NRL Round 4 judiciary: Trbojevic, Falloon hit with same charge for very different tackles

ONE tackle went unpenalised by the referees and was lauded as a great hit. The other caused the ref to whistle, the crowd to boo and the players to rush in.

ONE tackle went unpenalised by the referees and was lauded by the commentators as one of the great rugby league hits of the season.

The other caused the ref to whistle, the crowd to boo and the players to rush in seeking their own justice.

The video at the top of the page tells the story.

Two quite different reactions to two quite different tackles, yet both have been treated the same by the NRL’s match review committee this week.

Titans hooker Beau Falloon and Manly prop Jake Trbojevic were on Monday both hit with grade one dangerous throw charges, with Falloon facing a week on the sidelines whether he enters an early guilty plea or fights the charge and loses because of a prior offence and the 87 carry-over points hanging over his head.

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Trbojevic, the 21-year-old four-game rookie, will be cleared to play the Raiders on Saturday with an early guilty plea due to his clean record.

Disregard the carry-over points and the inconsistency of the MRC is brought to light.

It’s a problem that doesn’t have an easy solution but points to flaws created by applying black and white rules to scenarios full of shades of grey.

Dangerous tackles have been a sensitive topic for the NRL and its fans over the past year, and rightly so after a lifting tackle on Alex McKinnon ended in tragedy.

The game has said enough is enough and made the ball carrier’s safety the top priority.

But tackles come in so many different shapes and sizes that sometimes it is difficult for them all to be categorised fairly.

Perhaps there needs to be more categories added, or more flexibility for the MRC to apply common sense.

Foxsports.com.au contacted the NRL in the hope of getting some clarity on why Trbojevic was charged and whether or not the MRC had considered a more severe grading for Falloon.

The NRL was unable to comment due to its policy of silence on individual charges until the judiciary process is complete. Fair enough.

However with six dangerous throw charges in total across the weekend, the NRL did include with the charge sheet it sent out to the media, a link to a video outlining what constitutes a dangerous throw.

“Under the NRL judiciary code of procedure there are many ways in which a player could be charged with a dangerous throw,” the video notes.

“An essential element of a dangerous throw is that there must have been some degree of elevation.

“A throw will be considered dangerous if, during the course of a tackle, the head or neck of the ball carrier dips below the (horizontal) level of his hips and this trajectory is not arrested by the tackling player/s before contact is made with the ground.

“... It is not necessary in a charge of dangerous throw to show that the tackled player actually landed on his head or neck however this outcome may result in a higher grading.”

On that basis you can judge for yourself whether or not the MRC hit the mark this week or whether the system they have to work with really hits the mark.

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Reece Robinson faces up to three weeks on the sideline for a dangerous throw.

In other MRC news, Eels winger Reece Robinson faces up to three weeks on the sidelines for a dangerous throw on Rabbitohs rival Joel Reddy.

Robinson was slapped with a grade two dangerous throw charge by the NRL’s match review committee for his tackle on Reddy in Parramatta’s win over the Rabbitohs on Friday night.

An early guilty plea would see Robinson sidelined for two weeks, but if he elects to fight the charge and loses he will spend three matches on the sideline.

Eels teammates Darcy Lussick (high tackle — careless) and Brad Takarangi (dangerous throw), Tigers centre Chris Lawrence (dangerous contact — head/neck), Bulldogs prop David Klemmer (dangerous throw), Sea Eagles forward Dunamis Lui (dangerous throw) and Raiders hooker Josh Hodgson (dangerous contact — other) can all escape bans with early guilty pleas.

Originally published as NRL Round 4 judiciary: Trbojevic, Falloon hit with same charge for very different tackles