Willie Mason should be embarrassed, but not because he was suspended for a shoulder charge
WILLIE Mason says he’s “embarrassed” by the stricter shoulder charge rule. Well, he should be embarrassed, but not because he got suspended.
Mason chose not to contest a two-week ban after putting a hit on Tom Burgess in Manly’s big win over the Rabbitohs on Friday night.
“I’ve seen bigger hits on the weekend in netball,” Mason said, even though the 120kg Burgess was put on his back and dropped the ball due to the collision.
Still, Mason didn’t make contact with the head and it seems unlikely he would have been penalised in any way prior to round 22.
The death of Queensland Cup player James Ackerman seven weeks ago changed the landscape, reaffirming the NRL’s original decision to ban the shoulder charge more than two years ago based on medical evidence.
When the debate was reignited by Kane Evans’ shoulder charge on big Sam Kasiano last week, something had to be done to reinforce the original decision.
Of course, it’s not ideal that it took until the Friday to tighten up the interpretation but it’s not like a whole new rule was being introduced.
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If Mason had used his arms in the tackle, just as the rules have for over two years dictated every player does, he wouldn’t have had anything to worry or complain about.
Yet the experienced Manly prop saw fit to stand on his soapbox on Tuesday and bemoan how soft the game had become.
“That hit was embarrassing — we are supposed to be the tough game that everyone plays,” Mason said.
“I’m embarrassed to be a rugby league player at the moment with all the rule changes and everything like that.
“... It’s a sad day for rugby league really if you have a look at it.
“The rules got changed on Friday at 12 o’clock, I don’t think ‘Tooves’ (Toovey) was too worried about telling us all about the rule changes,” Mason said.
“I think he was worried about getting our season back on track and winning against Souths. You don’t change rules in round 22.
“There is too much grey area, there is no black and white.”
Wrong, Willie. As Paul Kent said on NRL360 on Tuesday night, the NRL’s new interpretation is “the definition of black and white”.
Instead of having to prove that a shoulder charge caused whiplash effect and so had significant force, which is what the match review committee was unable to do in the Evans-Kasiano instance, it has now been made clear that any shoulder charge will be dealt with by time on the sideline, whether it’s forceful or not.
That completely removes the grey.
More than that though, Mason’s argument was made to look ridiculous by a far more sensible rant he had just last week.
Following the sickening image of Kyle Turner laying prone on the ground after a head clash in his return game from a serious neck injury, Mason argued the NRL should get tougher on concussion.
“I think the club or the NRL need to take a lot harder look at players in that situation,” Mason said of Turner last Wednesday.
“The protocol is there but if you get knocked out in boxing you have a mandatory three months out.
“(Manly teammate) Steve Matai two weeks ago was out cold. He couldn’t pass the test last week, now this week he is fine.
“You have all those brain surgeons out there saying that boxers aren’t allowed to box after three months because of trauma to the brain like that.
“But we can just go out (again) and play probably one of the most ferocious, physical games in the world.”
So, on one hand Mason is pro player safety, and on the other he is against it.
Mason’s Sea Eagles were playing the Rabbitohs two days after he made his comments about Turner, so on reflection is it possible he only said what he said to put pressure on the Rabbitohs to sideline one of their good young players, weakening them against Manly.
That’s a very cynical view, and let’s hope it wasn’t Mason’s motivation for speaking out.
If erring on the side of caution in cases of concussion is Mason’s honestly held view, it’s he, not the NRL, that needs to be more “black and white”.
