'Need a serious review': NRL admits 'crucial' call was wrong
The NRL has conceded Bradman Best’s length-of-the-field try in the second half of the State of Origin decider should have been scrubbed because Jack Bostock did indeed touch the ball.
Referee Ashley Klein awarded the try, but replays suggested the Blues debutant got a hand on the Reece Walsh bomb in the contest with Robert Toia. Best pounced on the loose Steeden and ran 95m to score against the momentum.
Jack Bostock touches the ball in the air. Nine
After Nathan Cleary was told to hold off on the kick while Bunker official Gerard Sutton reviewed the contest, the try was eventually awarded, much to the dismay of many in the ground and also those in the Nine commentary booth.
“That has gone forward,” Maroons legend Cameron Smith said.
“We can’t get that wrong, I’m sorry. It was a clear touch by Bostock at a crucial time … we just can’t get those wrong. We cannot get them wrong.”
On the sideline, former Blues coach Brad Fittler reported a sideline official told him the Bunker had determined from the corner post camera that Bostock did not touch the ball.
“I can’t get over that call,” Smith said in response.
But in a statement released on Wednesday night, the NRL conceded the Bunker got the decision wrong.
“After reviewing all available angles, the Bunker did not believe there was sufficient evidence to overturn the on-field decision,” the statement said.
“Upon detailed review after the match, the NRL believes that while it was an extremely tight decision, the ball appeared to be touched.”
On Nine’s post-game coverage, Smith called for a “serious review” of the Bunker.
“I haven’t seen the corner post vision and I don’t think anyone’s seen the corner post vision, but I think we’ll see a little bit more of this over the next few days,” Smith said.
“If that’s touched his hand, and it’s proved to have touched it, we need a serious review of the bunker.
Bradman Best celebrates scoring a try for NSW. NRL Imagery
“For the sake of the game, the NRL and the sport in general, I hope he hasn’t touched it. I really hope he hasn’t. But if he has, we need to sit down as a sport and make a decision on where we head with this Bunker.
“We spent a lot of money on it, we put trust in people to sit in there and make the right decision – that’s why we have this technology. If we’re not going to make the right decisions in the big games, in the big moments, flick it, and we’ll just get on with the way Joey wants to do it. Let’s just play it in real time.
“Would that (try) have changed the result? Probably not, but it was at a pretty crucial point in the game where Queensland were down by 10 points.”
Johns has long-argued footage should be reviewed in real time and not in slow motion. He also acknowledged the difficulty facing officials in the Bunker due to what he called “wishy-washy” terminology introduced into the game.
Bostock laughed off the call post-match and insisted he didn’t touch the ball, declaring on Nine “the ref got it right, I didn’t touch it”.
Queensland coach Billy Slater said he did not get a clear view of the incident, so was unable to form a view on the ruling. He added he felt his team continued to fight despite the controversy.
The call came at a crucial time in the match. The Blues led 18-8, but the Maroons were on the attack and threatening to mount a comeback. Instead, the Blues’ lead was stretched back to 16 points with just over 20 minutes to play.
Having pounced on the ball, Best pinned his ears back and broke into space, eventually pushing off a tackle attempt by Knights teammate Kalyn Ponga, who was the only player in the frame to stop him. Best managed to palm off Ponga’s attempt, and raced away to score the Blues’ fourth try.
It was clear on the replay Toia’s hand had touched the ball backwards, but Nine’s commentators were convinced Bostock had also got a finger on it.
“That was a try for the ages … but I think that might’ve come off Bostock’s hand,” Andrew Johns said on Nine.
“This is going to come all the way back. Wow,” Smith added.
Cleary was puzzled when he was told to delay his conversion attempt, but he was eventually cleared to do exactly that and extend NSW’s lead to 24-8.
