Initially brought in towards the end of the 2019 season, the crusher tackle began to serve its purpose on protecting the neck and spinal column of the tackled player.
Now….it’s over-penalised, and exploited at every cost.
I’m all for protecting the players safety, but now it seems that even when the tackled player is at fault by putting themselves in a dangerous situation, the defending player/team is penalised.
And it’s not just these accidental instances.
Players now know how to milk these penalties. We see it time and time again. Take the hit up, spin in the tackle, and hold your neck before playing the ball. Result = instant penalty.
The NRL needs to start cracking down on this in the off-season.
The best way I can see deterrence from this in the game is by implementing an HIA type structure in the game.
Want to stay down and hold your neck to milk a penalty? No worries, but you’ll have to spend 15 minutes on the sideline and get cleared by the independent doctor to return to the field.
It’s simply becoming a joke, and the more we see players and referees exploit enable behaviour, the more our game will turn into soccer with this elaborate ‘diving’ type shit.
Fix it.
