Ex-review boss says Cleary’s lucky
FORMER NRL match review chairman Greg Mccallum thinks Penrith superstar Nathan Cleary can consider himself lucky to be free to play in the NRL grand final.
Cleary was not charged by the match review committee on Sunday after being placed on report for a tackle on Melbourne’s Kenny Bromwich in the 21st minute of the preliminary final on Saturday.
Asked for his expert view on the tackle, Mccallum said: “He contributed into lifting the player into a dangerous position but only just. The mitigation is there is another player in the tackle but it was (Cleary’s) lift that actually elevated him into that position”.
Mccallum said the definition of a dangerous lifting tackle was when a defender placed his hands between an attacking player’s legs and lifted him past the horizontal.
“That is what you define a dangerous tackle. It would tick enough boxes for it to be a grade one,” he said.
“Look, the player landed mainly on his back. He grabbed the back of his neck but I don’t think his neck hit the ground.”
Mccallum said the match review committee looked to have taken into account the second defender’s actions in the tackle by not charging Cleary.
“I think a little lucky … but good for the game,” Mccallum said.