By Christian Nicolussi
Melbourne have not ruled out seeking a double downgrade at the NRL judiciary in the faint hope they can have Nelson Asofa-Solomona miraculously cleared to play in the grand final.
Storm officials were surprised on Saturday when Asofa-Solomona was hit with a hefty four-match ban.
The match review committee came down hard, handing the front-rower a grade-three careless high-tackle charge for his shot on Sydney Roosters prop Lindsay Collins in the first tackle of Friday night’s preliminary final.
He will miss four matches with an early guilty plea, or five matches should he head to the judiciary and lose.
Even if the Storm want to seek a downgrade, Asofa-Solomona would still face a three-match ban. Melbourne would need to get the charge cut to a grade one – a double downgrade – for the giant front-rower to play in the decider, which is unheard of.
The New Zealand Warriors succeeded with a double downgrade at the start of last year when Zyon Maiu’u had a grade-two reckless high tackle reduced to a grade-three careless high tackle, or a four-match ban cut to two matches, from a pre-season game.
Nelson Asofa-Solomona flattens Lindsay Collins.Credit: NRL Photos
The Storm contacted prominent judiciary lawyer Nick Ghabar late on Friday night to see if they had any chance of clearing their two-metre prop. Sources with knowledge of the situation not authorised to speak publicly because it was a live case told this masthead the Storm were prepared to seek a double downgrade, which would result in a $3000 fine, if they felt they could mount a genuine case in the next 24 hours.
Asofa-Solomona will become the fifth NRL player in the past 20 years to miss a grand final due to suspension.
Lazarus Vaalepu is the slight front-runner ahead of Joe Chan or Ativalu Lisati, a former Panthers forward, to replace Asofa-Solomona should he be sidelined.
There was hope for Asofa-Solomona on Friday night following the Storm’s 48-18 win that the Kiwi might avoid any sanction and play in the biggest game of the year.
Super League-bound Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, who was given a guard of honour by the Sydney Roosters and Storm players as he walked off the field for the last time – and starred in some of the most explosive running battles with Asofa-Solomona over the years – made it clear he wanted his fellow big man to play in next Sunday’s decider.
Jared Waerea-Hargreaves is given a guard of honour for his last game on Friday.Credit: NRL Photos
Waerea-Hargreaves loved the way Asofa-Solomona played with pure aggression, with the pair the last of the genuine heavyweight enforcers.
Collins played the ball facing the wrong way and failed a concussion test, which will reignite the debate about whether the kick-off has become too dangerous and too much of a threat of concussion.
Asofa-Solomona has been charged twice for high tackles in the past six weeks. Sydney Roosters forward Luke Ricketson missed the 2004 decider because of suspension, Carl Webb did the following year for North Queensland, as did Cameron Smith (2008) and South Sydney’s Issac Luke in 2014.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy said of the Asofa-Solomona incident after the 48-18 preliminary-final victory: “You’d hate to see him miss a big game. I didn’t think it was a sin bin ... I didn’t think there was a whole heap in it.”
Waerea-Hargreaves was suspended plenty of times himself, including twice in the back half of this season, but said he would be shattered for his “Kiwi brother” if he was rubbed out.
“I really hope it doesn’t cost Nelson a grand final, I hope not, I truly do,” Waerea-Hargreaves said.
“It’s why we play. It’s such a physical game. They are small margins we talk about.
“There was a lot of talk and speculation on both us guys, and who was going to dominate the middle [on Friday].
“I thought he played really well. I could feel him going after the game. I really hope he gets to go out there next week and do the same thing.”
Another departing Rooster, Luke Keary, said the players had discussed the tackle in the sheds after the game and how a suspension would be unfair on Asofa-Solomona.
Asofa-Solomona returned from the bin and was the most damaging forward on the field. The Storm have back-up options, including Chan, who is more of a back-rower and is listed to play for North Sydney in the NSW Cup final on Sunday.
Storm teammate Jahrome Hughes said of the front-rower: “Nelson has been really good for us. Even these last couple of months, he’s been all-time, he’s really locked in; hopefully he’s out there because he’s such a big part of our team.”
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