sport, nrl

Veteran Manly coach Des Hasler fears a team could use a supposed injury to their advantage to halt attacking momentum as the NRL approaches the finals. Under the NRL's policy, games have been stopped more regularly for injuries in 2019 in a directive aimed at player safety. On-field officials are now required to stop play following the next tackle if they see indicators of a head injury or other serious injury concerns. Referees can also be alerted by a team trainer, with the match to be paused regardless of whether the injured player is at risk of being caught up in play. Trainers were warned by the NRL earlier this year they could be removed from the field if the rule was abused. However, Hasler said it was an issue the league needed to look at as he feared it could be manipulated by clubs. "A player gets injured in a tackle and the whole game stops," Hasler said. "It kind of stifles an attacking team. Particularly in good ball down their end. "It's probably something that (head of football) Graham (Annseley) has to identify in the off-season. I don't know how you fix that. "It will be interesting to see the feedback. You could use it to your advantage couldn't you?" The topic of stopping matches has twice been in the headlines this year, namely when North Queensland couldn't convince referees to pause play when Nene Macdonald suffered a serious leg injury in March. Annesley was also critical of referees when they spotted a head injury for Warriors centre Peta Hiku against Newcastle in July, but did not stop play. Other incidents have involved play being stopped moments after a collision, with a player being taken from the field for a HIA with their opponents in possession. Hasler on Thursday night stressed he was not referring to the serious knee injury suffered by Wests Tigers hooker Jacob Liddle in his comments following Manly's 20-point win. But he instead harked back to the 1969 grand final as an example, where it has long been claimed Balmain continuously feigned injuries whenever South Sydney got on a roll. "It's one issue in the game at the moment, and a hard one to read," he said. "I remember a 1969 final between Balmain and South Sydney, It'll be interesting to see what they do with that one. "That's not to say you can't stop the game because sometimes players are genuinely hurt." Australian Associated Press

https://nnimgt-a.akamaihd.net/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-feed-data/14b2945e-9ee0-4aca-8a69-46d6dd5ae07f.jpg/r0_74_800_526_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg