Lay the hell off Ben Cummins. The bloke made an honest mistake and we all need to get over it right now.
As a heart and soul Canberra Raiders supporter, I am really upset that we fell at the last hurdle.
I’m also disappointed that there were two incidents in the game that – had they not occurred – may have seen a different result. That’s fair enough. But I’ve let it go now.
In the cool light of day, it really isn’t that big a deal.
I’m disappointed for the Roosters fans that the gloss has been taken off their victory.
They are deserving premiers. They have been the team to beat all season and their performance in the decider was top notch.
Further, the overwhelming majority of Chooks fans that I engaged with pre, during and post match were good people and graceful winners. Sure, there have been a few vile trolls, but every side has those. Mine sure does.
These fans don’t deserve to have their victory diminished, nor their celebrations muted.
It’s not right or fair. It’s not a reasonable response. Their side didn’t cheat. There was no thuggery at all. They played a really tough game. They were outstanding.
Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images
That the ball hit the Roosters trainer and robbed the Raiders of advantage infuriates me. However, not because the trainer deliberately cheated. He didn’t.
It was a freak occurrence. Every side does exactly the same thing with their trainers. It could just as easily have been a charge down cannoning into Canberra trainer Brett White.
Trainers being constantly present on the field is endemic in the NRL. What annoyed me is that I’ve been asking for years to rein this in or risk just such an incident. The NRL ignored those warnings only for them to be proven true in the biggest game of the season, and to the disadvantage of my team.
It will be an indictment on the NRL and the ARLC board if those responsible for that dreadful administration aren’t dealt with severely.
But it is not the fault of Trent Robinson or his team.
When it comes to the horrific vilification of Ben Cummins in regard to the reversal of the six again call, people have to stop.
Cummins made a split-second mistake. That’s all. No one died. Nobody’s house burned down. Nobody lost their livelihood.
We have all stuffed up. Every one of us. Each of us has messed up something royally at least once. My life is a patchwork of stuff ups. I’m grateful that I’ve been forgiven for so many of them and given another go.
Cummins is the same as us. He’s just a human. He made a mistake and, horribly for him, it was on a massive stage.
He’ll be totally devastated by it. He’ll be inconsolable.
How do I know? Because in all my interactions with him, I have found him to be genuinely friendly and respectful.
You can also tell that he is well-liked among his colleagues. He regularly engages in fund-raising activities for things like children’s hospitals. He doesn’t make a song and dance about it, or try to get acclaim for it. He just does it.
This is not a bad or nasty man. Far from it.
Further, suggestions of corruption on his part are ludicrous, baseless and are only being made by idiots.
Cummins isn’t just a good referee, he’s a great referee. He got the gig for the grand final on this basis.
This is a bloke who debuted in Round 9 of 2006 – 14 seasons ago – and has subsequently controlled 398 top-level games of rugby league. That experience includes 35 finals, 14 State of Origin games, as well as 16 internationals. Last Sunday’s grand final was his fifth decider.
You simply don’t get that amount of experience if you aren’t a superb referee.
That he made an error must not be used as a justification to destroy his record or his standing in the game. It happened in a split second. What’s amazing is it doesn’t happen more.
Let’s pause for a second to remember that Cummins was beloved by most of us for his “rubbish on the face” call on Cam Smith less than two months ago. We were celebrating his stance and his righteousness.
And there was that time he sent Will Chambers to the sin bin, which NSW Origin fans just loved. (AAP Image/Brendon Thorne)
Now we are going to paint him as incompetent and expect it to hold any water?
Really?
And here’s the ugly truth for all you supporters frothing over this matter: even if the Raiders got six more tackles, there is no guarantee that they would have scored.
In the previous 70 minutes they had only scored one try. Ten of those minutes their opponents defended with 12 men.
Just like the decision to rule Suliasi Vunivalu incorrectly in touch in the first week of the finals, all the decision did was deny Canberra possession. It did not deny a try.
We have all got to suck it up and move on. We’ve got to give the champions the kudos they deserve.
And we’ve got to lay off Ben Cummins.
Unless you’ve never had a shocker, you’ve got not right to bear a grudge on this. We need to let him know that we appreciate that he’s a great referee, that we know everyone makes mistakes, and that in the grand scheme of things it isn’t that big of a deal.
Because it really isn’t.
Joe
Guest
Bump. I'm sorry but Ben Cummins is trash :laughing:
Zavjalova
Roar Rookie
Theres an old saying... "sh*t happens". It's just too bad it happened in a grand final which directly contributed to the result
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
I apologise for not taking your post seriously and then giving irrational responses. I should've checked out the video rather than relying on my memory that may be deteriorating. I stubbornly continue to trust my memory but it isn't great and I will have to check my facts. I didn't say I didn't know the video was there but I have ignored it and trusted my memory. I will make use of it before commenting in future.
My Little Pony
Roar Rookie
Peter, that's OK. There appears to be one thing everyone agrees on and that is trainers shouldn't be on the field whilst the ball is in play. Let's hope the NRL finally do something about it.
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
Yes you are correct and I apologise for my embarrassing error. I should've said the Easts trainer gave the Raiders no chance of scoring a try. As my post on 10/10/2019@12:06am says "There was a chance he could’ve scored a try from the charge down but it has nothing to do with their chances of scoring in the last 8 minutes." I will have to lift my game and thanks for putting up with me and correcting my erroneous statements.
My Little Pony
Roar Rookie
That isn't in the rules, it's in the NRL's 'On Field Policy'. It doesn't allow for the referee to issue any form of penalty in response to a trainer causing disadvantage to an opposing team. Penalties handed down in these situations have come from the governing body and most often involve fines or in some cases, suspensions. In the GF incident, the referees could only apply rule 8.1 (e): when play is irregularly affected by the ball or the player carrying the ball coming into contact with the Referee, a Touch Judge, or with any person not taking part in the match or with any object which should not normally be on the playing field.
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
Yes I've been shown, thanks to you and some others that it would've been a penalty to Easts and therefore the trainer did not stop the Raiders from having a chance to score a try. Hopefully they will change the rule for next year.
jsmith
Roar Rookie
According to a newspaper report, The rules say that the trainer's presence can't "constitute a disadvantage to the opposing team". Don't get many clearer examples than this one.
Brendon
Roar Rookie
It wasn't the best example and it is definitely a two way relationship, but saying the refs aren't paid by the club's isn't fair either. It's not a direct transaction but the existence of both bodies is mutually beneficial as you pointed out. To say who cares if a club loses money because of a ref isn't a fair comment either, I was just trying to explain a justification as to why that logic doesn't work.
Brendon
Roar Rookie
He has broken the rules. We've all heard of section 9:16 now, the ref can't change ruling mid play unless foul play is evident that was not prior ruled. The Raiders lost $600K as a direct result of this game....?
Tah-Man
Roar Pro
@My Little Pony - yes absolutely. In fact there's footage of a similar tackle early in the season resulting in a send off for an attack on Cam Munster.
Tah-Man
Roar Pro
Yes, the trainer rule clearly is a dumb rule. I agree with that and it's likely it will change in the off season. But it was a freak occurrence and ultimately it overshadowed what would most likely have been a penalty to the Roosters.
My Little Pony
Roar Rookie
We have no idea whether a try would have been scored. I account for the Roosters being given the scrum-feed because that's the rules. Now that you've seen the footage, are you of the view that Soliola made illegal contact with Keary's legs?
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
What claim? How do you account for an opposition trainer stopping a try being scored and being rewarded by giving his team the ball?
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
That was the Super League year wasn't it? I can think of 11 million reasons why that year's finals were rubbish. In the first elimination final St-George played Canterbury who couldn't break the defence so with a few minutes to go Canterbury used a decoy runner to run in front of the ball carrier and take out the defender allowing the bulldogs to score a try and win the game.
My Little Pony
Roar Rookie
I told you a few times to watch a replay including mentioning the replay was playing constantly on this forum, right next to where you were reading at the time. Now, you’re saying you didn’t know that. So, you claimed for days that Soliola hadn’t made contact with Keary’s legs even though you hadn’t even looked at the footage. I don’t have any problem with the referees. They didn’t penalise the incident because they missed it. Infringements are missed in all games and that is something I accept. I don’t sit around whining for days that a referee’s decision in the third minute of a game definitely caused a team to lose a game because that is patently absurd.
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
Who have you been arguing with MLP? All you've told me is conduct a poll and illuminate myself. If you feel strongly about it you should contact the NRL and make a complaint about the refereeing. Maybe they can tell you why there was no penalty. Is there anything else in my post that you disagree with?
Mark
Guest
I think this: it was one mistake, Canberra were not to have the ball because of what they did. It was misdone or something else- but the right call was made in the end. Maybe the rules say you can't change a call. Whatever. That may be unsatisfactory for many people I know but for mine and many others Canberra had plenty of chances anyway; and no matter how much I wanted them to win they didn't score the points and that would have been a small chance anyway at that moment. It was the end of the year essentially for the ref and maybe it was a mind snap with just 10 mins left, but whatever its all over blown. 1000 right calls and one wrong, there was a stage not too long ago where the world would be very happy with that. I remember in the 90s too guys, where the commentators continually gave the benefit of the doubt or said the 50-50 calls went either way. Where did that go. Face it - so much of the rugby league media and fanbase is out to get the refs - and yes this incident highlights it among other things - but its absolutely f en king disgraceful. I think they should strive to be the best they can be but also to lay off them I think. If Canberra were meant to win against that defence they would have put 20 points on them, but they did not. Its as easy as that
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
Thanks Andrew I didn't know that but I did ask a few people why a penalty wasn't given.
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
I'm a St-George-Illawarra fan and have been following the game since 1963. I played in the St-George JRLFC and loved it. I gave up at the end of the 1972 after getting knocked out in just about every game. I had a few games playing for ANU before I left Canberra. I'm just saying it's a stupid rule and since this is a Rugby League discussion group it's the place to say it.