Wayne Bennett, Craig Bellamy mystified by Billy Slater’s drop-kick try, NRL defends ruling
THE NRL has defended the decision to award Billy Slater’s controversial try, claiming a player does not have to be attempting a field goal to score a four-pointer from a drop-kick.
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THE Broncos are entitled to feel dudded after Storm coach Craig Bellamy admitted even he didn’t expect Billy Slater to be awarded the try that ignited Melbourne’s 34-20 victory on Friday night.
The NRL defended the referees’ decision to award Slater’s 10th-minute try, claiming a player does not have to be attempting a field goal to score a four-pointer from a drop-kick.
Attacking the Brisbane line, Slater appeared to clumsily drop-kick the ball. He raced through to touch down, but then shook his head, suggesting to the officials that he knocked on.
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Bellamy rubbed salt into Brisbane’s wounds, conceding his initial reaction was that the referees would deny the Slater movement that ultimately sparked a three-try blitz for a 16-4 lead.
“I thought to be quite honest it was probably a dropped ball, but I wouldn’t put my house on it because I didn’t know the rules,” he said.
“I’m not quite sure what the rule. I would have thought if you are going to have a drop kick, you are looking for a field goal, but he wasn’t trying to kick a field goal.
“The refs are the experts so you would like to think they got that decision right. But if I was sitting in the box, I would have gone red.”
Broncos coach Wayne Bennett was later mystified, insisting Slater clearly knocked on.
“He dropped the ball,” he said.
“After that, I didn’t think it was a try, but I don’t know the rule well enough.
“It’s a tough one, I’m not sure, I don’t know the rule well enough.
“It’s a game-changer if that’s to be the standard going forward.
“It was never intended to be a drop kick and the ball hit the ground. So what are we saying, if we knock the ball on and we still kick at it, it’s a drop kick? I don’t know.
“I can’t remember that happening. He definitely lost the ball, he missed it, then he kicked.
“If we drop a ball, then all of a sudden we kick it, can we get away with it not being a knock on? That’s the way I see it.”
Storm skipper Cameron Smith said: “I thought there was a chance that he could award it. If you intentionally go for a drop kick, not a field, but a drop kick, it’s play on. I was 50-50 there, but it fell our way and we’ll take it.”
Originally published as Wayne Bennett, Craig Bellamy mystified by Billy Slater’s drop-kick try, NRL defends ruling