Suspension looms for alleged king hit
A MUDGEERABA Redbacks player who fractured an opposition player’s cheekbone in an alleged king hit will find out his punishment from Rugby League Gold Coast on Thursday.
Burleigh hooker Jordan Scott was defenceless, packed into a scrum in the 55th minute of a Rugby League Gold Coast A-Grade clash with Mudgeeraba, when opposition lock Lorenzo Ma’afu allegedly loaded up and threw a
punch. Ma’afu has pleaded guilty to the charge and the governing body expects to have a decision on any potential suspension on Thursday.
The impact was obscured in a midst of bodies but Scott suffered a broken cheekbone and spent the night in hospital.
Burleigh coach Matt Foster said Scott’s six-week recovery period would risk him missing Burleigh’s final four games and likely their finals campaign as well.
Ma’afu was charged with
striking (grade one) and contrary conduct.
The striking charge carries a punishment of 200 points, a two-match suspension.
That would be reduced by 25 per cent with an early guilty plea at 3.30pm.
Burleigh coach Foster said that he was livid after finding out the charge was on the lowest end of the striking scale.
“If I’ve seen anything, that’s not a grade one,” he said. “Talking to people and what they’re saying, if it’s not
clear contact on video replay then it’s very hard to prove.
“That’s what’s guided their decision but we all know what happened.
“For me looking at the footage, (the charge) seems really light because you can see Lorenzo load up and you see Jordan Scott come out the other side.
“Rugby league is a tough sport played by tough men who like physical contact but something like that, where someone is defenceless with arms around two props and gets hit, that’s not something anyone wants to see in this sport.
“Lorenzo Ma’afu had a spell at Burleigh and I thought he was one of the good guys.
“I don’t know if this (incident) defines his character but the punishment should fit the crime irrelevant to the individual involved.”
Mudgeeraba officials declined to comment.
It was not the first scuffle to break out throughout the match.