Parramatta exploited an interchange loophole with Tepai Moeroa — but it’s not their fault
THE NRL effectively handed Parramatta a free interchange for life on Monday but it’s not the NRL’s fault. There are loopholes that some clubs will always exploit, writes PAUL KENT.
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THE NRL effectively handed Parramatta a free interchange for life on Monday.
It is not the NRL’s fault. It is not Tepai Moeroa’s fault.
The fault is somewhere in between the politics of player welfare and murky world of coaches stretching the rules for competitive advantage.
The question is now for the game and how to solve it.
It is another large headache for a game struggling to equip itself with how to stay a step ahead of the clubs and their rubbery interpretation of the rules.
Teams abusing rules can be traced as far back as the 1969 grand final.
There it was when Balmain, realising they were grossly outmatched by South Sydney, came up with a plan to constantly lay down and pretend to hurt to slow play and give themselves a rest so they could remain competitive with the Rabbitohs.
They were isolated incidents back then, though.
Rivals dipped their lids to the tactic but got on with playing within the spirit of the game.
It is all corrupted now.
Clubs designate time to exploiting the rules and the integrity of the game they make their living off playing.
One highly successful NRL club has a call for when they want a head injury assessment (HIA) to get a free interchange.
The word goes out from the sideline that an interchange is planned and a player lays down or fakes a wobble and is replaced by a fresh player while he is taken off to be assessed.
Of course he is going to pass the test, given he is not concussed in the first place.
But he is off long enough to get his heart rate down and give his lungs a rest before he heads back onto the field
Parramatta landed in the spotlight this week when Fox Sports caller Andrew Voss watched Moeroa go off for a HIA and, as much as he tried, could not recall an incident where there was a possibility he got concussed.
So later Voss went through a replay and catalogued Moeroa’s game from a hit-up in the 26th minute to the trainer tapping his head in the 33rd minute for Moeroa to go off for a HIA.
Other than looking fatigued, he does not look injured.
But who are we to ask?
The Parramatta doctor can be accused of nothing more serious than being prudent.
The tackle had enough in it for prudence.
Moeroa jams in for a tackle in the 29th minute and his neck creases awkwardly as his head comes into contact to Raymond Faitala-Mariner’s hip.
The big Canterbury backrower rolls over him but Moeroa shows no signs of a concussion as he makes a second grab to bring Faitala-Mariner down.
He makes another tackle in the set before taking an early hit-up when Parramatta get the ball.
Soon after, according to the NRL, the Parramatta doctor reviewed the tackle on the sideline and ordered Moeroa off for a HIA.
Moeroa has played eight of the 10 games this year and has been off five times for a HIA. He was off twice for an HIA in round five. Only once was he not allowed to return, in round six.
He was forced to see an independent specialist who ruled him out for round seven.
He was cleared to play in round eight but, between them, coach Brad Arthur and the club doctor decided to keep him out another week.
He was back for round nine and off for another HIA on Sunday, in round 10. There is enough there for the NRL to accept Parramatta’s concern.
“Given his history it is understandable for the Eels to err on the side of caution,” an NRL spokesman said.
“He was cleared to return to play after he underwent all the testing to return to the field.”
Yet given the everyday nature of the tackle Parramatta can now effectively take Moeroa off for a head injury assessment (HIA) any time he bounces up from a solid tackle.
This all grew out of Voss’s genuine concern for Moeroa’s health.
But it raises a real issue for a game that considers introducing interchange to return fatigue to the game, as the coaches argue that first there must be a focus on eliminating wasted time, and that even as they move towards these improvements the clubs continue to work against them.
There are loopholes that some clubs will always exploit. So it is up to the NRL to find a way to prevent that.