NRL coaches back Trent Robinson’s call for match review panel to handle on-field foul play

IT cost him $40,000 to make his point, but it looks like Trent Robinson’s Anzac Day blow up about diving was money well spent.

IT cost him $40,000 to make his point, but it looks like Trent Robinson’s Anzac Day blow up about diving was money well spent.

On Wednesday NRL coaches gave support to the Roosters coach’s stance to stop the bunker picking up on incidents of foul play that currently encourages players to stay down and milk penalties.

Rugby league fans will also be encouraged that finally some common sense might lead to another overdue rule change relating to on-field referees being forced to guess on crucial “try” or “no-try” calls before sending their decisions to the bunker.

Trent Robinson got in trouble for his blow-up — but he was in the right.

The other significant news to come out of the NRL coaches meeting was a recommendation to introduce extra time in this year’s finals series following last year’s grand final controversy.

Wayne Bennett called for a fairer system to decide big end of season matches and it looks like his views will now be endorsed.

Under the new proposal, five minutes extra time each way would be played in the event of a draw in all finals matches before the game goes to golden point if needed to decide a winner.

The three potential changes will now go before the NRL competition committee next week.

Robinson wore the wrath of NRL boss Todd Greenberg and Dragons coach Paul McGregor for his fiery post-match media conference on Anzac Day after the bunker intervened to penalise Dylan Napa for a high shot.

But Robinson has since received plenty of support that diving is a scourge on the game that has to be eliminated.

Parramatta legend Peter Sterling launched his own stinging attack on the rising culture this week after Jamie Lyon’s Academy Award-winning effort last weekend against the Cowboys.

Sterling said of Lyon’s performance: “If I had done that or a Parramatta player had done that Jack Gibson would have dropped us.

“Wouldn’t it be nice to think this could be player led, that the players would have enough character not to do it.

“We used to laugh at soccer players doing it.”

The NRL needs to stop players from milking foul play.

But the overwhelming view of the coaches was that if on-field officials miss an alleged act of foul play, then it should be left up to the match review panel to determine punishment — and not the bunker.

The controversial “try” and “no-try” calls have also been a minefield for the on-field referees who are forced to make a verdict on crucial decisions they sometimes have no idea about.

Many believe it would be far better for the on-field referee to send it to the bunker without a judgment if the referee has no clear view.

That who then not force the bunker to find sufficient evidence to overturn a decision, but it could simply rule on what the video evidence suggests.

But the coaches now need the NRL’s competition committee to rubber stamp the changes next week.

There is hope that former Penrith coach Ivan Cleary will bring some common sense to the system.

Meanwhile the NRL announced that Ivan Cleary would now be a consultant to assist with match review charges as well as judiciary and refereeing issues.

The match review committee will also now lay charges against players within 24 hours of each match from round 10, to give clubs maximum notice of any charges they face.

In addition, each match will be reviewed by at least two match review committee members, instead of one, to provide a second view on each incident.

The meeting also debated the current obstruction rules before endorsing the current system.

Originally published as NRL coaches back Trent Robinson’s call for match review panel to handle on-field foul play