Warriors coach Andrew Webster has voiced his frustrations at a string of contentious refereeing decisions while confirming that Luke Metcalf and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad face stints on the sidelines following their 26-12 defeat to the Brisbane Broncos.
The Warriors slumped to back-to-back losses for the first time this season in amatch where little went their way.
Alongside injuries to their starting halfback and fullback, a couple of referee Adam Gee’s decisions left Webster exasperated.
Metcalf and Nicoll-Klokstad will undergo scans upon returning to New Zealand on Monday, but Webster has already ruled them out of the Warriors’ next fixture against the Wests Tigers on July 13 in Auckland.
While Webster was reluctant to speculate, early fears suggest Metcalf may have torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, a cruel blow for the 26-year-old, who suffered the same injury in his left knee in 2019.
“I think there are all possibilities on the table at the moment,” Webster said.
“I just asked the doctor what it was and he said it could be a number of things, but let’s wait for the scans. Both certainly won’t be playing in two weeks, I can tell you that much.”
Metcalf has been instrumental to the Warriors’ strong season and was leading the Dally M count on 31 points before voting went behind closed doors after round 13. The club has already lost co-captain Mitch Barnett to an ACL injury this year.
Warriors coach Andrew Webster. Photo / Photosport.
Metcalf’s injury occurred when Broncos forward Brendan Piakura tackled him heavily, causing the playmaker’s right knee to buckle. Piakura was placed on report over the incident.
Metcalf needed assistance getting off the field, and footage from the dressing room showed him getting consoled by coaching staff.
The Warriors are likely to turn to either Te Maire Martin or Tanah Boyd to fill the void in the No 7 jersey.
Martin, typically a five-eighths, has made eight appearances off the bench this year. Boyd, a specialist halfback, is yet to debut for the club but has been in strong form for the Warriors’ reserve squad.
While injuries were a major concern, Webster was equally aggrieved by two key offside rulings that went against his side.
In the first half, hooker Wayde Egan was penalised for being offside. Then in the second half Broncos fullback Reece Walsh was taken out chasing an Adam Reynolds kick. He was rewarded despite appearing to be offside.
“Wayde Egan in the first half, I ask you to go and pause it when the play-the-ball is and you tell me how he’s offside,” said Webster. “He’s three metres onside, it’s like they just made that up.
“Like Reece Walsh was way in front, the first infraction was that.
“They probably [will] give me crap that it’s foul play or something. That’s the first infringement, I don’t know how they miss it.
“I’m not a ref, I was down there and I could see it. He was miles offside.”
Despite the setbacks, the Warriors remain in fourth place on the NRL ladder, four points clear of the fifth-placed Broncos.
They will have next weekend off with their third and final bye of the season before regrouping to face the Tigers, who they beat 26-24 earlier this season.
Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.
