NRL head of football Graham Annesley has reiterated the league's desire to eliminate lifting tackles after declaring the bunker got it right when they sent Warriors centre Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to the sin bin on Saturday.
Tuivasa-Sheck had lifted Jayden Campbell in a one-on-one tackle before coming down hard on the Titans five-eighth upon impact with the ground. Campbell landed on his arm and upper back before his head hit the turf with a heavy thud.
The decision was criticised by some fans and commentators with even Annesley conceding he initially thought it was a harsh ruling.
That view changed upon further review, with bunker official Kasey Badger clearly outlining the force and risk of injury involved along with the impact of Campbell's head hitting the ground from the tackle as the reasons for her decision.
Tuivasa-Sheck sent to the sin-bin
While Campbell avoided serious injury, Annesley said the fact he was placed in a dangerous position highlighted why Tuivasa-Sheck was sent to the sin bin.
"While some people would look at that initially, I put myself in this category, when I looked at this live during play, I thought 'there's not much wrong with this tackle'," Annesley said during his weekly football briefing.
"When you break it down and look at it slowly and what could have potentially happened in that tackle had things gone even slightly more awry, you could've had a serious outcome. That's why we take action on this tackle because we don't want players lifted."
Graham Annesley weekly football briefing - Round 16, 2024
While there is always a degree of risk involved with playing rugby league, the NRL has sought to eliminate tackling styles that carry an elevated level of danger.
Annesley placed lifting tackles in this category, with players at risk of landing in dangerous positions after falling from significant heights.
Given the fine line between a safe landing and a catastrophic injury, the official said the NRL is working to eliminate lifting tackles from the game and players will face significant penalties if they go wrong.
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"While fortunately there was no serious injury in this, these are the sorts of tackles we are trying to discourage," he said.
"We don't want players lifted and this is the reason we don't want players lifted, because it can go wrong incredibly quickly, beyond the control of the tackler and particularly when it's one on one."