Cameron McInnes to seek 'clarity' from NRL after captain's challenge denied

Sharks skipper Cameron McInnes will seek clarity with the NRL after his side was denied a crucial captain's challenge against the Panthers.

The incident came with 16 minutes left in the match, as the Sharks trailed 24-16.

McInnes was tackled by Matt Eisenhuth and Moses Leota on the second tackle, with the referee repeatedly yelling surrender before the ball came loose.

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Ashley Klein ruled a knock on but McInnes wanted to challenge. Klein said he could not.

On commentary, Andrew Johns was baffled.

"What's going on there?" he said on Nine.

Post-match, McInnes declared he'd be seeking out the NRL for an explanation.

"I'd like some clarity on that because the dialogue to me was with that surrender call, which again, I want clarity on as well because there was a lot of surrender calls tonight," he said in his post-match press conference.

"He said that I'm not allowed a challenge, which I wasn't aware of that. I thought you could challenge any play, so I'd like some feedback on that."

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Cronulla Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon backed up his captain's assessment.

"I just thought, as a rule, that if he rules that, that's a stop in play that you are allowed to challenge, but we'll figure that out," Fitzgibbon said.

"It was costly."