NRL hands out heavy suspensions for Eels stars’ ‘dog shots’
The NRL has come down hard on the Parramatta stars accused of cheap shots against the Roosters with the match review handing out lengthy bans.
Eels stars Dylan Brown and Marata Niukore could face a combined seven weeks on the sidelines after the NRL match review committee announced new charges against the pair.
Brown went unpunished at the time he was accused of an ugly cheap shot that resulted in Roosters playmaker Drew Hutchison suffering serious injuries.
There was outrage across the game on Friday night with Roosters coach Trent Robinson blowing up about the referees and the Bunker video review official following the game.
NRL head of football Graham Annesley on Saturday announced Bunker video referee Steve Chiddy has been stood down as a result of his failure to act in the moment Brown stuck his legs into the torso of Hutchinson.
The Roosters playmaker was on oxygen from the paramedics before being taken to hospital with broken ribs and a suspected punctured lung.
It happened as Niukore was placed on report for a shoulder charge on Roosters star James Tedesco.
The Eels pair learned their fate on Saturday with the NRL MRC slapping Brown with a four game ban, that can be reduced to three matches with an early guilty plea.
Niukore has also been hit with a three-match ban, that can be reduced to two weeks with an early guilty plea.
It will be cold comfort for Roosters fans after they were unable to use an injury sub as a result of how the officials handled Hutchinson’s injury just before half time.
Fox League’s Greg Alexander was baffled at half time.
“Drew Hutchison may not come back on the field and I don’t know how the Bunker or the on-field referee missed the knees in the back,” Alexander said.
“That should have been a reportable offence and the Roosters should have been able to replace Drew Hutchison with the 18th man.”
While the commentators appeared to be baffled by the sequence, social media called for that to earn some time on the sideline.
NRL commentators and fans labelled the two incidents “ridiculous” and “dog acts”.
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