Coach Des Hasler has been digging in since the first round when he was handed a suspended $10,000 fine for mocking head of football Todd Greenberg's edict forbidding post-match criticism of referees. More than any other coach, Hasler has barely disguised his contempt at being gagged whenever he's been asked about referees since then. Part of it provides entertaining Des vaudeville, but there is no doubt the long-time coach is frustrated at being closed down from talking freely about match officials. With so much skin in the game, he believes he has a right to speak, along with all other coaches. On the flipside, Greenberg is hellbent on ensuring match officials are respected.

Bulldogs CEO Raelene Castle said in a statement on Tuesday: "Referees are to be respected at all times and it is clear that the NRL have drawn a new line in the sand in relation to player engagement with match officials." As many in the game said aloud, the line was always there: you can't tell a referee, "You're f---ed. You're off your face!" Internally, Bulldogs officials have made much reference to Souths fans being involved in their own bottle-throwing incidents in recent years. Hasler arguably defends his players more than any other coach in recent memory. When Graham was charged and forced to front the judiciary for biting the ear of Storm fullback Billy Slater during the 2012 grand final, Hasler vehemently defended his player all the way up to his judiciary hearing, and then long after a 12-match suspension was handed down.

When I see Graham thundering away at referees as he did at referee Gerard Sutton last Friday, I see Geoff Toovey. That may sound strange but Graham's anger and passion is reminiscent of how Toovey kicked and screamed at every play at Manly in the 1990s. There was a belief then that Toovey was working under instruction, trying to slow the play down while questioning the ref. Whether Graham is doing the same now, only he and Hasler know. Match officials deserve respect but if the NRL believes players and referees can happily play together in the sandpit, it is delusional. The angst displayed on Friday is also seen by some as part of a greater divide.

Bulldogs chairman Ray Dib is a key part of what some at League Central call "the cartel" - a group of renegade clubs who are displeased with the performance of chief executive Dave Smith and chairman John Grant, and critical of how the game is being run. There is also a loss of love between the NSWRL and the NRL. When NSWRL chairman and former Bulldogs boss George Peponis - a respected figure, no doubt - told Fairfax Media on Monday that refereeing standards had plummeted in the past 18 months, it fanned the flames. Cut against this backdrop, it will be interesting to see how the NRL reacts when an investigation into the appalling behaviour of Bulldogs fans concludes. That won't come until next week. It gives the NRL time to consider a very important next move.

Reports that the club could lose competition points are hysterical at best. The option is open to the NRL, but the word out of the league is that it won't even consider taking that drastic step. Claiming that Hasler, through his on-field general Graham, incited the bottle-throwing, and therefore the club should be accountable for it, is ridiculous. Nevertheless, the ugly aftermath should not be brushed aside. As Sutton strutted up the tunnel, a Bulldogs fan in front of the press box rose to his feet and pelted a full 750ml bottle of Coke towards him. It could've done as much damage as a house brick, if it hit someone in the head.

The referee's performance might have been the reason for their anger. The penalty against Graham was touch-and-go. The reaction of Graham and Klemmer might've helped whip the Bulldogs faithful into a frenzy. But the decision to throw a bottle at the referee starts and ends with the person holding it. Typically, the fans of other clubs are climbing into their Belmore friends, claiming the Bulldogs have never been any different. This is incorrect. The club has taken enormous strides in the past 10 years since one fan detonated a firework at a match that sounded like a bomb going off and many others attacked innocent fans and vending machines at Sydney Olympic Park station.

It is safe to go to the football, including Bulldogs matches. Until the final five minutes of Friday's match, only four people had been ejected from a crowd of 40,500. The Bulldogs shouldn't have to worry about their renegade fans. They've got their own battles to fight at the moment.