Phil Gould has questioned the heavy-handedness of the NRL judiciary, declaring that Roosters hooker Sam Verrills should not have even had a case to answer, let alone be suspended for two weeks.
After his club failed in their bid to get a high tackle charge downgraded, the 22-year-old will now miss this weekend’s clash with Manly, and a potential preliminary final showdown with arch-rivals South Sydney.
“I don’t know how we’re going to fix this process, but we’re suspending players way too easily,” Gould told James Bracey on Wide World of Sports Six Tackles with Gus podcast.
“I don’t like the idea of having an NRL prosecutor, I don’t like the fact that it’s such a court setting in this regard.”
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Verrills was charged with a high tackle on Titans centre Brian Kelly, who was first tackled by backrower Sitili Tupouniua, lowering his body position before reaching Verrills, who then hit him high.
“The NRL prosecutor, in his words to the judiciary last night, said that there was ‘moderate force’ in the tackle, and while that was chiefly generated by the man with the ball, Kelly, running at speed, he argues Verrills should have taken that into account,” Gould said.
“I’d like him to go demonstrate what he would have done differently, or what he should have done differently. If he’s talking about moderate force and it’s mainly instigated by the man with the ball, then why the hell is Verrills down there anyway?”
Verrills was given a grade two careless high tackle charge, which the club failed to get downgraded.
“I just don’t understand what they think players can do in certain situations to avoid contact with the head when they’re going through their normal tackling style, and a player trips, stumbles, falls, or is tackled in front of them and falls into them,” Gould said.
“The fact that he’s injured and gets a broken nose, everyone wants to jump up and down and says somebody’s got to be punished for it.
“It was the man with the ball that created the incident, not Sam Verrills.”
With Jake Friend forced to retire earlier this seaosn, the Roosters will now turn to Ben Marschke to play the dummy half role on Friday night.
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Queensland-born Marschke debuted in the NRL earlier this year, after coming through the junior ranks at the Roosters, before lower grade spells at a couple of other clubs.
“There is absolutely nothing that Verrills could have done differently, I see no carelessness in this whatsoever, not even a skerrick of carelessness. Yet the poor kid’s missing out on two semi-finals and the club has to suffer,” Gould said.
“I find the whole thing ridiculous.”
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