Bulldog gets five-game ban for gouging Titans star's eye

Canterbury striker Corey Waddell was found guilty of gouging Gold Coast captain Tino Fa’asuamaleaui in the eye and was banned for five games.

Key points:

• Stephen Crichton left the pitch with a concussion immediately after contact
• Crichton also needs plastic surgery on his ear
• Finucane says if given the chance to try another tackle, he wouldn’t do anything different

The NRL tribunal, made up of Dallas Johnson and Bob Lindner and presided over by Judge Geoffrey Bellew, deliberated for about 15 minutes on Tuesday night before unanimously finding that Waddell’s contact with Fa’asuamaleaui was dangerous and reckless.

The match review committee referred Waddell directly to NRL court on charges of dangerous contact, meaning he has no option to enter a defence.

Waddell told the court he had tried to knock Fa’asuamaleaui to the ground in a tackle when his arm reached his teammate and into the lock’s forehead.

Waddell insisted that he only touched Fa’asuamaleaui’s forehead and nose, doing so unintentionally and without applying pressure.

But after hearing NRL counsel Patrick Knowles, the court was satisfied that Waddell’s middle and index fingers had come into contact with Fa’asuamaleaui’s eye sockets.

Eye pickers pose a risk of injury

Knowles said it was “absurd” no contact was made with the eyes given the proximity to the nose and forehead, adding there would be no reason for Waddell’s hand to be in Fa’asuamaleaui’s face in a tackle if he didn’t apply pressure.

He presented close-up images of the incident that the court found persuasive.

Waddell’s adviser, Nicolaous Ghabar, said video footage of the incident did not reveal whether there was any scratching or digging in the eye consistent with a risk of serious injury.

But the court found there was a risk of injury regardless of the nature of the eye contact.

Ghabar questioned why Fa’asuamaleaui was not called in to provide evidence and given the apparent lack of injury resulting from Waddell’s actions, did he play for a penalty by complaining to the referee on the pitch.

Knowles said the refereeing incident report was sufficient evidence that Fa’asumaleaui felt his eye had been contacted and said players would be reluctant to provide evidence against a fellow player because the code was not written.

Knowles suggested a ban of at least five games, citing Waddell’s lack of remorse and the serious nature of making eye contact with rival players.

Load

Ghabar said Waddell showed no lack of remorse, but truly felt the contact was an accident.

He said his “modest level of strength” and “low level of contact” with the eye were consistent with a two-match suspension, but he was unsuccessful.

The court voted to give Waddell a five-match ban in the hope it would prevent other players from committing similar offences.

He will miss upcoming matches against Newcastle, North Queensland, Warriors, Parramatta and Cronulla and will not be available for selection until the Bulldogs’ final game of the season, which will be played against Manly.

Finucane Police suspended for two weeks

Meanwhile, Cronulla forward Dale Finucane has been suspended for two weeks after an NRL court unanimously found his contact with Penrith’s Stephen Crichton dangerous and reckless.

Finucane escaped on-court sanctions after replays revealed that his head, not his arm or shoulder, touched Crichton, who left the pitch with a concussion and requiring plastic surgery to repair his ear after the 19th-round clash.

After unsuccessfully fighting back against his accusations, Finucane said his suspension due to an accidental clash of heads had set a precedent.

“I’m quite surprised by the result, given it was an unintentional foul, and given the game we’ve never seen accidental head contact before,” he told reporters.

“This will set a precedent for our game to move forward.”

Dale Finucane apologizes to Stephen Crichton after the game.(Getty Images: Matt Blyth)

The match review committee charged him with third-degree dangerous contact and suggested a two-match suspension.

On Tuesday night, Finucane risked his ban being increased by taking his case to a court, which consists of former Dallas players Johnson and Bob Lindner, and is chaired by Judge Geoffrey Bellew.

He told the panel as Cronulla was down four points with less than 10 minutes remaining he rushed off the line towards Crichton in an attempt to contain the Panthers’ momentum.

Finucane said if given the opportunity to try another tackle he would not have done differently but has since apologized to Crichton for hurting him.

Stephen Crichton has suffered a severe concussion and ear injury.(AAP: Dan Himbrechts)

NRL advisors Patrick Knowles and Nicolaous Ghabar, Finucane’s adviser, debated whether Finucane getting off the line at such speed was dangerous, and whether he was careless in his duty to play the game responsibly.

Ghabar said the head-to-head clash only occurred because Crichton “covered” and changed position at the last moment, by which time it was too late for Finucane to adjust his tackling technique.

Knowles argues Finucane simply couldn’t adjust his tackling technique because he had gone off the line at such speed that he couldn’t control his action and balance.

He argued Crichton was in a vulnerable position and if he “downhilled”, it was just to withstand the impact.

The court deliberated for roughly 25 minutes before determining Crichton’s injury proved Finucane had behaved dangerously, and while he was free to rush off the line to tackle Crichton, doing so at such pace remained sloppy.

AP

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