Legendary NRL fullback Billy Slater has endorsed the idea of bringing back the five-minute sin bin, declaring “borderline” incidents and professional fouls would suit the ruling.
Across round three’s fixtures, there were four players sin-binned, of which three occurred during Cronulla’s 36-12 win over the Dragons on Thursday night.
Newcastle was a man down for nearly 50 minutes during their loss to Penrith, when Mitch Barnett was sent off for a cheap shot on Chris Smith.
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Speaking on the matter of five-minute sin bins, Slater highlighted Jaydn Su’A’s controversial sin-binning when he was told to leave the field for a late shot on Sean O’Sullivan during Penrith’s round two victory over the Dragons.
“I think there’s a place for five minutes in the bin,” he told Wide World of Sports’ Billy’s Breakdown.
“Look, 10 in the bin can change the game. We’ve seen that over the last couple of weeks when the Panthers played the Dragons and Jaydn Su’a went off for 10 in the bin after hitting Sean O’Sullivan, allegedly late.
“I didn’t think it was late. Big call, it changed the game. The Panthers scored two quick tries in that period of 10 minutes.
“It happened on the weekend again against the Knights. Two quick tries after Mitch Barnett goes off the field (sent off).
“I think for the less serious ones, we can look at five in the bin. I think there’s a place for it in the game and that’s at the discretion of the referee.”
The debate surrounding five-minute sin bins has long been talked about.
While many have echoed similar comments to Slater in the past, including Broncos great Darren Lockyer just last year, some have argued against it, like Peter Sterling, who recently said he’s not a fan of revisiting old rules.
The option to send players to the bin for five minutes existed previously, but was abolished at a meeting of the International Board on May 1, 1991, amid criticism that it resulted in inconsistent applications from the referees.
Calls for the NRL to bring back the five-minute sin bin gained momentum during last year’s Magic Round when 14 players were sin-binned, while three were sent off as a result of the league’s new approach to cracking down on high tackles.
Slater said borderline infringements and professional fouls are a good example of what could be deemed as just a five-minute stint off the field.
“I think the ones that are borderline. I thought the Jaydn Su’a one, there was conjecture over whether it was late or whether it wasn’t late,” Slater added.
“If you’re going to put someone in the bin for that, you’ve got to make sure you’re making the right decision.
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“The professional fouls, they’re probably five in the bin.
“Five in the bin, you’ve got to defend and it takes a lot of juice out of you. Not the points that get scored against you, but it takes a lot of petrol out of the tank when you defend with 12 men.
“I think coaches would be in favour of it because they know the impact of having a guy in the bin for 10 minutes.”
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