NRL 2021: Head of football Graham Annesley addresses concerns over legality of Roosters field goal that ended Titans’ finals hopes
It was a tactic that ended the Titans’ finals chances, and now NRL head of football Graham Annesley has conceded the use of field goal blockers may be reviewed. But there’s a catch.
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Look away Titans fans.
Head of football Graham Annesley admits the NRL may have to review the rules on field-goal blockers in the wake of Sam Walker’s controversial one-pointer that sank Gold Coast’s finals hopes.
Annesley said the interpretation of the rule was not about to be altered for the finals but conceded he was happy to review it over the off-season.
“We’re not going to be changing the rules just because we’re in the finals series,” he said.
“This is a mechanism used by multiple clubs throughout the season.”
The Sydney Roosters halfback slotted the 77th minute winner at Queensland Country Bank Stadium in a 25-24 thriller on Saturday.
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Questions have been raised over the legality of the field-goal with footage showing Roosters forwards Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Victor Radley standing beside the play-the-ball and appearing to impede Titans hooker Mitch Rein from charging down the kick.
The NRL’s interpretation of the rule is: “If two or more players form a wall (side by side) next to the play-the-ball and don’t allow the opportunity for a defending player to move directly towards the player in possession, the referee will penalise for obstruction”.
During Monday’s NRL football briefing, Annesley argued both Waerea-Hargreaves and Radley did not stand “side by side”.
“The real issue here is whether those players prevent an opposition player or a defender from moving towards the player in possession,” Annesley said.
“They can do that.
“We just saw Rein got through and was able to put pressure on the kicker.
“I know these are big decisions at critical times and in important games.
“It would be fair to question that incident if it’s not something that’s been ruled on consistently throughout the season.”
Annesley drew on examples from similar incidents throughout the 2021 season which went unpenalised, such as Daly Cherry-Evans’ field goal against the Warriors in Round 5 and Corey Norman’s one-pointer in Round 16 against the Warriors.
“The real determining factor here is whether those players who take up that position actually physically interfere with any chasers or not,” Annesley said.
“Whether the rule should be addressed or not is a different question.
“I’m happy that we discuss that at the end of the season but we can’t change interpretations of things that have been happening right throughout the season because we get to the finals series.
“I’m very happy to review whether this sort of positioning of players in these types of situations should be reviewed for next season and beyond.”
Big concern over Roosters star ahead of Manly test
The Sydney Roosters are sweating on the result of scans to prop Sio Siua Taukeiaho’s calf injury which forced the Tongan star off the field just two minutes into his shift in his side’s nailbiting elimination final win over Gold Coast.
The already undermanned Roosters can ill afford another injury blow ahead their week two finals clash with Manly.
Taukeiaho, who started off the bench against the Titans, came into the contest in the 27th minute before succumbing to the injury.
He will have scans on Monday on the Sunshine Coast and will be monitored during the week.
Enforcer Victor Radley came off second best and clutching his shoulder after a tackle on the Titans big man Sam Lisone. It was initially feared Radley might have suffered an AC joint injury but Trent Robinson gave the forward the all clear.
“I don’t know whether it was AC or nerve [for Radley], it was pretty big contact there,” Robinson said.
“Then we had Siua [Taukeiaho] who went on and came off, that was disappointing there. We had a two man rotation going there for a bit. Rads is fine, he played 80 minutes and he played valiantly. He’ll shake it off like I saw him do on the coverage.”
Also of concern for Robinson is the availability of hooker Sam Verrills, who is facing a one-week ban with an early plea for a grade two careless high tackle on Brian Kelly.
If Verrills challenges the decision at the judiciary and loses he faces a two-week suspension.
Sam Walker might have only tasted nine minutes during his first finals series, but the teenage rookie sensation delivered the clutch play when called on, slotting the winning-field goal in the 77th minute.
Robinson labelled the decisive play as ‘ice cold’. Walker all but confirmed the coach’s assessment when reliving the moment.
“The body is not too sore and the lungs are pretty sweet [when you have only been] a couple of minutes on that field,” Walker said.
“I knew for the last 15 minutes I knew I was preparing to kick a field goal, so when I got on I was focused on what I needed to do.”
Despite the unflappable demeanour on the field, the 19-year old conceded to being a bundle of nerves on the bench waiting for Robinson to inject him into the game.
“I think it was the most nervous I have been on the sideline. I was a bit shaky just trying to watch the game and take it as much as you can. But it can be hard [to do that] when it’s a big occasion.”
Teddy masterclass sets up Turbo showdown
Sydney Roosters superstar fullback James Tedesco is “built for these games and these moments”.
That was coach Trent Robinson’s assessment of Tedesco’s captain’s knock in the Bondi club’s nail-biting 25-24 win against the Gold Coast Titans in Saturday’s elimination final in Townsville.
Tedesco was best on ground, setting up a tantalising positional showdown against Manly’s Tom Trbojevic in next week two of the finals series.
As well as crossing the line for a try, Tedesco also had three try assists, three line break assists, ran for 113 metres, made five tackle busts, two offloads and made one linebreak.
“He is a good role model for our guys to head towards. He’s built for these games and these moments,” Robinson said.
“There are a lot of our guys that are trying to emulate him on and off the field.
“He’s got a unique style of play but the way he prepares to play, the calmness that he plays with but an intensity, the mix he plays with is for everyone to see.”
But Tedesco reserved ‘best of ground’ honours to teammate Victor Radley, who returned from a three week suspension last night.
Tedesco said Radley’s lack of self preservation made him the kind of player that you not only need but one you want to line-up alongside in do-or-die clashes.
“He’s the heart and soul of the Rosters,” Tedesco said.
“The way he plays he puts it all on the line, he puts his body on the line every week and he was disappointed to miss some guys this year through suspension.
“You realise how good of a player he is when he comes back after he’s been missing for a few weeks. He comes back in and plays like he did tonight.
“On both sides of the ball, he was awesome. I just love playing for him.
The Roosters will now take on the Sea Eagles, who went down to Melbourne on Friday night, for a place in a preliminary final.
Tedesco said his side would be borrowing Melbourne’s blueprint for how to blunt Trbojevic’s impact.
“They probably made too many errors Manly,” Tedesco said.
“They didn’t put themselves into the best position against a team like Storm, they just kill you.
“They’ve [Storm] been doing that for years, they compete and kick to corners and wear you down.
“We have to do the same.
“We can’t be doing the same tonight, giving Tommy and Daly too much quality ball, they will make you pay.
“The Storm didn’t give them any opportunities, that’s what we have to do.”
Melbourne and Penrith are heavy favourites for the title, and no team winning the competition from outside of the top four in the NRL era, but Tedesco believes the Roosters, despite finishing fifth on the ladder, “can go all the way”.
“We’ve always had confidence and belief we were going to go all the way so we had belief we’d win this game,” Tedesco said.
“We made it hard for ourselves, there were way too many errors actually, that got them back some easy tries. But we’ll take the win, some try saving efforts got us the win in the end.
“Last minute efforts win you games.”
WALKER BRILLIANCE SAVES ROOSTERS’ SEASON
Titans centre Patrick Herbert was left shattered after a bungled try and Sam Walker field goal saw the Gold Coast’s finals fairytale come to a heartbreaking end in a dramatic Townsville thriller.
Roosters rookie Walker kicked the match-winning field goal against the Titans for the second time this year to end the Gold Coast’s season with a 25-24 victory at Queensland Country Bank Stadium on Saturday night.
In one of the most gripping finals in NRL history, the heroic Titans bombed victory when Herbert opted to run the ball in the dying seconds instead of passing to an open David Fifita or Corey Thompson for a certain try.
“We’ve got to suck it up. It’s going to hurt for a long time.”
The Roosters progressed to the second week of the playoffs and the Titans were left wondering what could have been in their first finals appearance since 2016.
In an error-riddled affair, it looked like the Roosters would comfortably progress after James Tedesco and Victor Radley helped Sydney to an 18-6 lead early in the second half.
But after sneaking into the top eight with a 10-14 record, the gutsy Titans refused to go away against the star-studded Roosters and should have claimed an upset victory with the last play of the game.
Instead, like in Round 14 at Cbus Super Stadium, it was Walker’s 22m field goal in the 78th minute that proved the difference after the first-year halfback spent most of the game on the bench.
“I’m just shattered,” Titans coach Justin Holbrook said.
“It was there to be won. We could have been sitting here so happy but we’re not.
“I’m really proud of the boys. We kept coming back. We chased them all game. It’s just heartbreaking.
“The whole Gold Coast really got behind us. I’d love to be playing next week. I came here expecting we’d win.
“People were asking if we were here to make up the numbers. We were here to win the game. It’s hard to talk about.
TITANS LEARN FINALS LESSON
Big games are decided in key moments and the Titans learnt that the hard way.
Trailing 6-2 midway through the first half, Fifita was denied his 18th try of the year by The Bunker following an obstruction, with Radley putting Tedesco over shortly after for a 12-2 lead.
When Tino Fa’asuamaleaui knocked on in the first set of the second half the Roosters made the Titans pay through Daniel Tupou.
But there was no bigger moment than in the final minute when the Titans had a boilover victory in front of their eyes.
For the entire season the Titans have turned to Fifita to score but they failed to get him the ball when it mattered most.
Herbert’s botched play will hurt for a long time and those are the types of moments you need to win to succeed on the big stage.
“He (Herbert) has taken it pretty hard,” Holbrook said.
“Every time we fought our way back into the game then we let them off the hook. All the moments we didn’t win at crucial stages.
“All the turning points in big games. We just had a lot of near misses and it cost us.
“I’m proud of the players for fighting all the way. We’ve been doing a lot of learning as the year’s gone on.
“I thought we’d learn enough to take better options in certain circumstances. We didn’t tonight and it cost us the game.
“We’ve got to get better, we’ve got to win those games.”
TITANS NEED SOME SMARTS
The Titans need to find a gun playmaker if they are serious about becoming a premiership contender.
While they tried hard all night and never gave in, the absence of an experienced big-game performer in a key position was there to see.
Roosters stars Tedesco and Radley were the difference when it came to the clutch plays that decided the game and if not for some fortunate tries, the Titans wouldn’t have been in the game.
The Titans have great young forwards in Fifita, Fa’asuamaleaui and Moeaki Fotuaika and plenty of strike in the backline but at the moment they’re lacking a star in the spine.
They’ve got the right attitude to be a great team but now need some star power to compete with the best.
TEDDY STILL THE BEST
—Michael Carayannis
Teddy v Turbo with more than bragging rights as the game’s best fullback on the line. James Tedesco led his Roosters side with a man of the match performance in their dramatic 25-24 win against Titans to set up a mouth-watering semi-final clash against Tom Trbojevic’s Manly.
While Trbojevic is pushing his case to be labelled the game’s best fullback, Tedesco continues to stamp his class on the competition. Manly’s success this season has largely come off the back of Trbojevic but Tedesco’s influence has probably been greater at the Roosters. Simply without their skipper the Roosters would have faltered.
Minus a host of big-name players, Tedesco has been unable to play with the same freedom that Trbojevic has been blessed with this year. He has had to adjust to a different role.
Tedesco scored a treble the last time the teams met. That was in round one when the Roosters thumped the Sea Eagles 46-4 and questions were being asked about Manly coach Des Hasler’s future.
Much has changed for both sides since then. Largely in Trbojevic’s return to the field. He watched the season opener from the sidelines while Brett Morris, Luke Keary, Jake Friend and Lindsay Collins – all now unavailable - took the field for the Roosters.
The win was the Roosters fourth in their past five matches against Manly.
But this week looms as a completely different proposition. Manly came through their loss against the Storm unscathed – with Josh Schuster escaping a ban for a dangerous throw.
The Roosters will be sweating on the match review committee after Sam Verrills was placed on report for a high tackle.
Despite the close score, Tedesco was again at his damaging best. He put on a grubber which led to Tyrone Peachey’s first half sin bin and had a hand in Matt Ikuvalu’s first try.
He scored the Roosters’ second after supporting Victory Radley in the middle of the field.
The Roosters led 12-6 at halftime.
Tedesco was all class again to start the second half. His tap on pass gave Daniel Tupou a try.
Regardless, the Roosters will need a massive lift if Tedesco and co are going to stop Trbojevic.
ROOSTER’S RISE FROM UNWANTED PLAYMAKER TO THE NEW ‘FREDDY’
—Nick Walshaw
Drew Hutchison was changing a car tyre when his lung collapsed for the second time.
Not that he knew. “Things just felt a little weird,” the Roosters No.6 said. “Like something wasn’t quite right.”
But enough to complain? No, despite having one of his vital organs suddenly quit on him in May – just as, weeks earlier, it had also collapsed under the knees of Parramatta’s Dylan Brown – Hutchison simply stayed on task in his garage, changing the tyre of girlfriend Kelsey’s car as that little weird feeling got a little, um, weirder.
“But I was only just out of hospital,” Hutchison says now when pushed on his casual response. “So I didn’t want to sound like a whinger.”
Yet as things worsened, and when eventually that tyre got sorted, the 26-year-old finally jumped into his own car and headed for Roosters HQ, informing staff he felt unwell.
Immediately, Hutchison was sent for a series of scans.
“Then as I was driving home, the doc called,” he recalls. “And said I’d better turn around.”
Just as a week later, and while overlooking a new set of scans with his specialist, this unassuming Wollongong boy was told he needed to turn all the way onto an operating table — with that lung initially punctured in Brown’s wayward Round 9 tackle, which also busted three ribs, having now deflated for a third time.
“Although for that one I didn’t feel anything,” Hutchison said. “I was undergoing a routine check-up, looking at scans, and they said the lung had collapsed again. So that’s when I went in to make some changes.”
This was 14 weeks ago. But worry?
No, not when you’re a fella who has known so much worse.
Like the time Hutchison was so unwanted, and seemingly washed up, his agent Dave Riolo was on the cusp of seeing which bush footy clubs might want a playmaker twice knocked back by every club in the NRL.
This was two years ago.
Or maybe recall the opening weekend of the 2018 Betfred Championship – which, you may be unaware, is an English second-tier competition — when this newest Leigh Centurion woke on game day to see snow falling outside his flat window.
This was three years ago.
When Hutchison, unwanted, homesick and having been knocked back by every NRL club for the first time, had signed up for a new life of freezing temperatures, unknown rivals and this opening day field blanketed by snow.
“I remember going for coffee that morning and praying the game would be called off,” Hutchison said.
It wasn’t.
Which was to quickly become some shift for a kid who, not so much earlier, had been making NSW U20s, NYC Merit teams, even the Junior Kangaroos twice.
A fella who, within hours of that prayer, would find himself not simply frozen, but standing in snow awaiting the kick-off from some mob he barely knew anything about.
“Which was … aah … a wake up call,” Hutchison admits. “It was in that moment I definitely took a step back and said ‘geez, you really aren’t going quite like you thought’.”
Of course, we could also tell you about the time Hutchison first learned St George Illawarra had signed Ben Hunt to the No.7 jersey — his jersey — on a deal worth $6 million.
This was four years ago.
“And disheartening,” he says.
Wasn’t it what. Especially given months earlier, it was Hutchison himself being talked up as the Dragons’ ‘Next Big Thing’.
A kid who hadn’t simply taken the Illawarra Cutters to the 2016 Intrust premiership, and done so by nailing the winning field goal, but also dropped an f-bomb live on Fox Sports when describing the win to sideline interviewer Alan Tongue.
“It’s f…ing … pretty unreal,” Hutchison beamed.
Which was also how his future seemed, especially when Dragons coach Paul McGregor partnered him alongside English Test star Gareth Widdop in pre-season training. But then, last session before the Christmas break, Generation Next did his ACL.
“I got tackled, my knee got caught,” he deadpans. “And a few months later the club signed Ben Hunt.”
Worse, Hutchison was off contract.
“And when you’re rehabbing a knee,” he said, “it’s hard to get anyone interested in you”.
Which may explain why nobody was. Not here, or even in the English Super League.
So as for thinking his career was done aged 22?
“Oh, for sure,” he said. “Even when I came back home after playing that year with Leigh, I went months with no offers from anyone.”
But now, almost a decade after first being hailed a future NRL player, Hutchison finally finds himself headlining a Roosters playoff side that like a Telstra payphone, is simply refusing to die.
It’s all wonderfully ironic given he got his chance at the Roosters after Luke Keary went down with a busted ACL.
Hutchison has since starred, broken three ribs, had his lung collapse as many times, recovered, helped the Tricolours into fifth and, most recently, had no less than Andrew Johns playfully refer to him as ‘Freddy’ in Channel 9 commentary.
This was seven days ago.
“Although I actually haven’t heard that one,” the playmaker said, genuinely surprised by Johns’ praise. “And while it’s certainly flattering, I’d have to say that I’ve only been doing this for a few games … Brad Fittler did it for 15 years.”
Which is true, of course.
Yet while Hutchison may have only entered our NRL consciousness in recent months, or even weeks, his remains a grind that has endured years of serious injury, anonymity, even the strain that is trying to kick on a Batley Bulldogs field not only covered in snow, but sloped “like a ski jump”.
Signed to the Roosters on a train-and-trial deal in 2019, ‘Freddy’ wound up playing just four NRL games. Then last winter, five.
But none of this was his greatest fight.
“My last month in England,” he said. “While I’d signed for two years at Leigh, they were going through financial trouble and there were issues — I don’t want to slag the club off — but it wasn’t a good fit for me.
“Things happened and I just had to get out. Just for my personal health. I was there alone and needed to get home to family and friends.”
Yet when pushed on his struggles, Hutchison admits that before he could change his circumstances, he had to first change himself.
“As much as I spent that last month in England asking ‘how did I ever get here’, the only person I could really look at was myself,” he said.
“I realised there were changes I needed to make. For a long time, I’d been told I had ability. But unfortunately I thought that was all I needed to be successful.
“It’s almost like you get this air of confidence.
“Think you’re too good and say ‘oh, my talent will cover that’.
“But the NRL isn’t somewhere you can just turn up and play well. I now realise it takes seven days of preparation — and every one of them is important.”
Elsewhere, Hutchison praises his ongoing resurrection to a tight-knit circle of family and friends, while also reserving special mention for Roosters coach Trent Robinson, who reached out just as his future seemed to be in the Illawarra local league.
“Most importantly, Robbo cares about you as a person,” the five-eighth said. “The footy stuff then just follows on from that.”
All of which brings us to Saturday night, and an elimination final against Gold Coast Titans.
When this newest Roosters No.6 – or ‘Freddy’ as a certain Immortal has dubbed him — will look to continue the run of not only a team nobody thought could get this far, but a fella who knows what it is to be unwanted by every NRL team twice.
“And there are times where I do look back, wondering why it’s had to happen this way,” Hutchison said. “But mostly, I’m just thankful that it has happened.”
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