By Peter Jessup
Kiwi and Melbourne Storm second rower Stephen Kearney has escaped sanction for a tackle reported by the ref during Saturday's National Rugby League semi- final after judicial commissioner Jim Hall ruled Kearney's blow was not high.
Kearney had faced the prospect of missing both next weekend's National Rugby League
grand final and some or all of the tri-nations series had Hall decided to cite him for the tackle on Parramatta lock Jason Smith.
But Hall said the first point of contact Kearney made when he came over the top of another Storm tackler was with Smith's chest.
"For a striking charge it needs to be intentional and directed at the head. Kearney's arm hit Smith's chest and then slid up to the head," Hall said.
He declined to charge Kearney and dismissed the original complaint which had mistakenly been laid against Storm prop Rodney Howe and dismissed a complaint of a shoulder charge against Dragons playmaker Anthony Mundine.
"I didn't think there was a great deal in it initially. But it didn't look real good on the screen," Kearney said, admitting to a nervous 48-hour wait for the outcome.
Minutes after the decision was relayed to the Storm yesterday afternoon, Kearney was on the telephone to Kiwi coach Frank Endacott to assure him he was available.
"He was rapt. He's looking forward to the grand final he's always wanted and to the [test] series," Endacott said.
Endacott was pleased four of his frontline contenders in Kearney, Matt Rua and Richard Swain (Melbourne) and Craig Smith (St George/Illawarra) will be playing to season's end in the toughest games going outside tests. He's not a fan of resting his troops in advance of games and reckons All Black coach John Hart has got it wrong hauling the World Cup rugby squad out of the NPC.
"You can't put players in cotton wool."
