The Tackle: Bunker blunder of Meaney-Suaalii tackle, blatant trip on Nathan Cleary goes unpunished, return of Adam Reynolds exposes major flaw
It was a challenge that effectively ended Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii’s night, but one which saw Nick Meaney escape with just a penalty against him, a light punishment for a very dangerous moment. FATIMA KDOUH writes in The Tackle.
Fatima Kdouh reveals her likes and dislikes from round 20 of the NRL season.
DISLIKES
BUNKER MISS
Nick Meaney’s tackle on Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, which up-ended the Roosters star into a somersault, was an accident but also incredibly dangerous.
The kind of dangerous accidents that in the past have resulted in a sin bin.
Except Meaney escaped with just a penalty and only because the Bunker overruled referee Grant Atkins’ initial call of a knock-on against Suaalii.
Roosters skipper James Tedesco could be heard arguing with Atkins that Suaalii was tackled in the air, which he was.
What’s the difference between a player contesting a bomb being tackled in the air and one leaping to take a pass?
We’ve heard on a number of occasions this year referees citing the risk of injury as a reason to sin bin a player for foul or illegal players.
The risk of injury to Suaalii was certainly obvious and the 20-year-old is lucky to have landed on his shoulder before his head and neck.
Suaalii, winded after the tackle, was forced from the field for a HIA with eight minutes to go, effectively ending his night. Meaney is lucky not to have joined him, but in the bin.
TRIP GOES UNPUNISHED
Superstar halfback Nathan Cleary did what Nathan Cleary does and nailed a clutch two-point field goal in golden point to deliver a thrilling win for Penrith against the Dolphins.
But it should not have come to that.
With scores tied at 26-all and less than four minutes left on the clock, Cleary was tripped by Dolphins hooker Max Plath when the no.7 appeared to make a break.
Cleary, who has been sidelined with a hamstring injury since round 10, could be seen remonstrating with referee Adam Gee as he lay on the ground after he was felled by Plath.
Gee could be heard telling Cleary that Plath had his arms out at the time, seeming to indicate that the no.9 was attempting to make a tackle.
But both referee Gee and the Bunker let the illegal play slide and did not take a second look at the dodgy looking effort from Plath.
At the very least, a trip should always be a penalty offence.
It’s exactly the kind of incident that the Bunker should have intervened on, especially if Gee had missed it in the chaos of the final minutes.
Had the Bunker ruled on the Plath’s trip, Cleary would have rightly been awarded the opportunity to close out the game on the back of what would have been a very kickable goal for the Panthers sharp shooter.
Yes it would have been from 45 metres out, but Cleary did nail the field goal, under pressure, from a similar distance.
The game was in the balance and the Dolphins already had Josh Kerr in the bin but that is not a good enough reason to not blow the penalty.
REYNOLDS RETURN EXPOSES BRONCOS FLAW
The return of Adam Reynolds from a biceps injury has exposed a major concern for Kevin Walters – Brisbane lack footy smarts without their general halfback.
The flash and strike is there in the bucket loads for the Broncos but without Reynolds on the field for 10 weeks, the side had no direction game management or the luxury of experienced head.
Reynolds said it himself after guiding the side to its first win in over two months, snapping a six-game losing streak against Newcastle.
“Keep a steady head out there, when things go wrong, pull the boys back into line and play the long game. Over the last couple of weeks we have been inpatient at times and try to score off every play,” Reynolds said post-match.
With his calmness and control, Reynolds was able to bring Reece Walsh into the contest, and the livewire fullback was at his lethal best scoring a try, setting up two others and making two line breaks and four line break assists.
It was a similar story for five-eighth Ezra Mam, who looked confident in his running game again and combined seamlessly with Reynolds.
While the result against the Knights would be a sigh of relief for Walters, the coach must have serious concerns about the lack of football IQ when Reynolds is not there to steer the ship.
Football IQ is more than the stuff that can be measured, like kicking and game management.
It’s also about composure, patience and the ability to stick in the coach’s game plan. None of which this young Broncos outfit looks fully capable of doing without Reynolds.
The worry for Walters is the fact the Broncos haven’t been able to find a solution when Reynolds is not there in the immediate term.
The reality for Walters is that Brisbane are likely to have more periods without the veteran in the future.
Jock Madden showed some promise when he first replaced Reynolds back in May but simply didn’t have the same authority on the side that Reynolds does.
The likes of Josh Rogers are merely depth players and stopgap options.
Then there are concerns for life after Reynolds, 34, when the halfback hangs up the boots at the end of 2025.
Young gun Coby Black is viewed as an heir apparent to Reynolds but is still only 18 years old and will need time to develop his game.
The name of Roosters star Sam Walker has been tossed up but the Bondi club has only last week moved to stave off any attempts from rivals, like Brisbane, to swoop in and lure him away.
Brisbane have the strike and athleticism to be a genuine title contender but without Reynolds, or a worthy replacement for the No.7, the Broncos will struggle to be the same threat to the competition.
ORIGIN SCHEDULE
Bradman Best’s latest hamstring injury is a blow to the Knights but a ringing endorsement for the RLPA’s desire to protect players from backing up so soon after Origin.
Best managed a right hamstring injury into what was one of the most brutal Origin games ever but then left the field clutching his left hamstring after nine minutes against Brisbane – just three days after the Suncorp Stadium decider.
Bradman Best off with a hamstring injury - the 4th hamstring issue for him this season.
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) July 20, 2024
Reported some hamstring tightness after his last game for the Knights prior to Origin 3 - now backing up with 2 games in 3 days. Any sort of strain would likely be a multi-week recovery. pic.twitter.com/7EHaBSSFKG
It might be two different injuries but raises the question over whether his short turnaround played a part.
The NRL will look at Origin scheduling in the off-season, and while stand alone series and Monday night Origin might not be popular options, player welfare must be paramount.
Clubs won’t risk players that are injured and Best got the all-clear from both Blues and Knights medical staff.
But there is still a badge of honour among players to back-up from Origin.
Even Queensland coach Billy Slater admitted players wrestle with the pressure to line-up for their clubs after Origin.
“Absolutely … you have to take it out of the player’s hand. The player is always going to say ‘I want to play, I’m not willing to let my teammates down,” Slater said on Channel 9.
SLOW STARTS AND DISCIPLINE
Spencer Leniu will be the next spiritual leader of the Roosters pack and that’s a good enough reason to start the firebrand while current kingpin Jared Waerea-Hargreaves is out suspended.
Backing up from Origin duty, both Leniu and Lindsay Collins started from the bench against Melbourne but the duo should be the Roosters’ one-two punch this week against Manly – and until Waerea-Hargreaves returns in round 25.
While Leniu will add venom early to the Roosters’ power game as a starter, coach Trent Robinson has every right to be disappointed with his side’s ill-discipline against Melbourne. Both Victor Radley and Connor Watson were sin binned for taking players off the ball in try scoring opportunities.
With the Roosters on the back foot after a slow start, letting in two early tries, Robinson’s men cannot afford to be down to 12 players for 60 minutes against a side like Melbourne. Not if the Roosters are to have any chance of breaking their hoodoo of 19 losses from 20 attempts against competition benchmarks Melbourne and Penrith.
Daniel Tupou was also pinged for the same offence against Harry Grant. From experienced stars the coach should expect better.
The Roosters have now conceded 130 penalties, 27 more than even the Tigers.
There are concerns over Dominic Young’s defence, who missed four tackles and misreads lead to two Storm tries.
The return of centre Joey Manu from a hand injury will help shore up the right edge but he is still only a small chance of making a comeback against Manly.
NOT WINNERS
The Tigers don’t know how to win.
Coach Benji Marshall said it himself after leading at the 60th minute against South Sydney before crumbling to a 42-28 loss.
The Tigers made 11 errors in the second half and let in three tries with 20 minutes left on the clock, one while Aidan Sezer was in the sin bin in the 70 minute. It was the 15th time a Tigers player was sin binned this year.
It was a deflating loss given the efforts from prop Stefano Utoikamanu and lock Fonua Pole in the middle, putting their more senior forwards to shame.
Unless the Tigers are willing to work and defend hard for 80 minutes, the side’s ability to produce moments of brilliance, like the 70-metre try started and finished by Jahream Bula, are inconsequential.
There are still green shoots, Tallyn Da Silva was electric at hooker deputising for Api Koroisau, setting up Lachlan Galvin for a try and crossing over himself in the first half.
But for all the green shoots, the side’s ill-discipline hasn’t improved both in terms of foul play and basic errors.
Unless those areas improve, and drastically, it’ll be some time yet before the Tigers learn how to win. And that only means more heartache for long suffering Tigers fans.
LIKES
EYE ON THE PRIZE
Every week a new player exemplifies the toughness needed to be an NRL player.
On Sunday, it was Manly rookie Lehi Hopoate who played with an injury so gruesome that his left eye had completely closed up.
But the skilful back only needed one good eye to finish off a left side shift late in the first half to give Manly the lead into the break against the Gold Coast Titans.
It wasn’t until he was taken from the field from a head injury assessment that medical staff discovered the youngster had actually fractured his eye socket.
STORM FLYING
The depth in Melbourne’s roster is the envy of the NRL, and the reason the Storm can flex its premiership muscle in 2024.
Winger Grant Anderson was superb against the Roosters crossing for two tries and making two crucial try saving tackles but ended the game with a serious knee injury.
Not that it would worry Craig Bellamy, even though Xavier Coates (hamstring) is still three weeks from returning to the field. Electric rookie Sua Fa’alogo is waiting in the wings, literally, to fill the void.
Fa’alogo has been a strike weapon off the bench, scoring three tries from his last two games but the young fullback is as capable in the outside backs.
Tyran Wishart hasn’t missed a beat in the halves with Cameron Munster sidelined since round 11. The side was also without veteran forwards Christian Welch and Nelson Asofa-Solomona in Saturday’s win against the Roosters.
Melbourne are now on a six-game winning streak high and Munster and Asofa-Solomona are set to be injected this week against the Eels.
The Storm are now the only team that look likely to end Penrith’s premiership dominance.
GOAL KICKERS GET THEIR DUES
The string of shanks from second and third string goal kickers over the last couple of weeks is proof the game’s best sharp shooters are as valuable to competition points as any other player on the field.
After 20 rounds there have been at least 62 different goal kickers, in what some are calling a crisis in the goal kicking ranks.
According to Fox Sports Lab, 19 matches had been decided by goal kicking after 19 rounds.
That number is now 20 games after Chanel Harris-Tavita missed all three conversion attempts in the Warriors 20-18 loss to the Raiders. Harris-Tavita assumed kicking duties midgame from Adam Pompey, who had kicked one goal before coming off the field with a knee injury.
He missed a ‘sitter’ and the chance to level the scores with around six minutes left on the clock.
Pompey had taken over the kicking tee while Shaun Johnson (Achillies) is out injured, but he too is now in doubt for the Tigers clash.
South Sydney’s Cody Walker stepped up to replace Latrell Mitchell last week but refused to go anywhere near the kicking tee against the Tigers on Saturday after missing three from four attempts against the Dolphins – he and Taane Milne missed four from six attempts, proving the difference last week.
CLEARY IS CLUTCH
Even with his $1.3 million price tag, Penrith’s Nathan Cleary is still a bargain.
A hamstring injury had sidelined Cleary since round 10 but there were no signs of rust for the champion halfback against the Dolphins in the Panthers’ 28-26 thrilling win.
Not only did he nail a two-point field goal in golden point, Cleary did it steering around a side stitched together by four rookies, including boom back Casey McLean, and as many depth players like Brad Schneider in the halves and Daine Laurie at fullback.
The Dolphins would have fancied their chances against a Penrith outfit missing five Origin stars – Dylan Edwards, Jarome Luai, Isaah Yeo, Brian To’o and Liam Martin – and Wayne Bennett’s men got to a 14-point lead at one point.
But with Cleary on the field the result never felt in doubt and that a clutch moment was inevitable.
And when Cleary is at his dominant best a fourth-straight title also feels as likely for the Panthers.
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