Des Hasler's referee attack a diversion says Knights coach Wayne Bennett

WAYNE Bennett has dismissed Des Hasler's latest attack on the referees as nothing more than a ploy to take the focus off Canterbury's brilliant form.

WAYNE Bennett has dismissed Des Hasler's latest attack on the referees as nothing more than a ploy to take the focus off Canterbury's brilliant form.

Instead of celebrating his club's 10th successive win, a 26-10 victory over Newcastle on Saturday night, Hasler launched another outburst on the referees - a spray that may attract a $10,000 fine.

The Bulldogs coach labelled referees Jason Robinson and Brett Suttor as "out of touch" and "very poor", claiming they colluded to allow Newcastle to get back into a game the Bulldogs led 24-0 after just 18 minutes.

"I wasn't impressed with the two blokes in the pink shirts," Hasler said.

"The referees are talking amongst themselves saying 'this game is going to change, this game is going to change, this game is going to change' and we get a run of four penalties against us. Why do they have to pre-empt?"

Hasler has consistently attempted to deflect attention from the stellar form of the Bulldogs in his first year in charge, including dismissing any talk of them as the competition's benchmark.

Bennett said it was a move he could understand four weeks out from the finals.

"I'm not into benchmarking," Bennett said. "They are playing really consistently and that is what you want as a coach. The rest of it is just people's perception and what you have to write about.

"But from his point of view, you only have to get one defeat when it matters most somewhere in the playoff series and you won't feel like the benchmark of anything. So I don't think he is getting carried away with all that stuff."