Another round of NRL, another weekend of Bunker controversies with video replay officials once again finding themselves under the pump over some questionable calls.
The moment that cost Manly a chance at running down the Eels on Sunday afternoon came when Tom Trbojevic broke through the defence and put Tolu Koula over to score.
The Bunker denied the try after they ruled Jake Trbojevic ran into the defensive line and stopped, which blocked Luca Moretti from making a play at Tom.
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It would have brought the Sea Eagles within two points with 15 minutes to play, but by the letter of the law Jake needed to avoid stopping in a position that obstructed a defender.
However, rugby league great Laurie Daley called for officials to apply more “common sense” in the Bunker.
“I don’t agree with it because I don’t think there was any common sense applied,” Daley said on Big Sports Breakfast.
“But what we’ve seen adjudicated all year is if you run into the line and stop and a defender is impeded…. you’re in all sorts.
“Now Moretti dropped off yesterday, for sure, he was never going to stop Tom Trbojevic, but unfortunately, the fact Jake was in the road and denied him the opportunity to close down that space and Tom went through that space, it was always going to be pulled back.
“But the best referees always have a feel for the game. You know why we get good State of Origin games and good grand finals? Because they put the whistle away.
“The NRL will argue the best players adhere to the rules better, but I think in those big games you’re not nitpicking as much as a regular season game.”
Manly skipper Daly Cherry-Evans suggested Moretti knew what he was doing, but added he was ok with the Bunker’s decision as long as they applied it consistently.
“You understand the ruling yeah, so you can understand it so it’s black and white right, but those ones are really hard to watch,” Cherry-Evans said.
“Because the rule is black and white so I get it, but watching that one it’s at the other end of the spectrum isn’t it.
“I don’t think he’s going to get there so well played to him, he’s played to the rules.
“Consistency is the key in the NRL… as it stands that’s the way it goes so no problems with it as it stands.”
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Eels coach Brad Arthur believed it was a clear-cut call and said his team were denied a similar ruling in the first half.
“No, it’s obstruction, you can’t stop in the line,” Arthur said
“There was an obstruction before halftime where they got away with it anyway.”
Unsurprisingly, Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold saw it differently but admitted he was biased.
“I’m biased, so I thought it was a try, but again it wasn’t ruled a try and we had to keep fighting,” Seibold said.
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Earlier in Round 3, the Raiders were controversially denied two tries by the Bunker in a brutal loss to the Warriors.
Canberra prop Joe Tapine looked to have scored a try next to the posts in the 59th minute that would have put his side ahead 16-6 in Christchurch on Friday night.
But after a lengthy review, the Bunker found a dubious knock on from Tapine in a decision that turned the game in the hosts favour.
The Warriors then marched down field and scored two tries in three minutes in what proved the final points of the match.
The Tapine no try came after the Raiders were denied in similar fashion in the first half.
Teenager Ethan Strange barged his way to the line and the No. 6 looked to have planted the ball on the line in the 30th minute.
But referee Liam Kennedy, who had a forgettable night with the whistle, took issue with the grounding and called it a no try.
It went upstairs and Bunker official didn’t see enough to overturn the referee’s decision, as they rarely do on the 50-50 calls.
All eyes then turned to the post-match press conference of Canberra coach Ricky Stuart, but the Christchurch media somehow didn’t ask him about the Bunker.
Instead, it was captain Elliott Whitehead was asked “how frustrating” it was having the Bunker decisions go against his side.
“Yeah look it can get frustrating but we’ve got a job to do and we have to look past that,” Whitehead said.
Warriors coach Andrew Webster admitted the Raiders were in control of the match before the game-changing Bunker decision in the second half.
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“They were definitely on top. Somebody was going to have to come up with a momentum play and there were a couple of huge plays and then somebody got us a penalty,” Webster said.
“They found a way to get it done at the end and I think there’s going to be a huge amount of relief from the boys.”
Also on Friday night, Rabbitohs fullback Latrell Mitchell was binned after the Bunker ruled that he was guilty of a professional foul.
It had no bearing on the result as the Roosters were already ahead 30-6, but the officials said Mitchell ran off his line to take out James Tedesco in a try-scoring situation.
Mitchell was sent to the sin bin despite the Bunker conceding that Tedesco would not have scored.
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