The North Queensland Toyota Cowboys have called on NRL head of football Todd Greenberg and NRL referees’ elite performance manager Tony Archer to visit the club to explain two contentious calls in Friday night’s loss to the Manly Sea Eagles in Gosford.
A highly-questionable six-again call was made on the final tackle inside the NQ 20-metre zone in the dying stages of the round 7 match, followed by an even more controversial ruling by video referees Bernard Sutton and Paul Mellor to allow Kieran Foran’s try when it appeared Ray Thompson had been obstructed in defence.
Manly came from behind after the Cowboys led 14-6 at half time to win the game 26-21.
Cowboys CEO Peter Jourdain has a commitment from the NRL that Greenberg and Archer will meet with the club’s football department to discuss the referees’ decisions.
“Following on from our coach Paul Green’s comments, we’re seeking an explanation on how these calls can happen, not only for our team and staff to understand but for our sponsors, members and supporters, and fans across the game,” Mr Jourdain said.
“The club believes that given the circumstances, the NRL hierarchy should come to North Queensland to address these issues to demonstrate that we are on equal footing with the other clubs.”
A timeframe for the NRL visit has not yet been confirmed.
NRL CEO Dave Smith will also travel to North Queensland in coming weeks to meet with club executive management.
