Joey Leilua charged for Dylan Edwards cheap shot
Joey Leilua is having a “negative” impact on Wests Tigers according the club’s CEO, with the firebrand set for a monster stint on the sidelines. WATCH THE VIDEO
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Wests Tigers chief executive Justin Pascoe says his club’s football and coaching staff will immediately address centre Joey Leilua’s ugly brain snap on Saturday night “to ensure it doesn’t occur again”.
Pascoe claimed Leilua’s behaviour had a “negative” impact on Wests Tigers, who, according to the CEO, was the better side against Penrith.
Leilua drew outrage from across the rugby league community for a high shot off the ball on Panthers fullback Dylan Edwards two minutes from fulltime.
Leilua was charged by the NRL match review committee with a grade three dangerous contact head/neck. He is facing a four match ban by pleading guilty or a six-game suspension if he fights and loses the case at an NRL judiciary hearing.
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Wests Tigers have until Monday lunchtime to lodge their decision but it is expected Leilua will plead guilty. The club was reviewing its options on Sunday and could challenge the grading.
Leilua was sin-binned and clearly agitated even when on the sidelines. Edwards stayed down briefly but was not injured during his side’s 19-12 win.
“As with any player who performs acts that can negatively affect the outcome of the game, the football and coach staff will always address those incidents and behaviours to ensure they don’t occur again,” Pascoe said.
“I thought we were the better side and should have won that game. It was only a few bad decisions throughout the game that cost us the two competition points. We will learn from that and be better.”
Fox Sports commentator Warren Smith was furious with Leilua, tweeting: “At the end of the suspension the Tigers should tear up his contract. Worst signing by any club in the NRL era.”
Asked would Leilua’s contract be reviewed, Pascoe said; “He is a player contracted to our club - of course we will stand by him.”
He won.
— Warren Smith (@WarrenSmithFOX) July 4, 2020
Whereas J. Leilua never saw a personal battle he could walk away from, even if it meant his team was a greater chance of winning a game.
The penalty before the go-ahead field goal for Penrith - a Leilua penalty.
The clubs change, the result stays the same. https://t.co/75tnaKn4aU
Joey Leilua has been charged with Dangerous Contact for his off the ball hit on Penrith’s Dylan Edwards last night, and will be suspended for 6 games should he fight the charge and lose at the judiciary.#NRL
— Warren Smith (@WarrenSmithFOX) July 5, 2020
Actually, the Tigers should be made to extend the Leilua deal by 12 months and play him in every game as punishment for thinking there was an upside in signing him.
— Warren Smith (@WarrenSmithFOX) July 4, 2020
Was there anybody who thought he wouldn’t be the same hothead he’s always been who consistently hurts his team?
Not only should Joey Leilua get 6 weeks for his high shot on Dylan Edwards, at the end of the suspension the Tigers should tear up his contract.
— Warren Smith (@WarrenSmithFOX) July 4, 2020
Worst signing by any club in the NRL era.#NRLTigersPanthers
Tigers legend Benny Elias added: “Knowing coach Maguire, I don’t believe that indiscretion will happen ever again while Leilua is at Wests Tigers.”
The drama came after Leilua caused a scuffle minutes earlier when his brother, Luciano, was heavily concussed through a tackle from Penrith’s Apiu Koroisau.
Luciano was taken from the field and did not return, Koroisau was not charged.
Concerned at the injury, Koroisau went to comfort Luciano but was pushed away from a clearly irate Joey Leilua, whose actions prompted players to rush in but a melee was avoided.
With his temper boiling, Leilua then whacked Edwards, causing another on-field scuffle.
Commentating on Fox Sports, former premiership-winning player Braith Anasta said: “That’s just crap. He just can’t control his temper.”
Former Test forward Willie Mason defended Leilua amid calls for the Wests Tigers centre to be suspended for up to 16 matches.
Mason tweeted: “Ease up on the Joey Leilua bash up! I’m not condoning it at all but relax with the ‘worse signing in the NRL era’. He’s cheap shotted a bloke out of frustration around the next cos he (has) seen his brother get knocked out and acted.” - Dean Ritchie
CLEARY’S EXCHANGE
Penrith coach Ivan Cleary was none too pleased on and off the field with incidents. He was berated by some Tigers faithful who remain frustrated he jumped off the bus and he reacted when his side won. Cleary was also critical of the Tigers’ shots on Edwards.
“I didn’t like what he said to me,” Cleary said. “I’m glad I didn’t do what I felt like doing. I’m not used to fans.
“(On the field) I thought they had some spoiling tactics. It’s part of the game. As the game went on we started to get penalties out of it. A couple of disappointing incidents. Two shots straight in the head where you can’t protect themselves.”
API’S TURN
Nathan Cleary kicked a field goal with 10 minutes left to give the Panthers a 13-12 led. The match was over in the next set when Koroisau sliced through to set-up Edwards and give the Panthers an unbeatable seven point lead.
Cleary called it a “huge play”.
“He didn’t run a lot but ran at the right time and came up with the big play.”
PANTHERS DREAM START
The game could not have started better for the Panthers. Back-rower Viliame Kikau forced an error with a thundering tackle on Garner in just the second play of the game. The Panthers scored with their opening set after catching the Tigers right edge combination of Joey Leilua and Josh Reynolds defending air for Stephen Crichton to score after just two minutes. The Tigers led 10-6 at half-time through tries to Eisenhuth and Tommy Talau.
Crichton scored the first try after half-time.
‘MAGIC’ JOHNSON TURNS BACK THE CLOCK
—James Phelps
Shaun Johnson turned back the clock to terrorise the Titans with the former Warrior’s whiz reborn as the NRL’s playmaking king.
Backing up the blitz that buried the Sea Eagles last week, Johnson overtook Luke Keary to lead the NRL in try-assists as the Sharks made it three in a row with a thumping 40-10 win over the Gold Coast.
Finally resembling the million-dollar a year magic man that set the NRL alight as a Warrior, Johnson laid on two tries to take his season tally to 12 as the Sharks flogged the Titans.
“There is no doubt he is having a fantastic year for us,” said Sharks coach John Morris.
“He is starting to get the balance right. He gets marked pretty hard and everyone expects that brilliant Shaun Johnson but he also has to play his part steering us around. He is leading the try-assists and is up there on the Dally M leaderboard. His biggest challenge is doing it consistently.”
Putting their season well and truly back-on-track by making it four wins from five matches, the Sharks scored seven tries to two in the Johnson inspired C-Bus Stadium victory.
INJURY RUINS REVOLUTION
A rugby league revolution was ruined when another injury forced Matt Moylan to leave the field after just 28 minutes. The best player on the park until an innocuous tackle left him clutching at his leg, Moylan had spearheaded a new type of attack by becoming a fullback that played strictly one off the ruck.
In a throwback to the dead and buried No.7 of old, Moylan played one out on both sides of the ruck in a bold strategy gamble that turned both Chad Townsend and Shaun Johnson into five-eighths.
But Moylan was taken from the field in the 28th minute with a hamstring injury.
“We won’t know how bad it is until we get him back for scans,” Morris said.
“He felt something pull and couldn’t continue the game so it isn’t a good sign.”
Josh Dugan and Will Kennedy will fight it out to replace Moylan at No.1.
A LATE START
He showed he is still a rugby league wrecking ball by storming over the line to put the Sharks back in front with one of his first carries, but questions need to be asked about Andrew Fifita’s fitness after he spent the first 28 minutes in the bench.
Looking heavier than he was last year before the rule change that has sped up rugby league, the former NSW State of Origin played just 12 of the first 40 minutes.
While there was no doubting his contribution – the giant also paving the way for Blayke Brailey to snuff the Titans out in the 50th with a line bending run setting the hooker up for a try – Fifita’s lack of minutes is making him strictly an impact man.
“Andrew’s role has changed,” Morris said. “He is coming off the bench and is providing instant impact. He is really buying into what we are doing.”
BIG IMPACT
Aaron Woods is rugby league’s version of the mullet: just like the haircut the formerly out of fashion prop is suddenly back in style. Rugby league’s new ruck rule has given Wood’s a lease of life with the fast ball playing big man perfectly suited to the NRL’s new speedy style. Always finding his front with arguably the best surrender in the game, Wood’s ability to generate a quick play the ball is providing plenty of space for Johnson and Townsend.
“He has been pivotal in what we are doing,” Morris said.
“He holds all the middles accountable to the way we want to play.” - with reporting from James Hooper