect

I watch most games each week either in full or extended highlights. And though I am only ever really invested in Parramatta, I nonetheless regularly shake my head at the confusing, contradictory rulings or interpretations made by match officials.

Put aside human errors, that is not the issue here. Fans don’t expect perfection from match officials. The problem lies with the distinct lack of acknowledgement and awareness from NRL officials or leaders of the need to clarify inconsistencies and to acknowledge mistakes. This is what has me afraid for the future of our game.

We moved away from weekly conferences with Mr Annesley explaining some controversial decisions because it was said to put too much pressure on the referees.

Graham Annesley

I find that mind blowing.

All it has done is create a silence and an echo chamber. Just because the NRL no longer holds those weekly meetings does not mean that the public should or can ignore the mistakes. If anything, they will vent their frustrations on social media or discuss them on platforms like TCT.

The silence from the NRL leaves the fans with no other option than to find their own answers. Thus the creation and spreading of conspiracy theories. 

So this week we could have had someone from the NRL come out and say the bunker decision was wrong, the rule and interpretation of tackling in the air has not changed.

Instead we have silence and as a result I ask the following questions:

• Has the rule changed?
• Has the NRL acknowledged privately a mistake or are they doubling down and trying to justify the decision?
• If there is a change were clubs, players and fans told about this change?
• Will this change be reinforced this week across all games?
• If mistakes were made what consequences have been put in place?

As a fan who spends copious amounts of money, time and emotional investment in my team and supporting the game I love, there will come a point in which I have too many unanswered questions. The conclusion will be that it is not really worth investing my time and effort as I question the integrity of my sport and those who are leading and reporting on it. 

If I am absolutely truthful, I am probably not far off reaching that conclusion right now, and in my opinion I am not on an island.

Shelley

If you liked this article, you might consider supporting The Cumberland Throw.