Penrith coach Ivan Cleary has unleashed on the NRL bunker after his workforce booked a ticket to its fifth straight NRL grand remaining with victory over Cronulla.
The Panthers ended up with a convincing 26-6 victory over the Sharks, however have been denied a attempt with the sport nonetheless up for grabs within the 58th minute.
With scores tight at 10-2, winger Sunia Turuva crossed on the tip of a slick left-side shift and on-field referee Ashley Klein referred to as it a attempt.
However the bunker overturned the decision because it dominated an obstruction from contact between Panthers again rower Luke Garner and Cronulla’s Sifa Talakai.
The Sharks went up the opposite finish and received their solely attempt of the match by Sione Katoa earlier than the Panthers regained management with three tries within the remaining 20 minutes, however Cleary despatched a transparent message in his post-match press convention.
The coach and his son and captain Nathan Cleary each mentioned they ran the play to perfection and Garner ran in direction of Talakai’s inside shoulder, with the Sharks centre initiating contact earlier than going to floor.
Not solely did Ivan label the choice flawed, he singled out the bunker official by identify.
“It was a horrible choice,” he instructed reporters, kicking off a rant that may absolutely earn him a hefty wonderful.
“And that provides me a whole lot of nervousness round subsequent week if that official, I believe it was Chris Butler … I do not need to, I should not say that … however that was flawed, and it has been occurring all 12 months.”
The three-time premiership-winning coach cited veteran Wayne Bennett’s complaints after the ultimate sport of the common season, when he referred to as for the bunker to be scrapped after his Dolphins have been denied a attempt by an analogous name.
“That worries me about subsequent week, if that very same bunker official, both he or another person going off the identical script … I am involved,” Cleary mentioned.
“We received by it clearly, nevertheless it’s simply horrible. There is no understanding of what we’re attempting to do, the play we’re attempting to run, when it is run correctly.
“I do know we received by the sport tonight, however subsequent week, the most important sport of the 12 months, I might hate for one thing like that to occur. Whoever’s in [the bunker] wants to know what we’re attempting to do.
“There’s a whole lot of referees not reffing subsequent week, among the finest within the sport, so absolutely somebody can work that out.”
Cleary could have been referring to Adam Gee, who earned plaudits for his efforts as the first match official in final 12 months’s grand remaining, however who has not been given management of a sport on this 12 months’s finals sequence.
