Stu M wrote:
I'm not defending Lee's swinging arm, it was reckless and I would've expected a 1-2 game ban. He dropped the ball from a carry and it seemed the red mist came down and he swung a lazy arm. However as I've said I'm disputing the broken ankle as a result. It's completely different to the Knowles/Cooper incident.
We are certainly no angels however when you look at the timings of these "late hits" there are milliseconds in them. The Sironen one- if he leaves Croft then its the chance of a dummy by Croft and a walk in try, he has to effect the tackle and was committed. There was no malice in it. Lomax takes it to the line frequently and is clobbered but nothing the other way.
Whilst I appreciate that previous form is causing the bans, its also unfair to single players out purely because they have been guilty before.
We are on the verge of a tic and pass competition with the best players in the stands every week. It's a joke.
i've just seen the Lees tackle on twitter for the 1st time. I agree that D is harsh, and that in this instance taking a broken ankle into account as a result of a high tackle is incorrect IMO. I've posted on this forum and the Warriors fans previously, that taking an injury outcome on a tackle is going down a dangerous route / precedent. I've seen high tackles (bad ones) where the player has just got up, cos they are hard as nails / hard head etc etc, but someone else has seemingly only been caught lightly but outcome far worse. with Cooper / Knowles, there is far more chance that the injury was as a result of the tackle than the Lees one at weekend, and in that instance, i can understand that it could be used when grading the discretion
I think we all know that some players, across all teams, play the game right on the edge, and at times, as you say, are a split second off with their timing. Unfortunately, given the current rulings, they either need to adapt, or accept that they are going to cop bans. I know as fans we want to see the star players on the pitch, but equally, given the pending court case, we also need to protect the players or another court case in a few years time could be the end of the game as RL aint flush with millions in the bank