The NRL has hit NSW’s Haumole Olakau’atu and Cameron Murray with bans of at least two games and handed down $39,000 in fines after the sideline brawl in the State of Origin decider.
In a dramatic postscript to the Blues’ first series win in three years, both Murray and Olakau’atu copped grade-three contrary conduct charged on Thursday.
Eight others players were hit with fines, with the NRL desperate to send a message after a melee that spilled over the sideline and cleared the benches.
Murray and Olakau’atu will each be able to accept two-game bans after they ran from the Blues bench to join the fracas, with the latter doing so while wearing a suit jacket as NSW’s 19th man.
If they contest the suspensions and lose, the bans will extend to three matches in a bittersweet follow up to the Blues’ 14-4 win.
Jeremiah Nanai, Brian To’o, Reuben Cotter and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow were each hit with $6000 fines for their involvement in the scuffle.
Blues 18th man Matt Burton and prop Payne Haas, who were both on the NSW bench, were fined $3000 each for running in, as was Felise Kaufusi from the Maroons’ interchange.
Each of those fines can be reduced by around 33 per cent with early guilty plea.
Queensland second-rower Kurt Capewell is facing a total of $6000 in fines from the match, on dangerous-throw and dangerous-contact charges from separate incidents.
Notably, Queensland and Brisbane superstar Reece Walsh escaped sanction after he was placed on report for sliding his boot into Stephen Crichton’s face as the Blues centre attempted to score.
The numerous charges come after one of the most dramatic Origin matches in recent memory.
Queensland remained adamant on Thursday that Murray should have been sent off, rather than sin-binned, for running in off the bench.
“I haven’t seen (anyone do) that before,” Cherry-Evans said.
“I feel pretty clear that’s pretty unacceptable at any level of footy, but that’s just my thoughts.
“My opinion out there … I still stand by that. The ref didn’t see it that way and the Bunker didn’t see it that way. We dealt with it and moved on.”
Cherry-Evans did come to the defence of Olakau’atu’s character, after his Manly teammate was evicted from the playing arena following the fracas.
Sent to watch the rest of the game from the NSW changeroom, Olakau’atu was also not allowed on the field as NSW lifted the shield.
“I have got a lot of time and a lot of love for Haumole,” Cherry-Evans said.
“I don’t know what has happened there. I didn’t really know he was involved.”
Olakau’atu will miss Manly’s clashes against Gold Coast and the Sydney Roosters under his ban in a significant blow to their finals hopes.
“That definitely hurts. We’ve lost probably our best player,” NSW captain and Manly teammate Jake Trbojevic told AAP.
“I suppose it shows you can’t do that.”
Murray’s charge comes as another blow to South Sydney’s faint finals hopes, with the club’s captain set to join superstar fullback Latrell Mitchell on the sidelines for games against Wests Tigers and Canberra.
