THE World Club Challenge played out at the weekend was one of the most competitive and entertaining clashes seen in recent years.
St Helens sprinted into a 10-0 lead in the 13th minute before two Penrith tries sent the game into golden point where Saints star Lewis Dodd slotted over the one-pointer that created history for the Merseyside club with a 13-12 win.
Unfortunately, one moment in the game did cause concern when the Panthers’ Taylan May was taken off the field after suffering a torn ACL in a tackle.
The tackle, which saw Morgan Knowles and Konrad Hurrell tackle May up high with Agnatius Paasi coming in low, was deemed an unfortunate accident after the latter first hit the Penrith man on the quad part of the leg rather than on or below the knee as a cannonball tackle is defined.
Match review committee coordinator, Luke Patten, told the Sydney Morning Herald: “Firstly, the initial point of contact by Paasi was high on May’s hip/upper thigh,” Patten said.
“For a tackle to be considered dangerous and spearing at the legs, the Match Review Committee must see forceful contact at or around the knee of the attacking player.
“Paasi also drops to his knees at the point of contact, which we encourage players to do, and did not drop his body weight onto the back of May’s lower legs. This is one of the key indicators that we would look for in a hip drop tackle.”
It’s good news for Saints who will be looking to back up that phenomenal victory in Australia last weekend when they travel to the Castleford Tigers on Sunday.
That Super League fixture can be watched live on Channel 4 from 12.30pm with a 1pm kick-off at the Jungle.
