A player has been sent off for the second night in a row after Titans forward Mo Fotuaika was sent off for a high shot on Warriors fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad.
The New Zealand Warriors have claimed a 28-18 win over the Gold Coast Titans in a dramatic clash at Cbus Super Stadium which saw some perplexing calls in a wild opening 20 minutes.
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Coming less than 24 hours after Roosters prop Nathan Brown was sensationally sent off in the Roosters’ 26-16 win over the Sea Eagles on Thursday night, the opening 20 minutes of the clash saw a high shot put on report, one sent off and a light open handed slap sin binned.
In the 13th minute of the match, Titans hooker Chris Randall was penalised after a captain’s challenge for a high shot on Dallin Watene-Zelezniak.
While the commentators and the referee missed it in live action, the Warriors were all over it.
Fox Sports commentator Andrew Voss questioned whether it would be “a potential sin bin”.
Steve Roach added: “It might even be a send off. He’s hit him clean on the chin flush.”
But referee Ben Cummins put the tackle on report.
“No sin bin,” Roach said after the call.
“Amazing, it’s hard to follow,” Voss added. “We’ve gone from some sin binned, some reports and some send offs we had last night.”
At halftime, James Graham said on Fox League that it should have been a “sin bin for sure”.
But a matter of four minutes later, Fotuaika hit Nicoll-Klokstad, rushing up out of the line and putting on a big shot.
It left the Warriors fullback in a bad way laying on the ground.
“That’s nearly exactly the same one as before from Randall — will they use the sin bin here?” Roach said.
“All we ask for is consistency, and the fact that it’s two in a row, it’ll be at least a sin bin.”
Although the sin bin has seemingly been the standard penalty for high shots in 2023, Cummins gave Fotuaika his marching orders.
Roach was perplexed.
“Can you tell me the difference between the first one and the second one?” he said.
At the break, Michael Ennis said there was “no other option”.
But he added it was “carnage” and Cummins was “under duress” as the tensions rose.
To make things more absurd, in the 19th minute, Marata Niukore was sin binned for a slap after the Warriors player stood his ground when David Fifita gave him a facial massage while he was being tackled.
“It’s slap, slap,” Voss said, indicating he believe both men gave as good as they got.
But the referee didn’t agree, sending Niukore off for 10 minutes.
“Oh no, not both of them,” Voss said.
“Niukore is off for, I wouldn’t even call it a slap, it’s a rub, he rubbed his cheek and he’s off for 10.
“In Cummins’ logic, one player goes off for 10 minutes for a so-called slap, Fifita pushes him in the face and doesn’t go off for anything. You can’t sin bin there, you can’t contend for that.”
Roach added: “It was a love tap.”
Corey Parker added at the half that it was a “ridiculous” sin bin.
“To think in our game at the moment, Fifita was the instigator here,” he said.
“Fifita absolutely initiates contact, pushes him in the face, Marata Niukore with the lazy how-you-going back and he gets 10 off the back of it.
“If Fifita’s able to do that with ball in hand and stay on field, it’s ridiculous.
“For the fans at home who sit and watch and pay their money, they’ve got no idea like we do. That was a ridiculous call to have Marata Niukore 10 in the bin for that.”
However, when the football was actually played, it was a high quality game between the sides with the 12-men Titans never letting the Warriors get away until two tries in the last 10 minutes sealed the result.
It makes you wonder what the match could have been had all three calls been different.
The send off continues what’s been a contentious start to the round after Brown’s send off on Thursday night.
Speaking before the Titans-Warriors clash, former league hardman Mark Carroll question the sin bin.
“I thought it was a disgrace to be sent off,” Carroll said.
“He got one week (from the Match Review Committee). He probably should have been sent to the bin, yes it went from the shoulder to the neck.
“But the refereeing last night — thought I was watching rugby union. Seriously, that was horrendous.”
Asked about the reason for the send off being that Brown left his feet, Carroll said: “If you’re going to jump a foot off the ground, what’s one inch? Browny’s not the tallest man, Benny’s six foot six, he’s a monster, and he dropped down in the tackle, it’s a bloody good tackle. He reacted because he knew it was a good hit.”