Felise Kaufusi to miss four weeks after suspension for Jackson Hastings hit upheld
Felise Kaufusi has been rubbed out of the Dolphins' blockbuster clash against the Broncos after his suspension for a late hit on Newcastle's Jackson Hastings was upheld.
Having originally been offered three weeks with an early plea, Kaufusi will instead miss four weeks.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Kaufusi said he was "disappointed" with the result.
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Dolphins star Felise Kaufusi has had his three-match ban upheld. Fox League
"I thought we had good grounds to fight the downgrade, but I guess the panel didn't see it that way." Kaufusi said.
"I'm pretty disappointed with the verdict. It'll take some time for this to sink in."
Dolphins assistant coach Nathan Fien was speaking to Peter Psaltis on Wide World of Sports Radio on 4BC in Brisbane when the decision was handed down.
"We thought it was a really good case to present in terms of the information that we had," he said.
"I spent a lot of time getting the defence together … [so] that's disappointing.
"Look, it's rugby league, and at the end of the day we've got those young guys ready to step up. We definitely won't have any excuses on Friday night.
"Onwards and upwards."
In a busy night for the Judiciary, Kaufisi was one of three players fighting charges.
Storm halfback Jahrome Hughes also turned down a one-game ban to fight a dangerous contact charge for a hit on his Titans opposite number Tanah Boyd.
He too, was unsuccessful and will also miss an extra game as a result of losing at the judiciary.
Storm lawyer Nick Ghabar argued Hughes was instead bracing for Boyd's kick to drill him in the face.
"At this stage player Hughes braces, closes his eyes and turns away to avoid ball being kicked in his face," Ghabar said.
But NRL legal counsel Patrick Knowles disagreed, saying Hughes made "no attempt ... to effect a tackle or even a charge down".
"It is twisting his shoulder, player Hughes made a beeline for player Boyd with no control.
"This is the type of conduct which must be stamped out of the game because of the risk of injury. It was obvious that there was going to be a kick on the last tackle and player Boyd shaped to kick."
Roosters prop Fletcher Baker was found not guilty of high contact on Rabbitohs centre Campbell Graham, and had his fine dropped.
