Slater coy on meeting with refs

QUEENSLAND coach Billy Slater has not ruled out requesting a meeting with referees following revelations the whinging Blues delivered a dossier of dirt on the Maroons to the NRL.

In a bid to influence the officiating before Origin I, the Blues compiled a dirt file on Queensland’s supposedly dodgy tactics for NRL referees boss Jared Maxwell.

Blues coach Brad Fittler was concerned about illegal kickpressure on his protected species of a halfback Nathan Cleary and Queensland toeing the line in multiple areas.

The pre-emptive strike did little as Queensland recorded a 16-10 win on enemy soil, prompting Fittler to complain about the speed of the ruck under ref Ashley Klein and contact Maxwell again.

While commentators and Origin legends Andrew Johns and Cameron Smith hailed it one of the fastest spectacles they had ever seen, the Blues were complaining about how slow the game apparently was when they had the ball.

Slater made no secret of his desire to win the most crucial area of the game.

“I thought the game was played at a really quick speed. It was well above NRL speed. The speed of the play-the-ball from both teams was really quick and it was an entertaining game,” he said. “That’s just part of the game. You want to play fast with the football and slow without it. The referees will do what they have to do.”

When pressed on whether he would seek a meeting with Maxwell ahead of Sunday’s second game in Perth, which Klein is expected to officiate, Slater was coy.

“My priority is getting our players to play the best football they can on Sunday night,” he said. “I’ve got my job, the refs have got their job, the players have got their job. I’ll be focusing on my job.”