NRL boss Andrew Abdo has defended the game amid accusations it is becoming too soft.
Abdo appeared on Nine’s Sunday Footy Show, where league legend Billy Slater raised concerns about a couple of incidents in round nine so far, where defenders have been penalised for contact on a kicker.
“The match officials are getting a little bit jumpy because of all this talk about player safety… but the fabric of the game is getting damaged,” Slater said.
“You can hardly touch a kicker now when they kick the football.”
Abdo responded with a passionate defence of the officials and the league.
“I have a strong answer for that, and that is I don’t think the match officials are getting jumpy,” Abdo said.
“They are having to adjudicate in real time… in a game that is becoming faster and faster. That is why we have the Bunker official.
“You are never going to get it perfect, because there are humans involved in this.
“In terms of the balance of getting player safety right, I don’t think the game is being jumpy, I think from time to time you’re going to make decisions that you might not get right.
“It’s about getting the balance right, it’s about execution, and it’s about consistency.
“It is an entertaining contact sport, it will always be that, but the talk of us getting soft I think is ridiculous.
“If you watch a rugby league game live or on television, there is nothing soft about our game.”
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