Ashley Klein pays the price for crucial mistakes as NRL urges respect

The NRL has called for calm on referee abuse as the league’s leading whistlebowler is demoted for the preliminary finals.

Ashley Klein has paid the price for a couple of costly errors. Picture; Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Leading referee Ashley Klein has been dropped for this weekend’s preliminary finals after the veteran whistleblower made a couple of crucial error’s in Melbourne’s thrilling win over the Roosters.

Klein has refereed 23 finals matches, 14 State of Origins and was in charge of last year’s decider but has come under fire for missing a blatant Harry Grant knock-on as well as a high shot on the Storm hooker just before their matchwinning try.

The NRL admitted on Monday that both calls were incorrect, with the Storm scoring a try a minute after the missed knock-on, while Melbourne should have been awarded a penalty that would have put them in front for the high tackle.

The missed call didn’t hurt the Storm because they scored a try two plays later to hit the lead, but the mistakes have cost Klein, with Adam Gee and Gerard Sutton in charge of the two preliminary finals.

Ashley Klein has been dropped after the veteran referee missed two big calls in Melbourne’s win over the Roosters. Picture: NRL Imagery

Klein will still be involved this weekend, with the veteran in the Bunker for Brisbane’s game against the Warriors on Saturday.

Klein could still come into contention for the grand final after doing a good job in last year’s decider, but Gee is now the favourite for that job having also been in charge of last week’s match in New Zealand.

NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo was asked about Klein before the appointments were made official, with the game’s boss urging fans to treat referees with more respect after Klein was the victim of online abuse.

NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo has called on fans, players, coaches and the media to treat referees with more respect. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

“One of the things we need to work on in our game is the culture that we have around blame and the culture we sometimes have around personalising things,” Abdo said.

“Players make mistakes, officials make mistakes and referees make mistakes, and that shows we’re all human.

“We’re obviously striving for a high level of accuracy and also making quick decisions at the same time.”

Abdo praised Roosters coach Trent Robinson and Storm skipper Christian Welch for how they conducted themselves after the game, and he hoped fans, players, journalists and other coaches could follow suit in the future when a call didn’t go their way.

Referee abuse has been an issue in sports across the world, and Abdo doesn’t want to see people walk away from the role at the grassroots level.

Adam Gee is the new favourite to referee the NRL grand final after Klein was dumped. Picture; Matt King/Getty Images

“When someone makes an error, to infer that the error was deliberate or to infer that errors are a blight on our game (is wrong). Our officials are incredibly professional, and no one knows this more than me,” he said.

“I engage with them regularly, I see how hard they train and prepare, and I also know how much they are assessed and analysed from a statistical perspective after each and every game.

“These guys, like the players, love the game and are hugely committed to the game. Like the players, they are going to have form changes, and their form will ebb and flow.

“As a result of that, the feedback and selections of referees – like in any high-performance environment – will change over time.

“A referee might have a bad game and they might not be elevated or they might not be selected, but that doesn’t mean that we’re not supporting them and it doesn’t mean that they won’t make it back.

“You’ll see match officials get bigger games as they strike form, and from time to time they might not be selected, and that’s completely normal.

“We can’t personalise things, and we need to understand there’s a human nature to what we do.”

Originally published as Ashley Klein pays the price for crucial mistakes as NRL urges respect