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Sport Nation
'Don't know the rules': Stuart roasts NRL and umpires
SEN • March 24th, 2025 10:27 am
Never one to shy away from expressing his feelings, Ricky Stuart has called out NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo over the standard of NRL umpiring.
Furious following his side’s 40-12 defeat to Manly, Stuart says he no longer understands the rules of the sport and even went as far as suggesting Grant Atkins targeted his side.
The Raiders enjoyed just 25 per cent of possession against the Sea Eagles and were 1-7 in the set restart count. They conceded 10-4 on penalties and were punished for half a dozen ruck infringements.
“I’m not allowed to talk about the ref but I hope Andrew Abdo has an answer for us all,” Stuart said.
“I don’t think there’s a football team in the competition that’s going to defend at those statistics and win.
“If you keep having six agains go against you then you’re not going to get the ball.
“When you look at it statistically, we had to make 212 tackles in the first-half and you can’t be ahead on the scoreboard with that.
“When you look at the average play-the-ball speed, it was something like 3.54 for one team and 3.55 for the other team. So where’s the inconsistency the play the balls there? How come it was 6-1 in the six agains?
“The six agains that go against my poor buggers, I see those tackles every week by certain teams and nothing is done. You tell me (why) because I’m not allowed to.”
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Stuart was also at a loss to explain the NRL’s obstruction rulings after his side had a try disallowed midway through the first term.
Seb Kris touched down for what most believed to be the game’s first try but it was soon scratched by the bunker.
“After 20 minutes of having no football and we get a set around halfway and we score a wonderful try (and it's disallowed),” he added
“It's really difficult coaching when you don't know the rules, you don't know interpretations because I've got no idea."
