The NRL has dropped leading referee Ashley Klein from this week's preliminary finals after he faced criticism for two key decisions in Melbourne Storm's semi-final win over the Sydney Roosters. However, NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo has defended Klein, arguing that the sport has a culture of blaming referees for losses.
In the first half of Friday's 18-13 victory, Klein missed a knock-on from Storm hooker Harry Grant while the Roosters were attacking near the try line. Grant was allowed to play the ball, and moments later, Melbourne scored through Marion Seve. Later, Klein did not penalise Roosters halfback Sam Walker for a high tackle on Grant, which could have given Melbourne a penalty goal.
Klein, who refereed last year's grand final, will not officiate either preliminary final but has been assigned as the bunker official for Brisbane's match against the Warriors on Saturday. The NRL has yet to decide if he will referee the grand final this year.
Abdo launched a passionate defence of Klein, stating that the criticism reflects a broader issue in the sport. 'One of the things that we need to work on as a game is the culture that we have around blame and the culture that we have around sometimes personalising things,' he said. He added that dropping Klein does not indicate a loss of faith, comparing referees to players who experience form fluctuations.
Abdo praised the professionalism of Roosters coach Trent Robinson and Storm captain Christian Welch for their measured post-match comments about the officiating. 'That's the level of professionalism and that is the example that we want to set for everyone,' he said.
