Sep 11th, 2017

Sep 11th, 2017

Former rugby league great and Channel Nine commentator Peter Sterling has hit back at the referee-blaming culture that has overtaken the NRL.

Speaking in his weekly Sterlo’s Wrap-up video for Wide World of Sports, Sterling said the barrage of complaints directed at referees over the weekend didn’t tell the real story of why those teams had been beaten.

Rival coaches Trent Barrett (Manly) and Shane Flanagan (Cronulla) were vociferous in their attacks on match officials following the season-ending defeats suffered by their teams.

Both laid the blame for losses solely on the referees and NRL Bunker staff.

While expressing an opinion that the whistle-blowers didn’t enjoy their best weekend, Sterling said angry coaches needed to look a little closer to home to realise why their sides were defeated.

''I thought the officiating across the weekend was relatively poor,’’ Sterling said.

''Just because I thought the decisions were wrong, it doesn’t mean that they actually were.

''What I will see is that the four sides that were beaten on the weekend, they need to go back and have a look internally at how they contributed to their own demise because there is no doubt that they did.

''All four of the sides [that lost] need to go back and have a look at the mistakes they made, the ill-discipline that they displayed.

''A lot of those decisions by referees were telling, but I don’t think they cost sides a win.’’

Meanwhile, Sterling said Brisbane coach Wayne Bennett’s decision to drop Broncos livewire Kodi Nikorima to the bench on the morning of their clash with the Sydney Roosters did the youngster no favours.

Sterling suggested the Broncos re-assess their plans if star fullback Darius Boyd is again ruled out by a hamstring injury ahead of Friday’s elimination clash with Penrith at Suncorp Stadium.

''For a guy like Kodi Nikorima, a young player; relatively inexperienced; to be told that he’s starting and then put back on the bench, I don’t know that it would have done his confidence the world of good,’’ he said.

''I’ve always felt that Ben Hunt and Anthony Milford were the best halves pairing at Brisbane.

''I would seriously look at starting Kodi Nikorima at hooker and bringing Benji Marshall off the bench if Darius is unavailable.

''I think Kahu can play fullback comfortably and you can cater for a winger better than those other key positions.

''I’ve always felt that Hunt and Milford were the best six and seven for Brisbane and I think that that’s the most important thing, and you work out from that if Boyd is unavailable.’’