Andrew Johns was surprised by the NRL’s resolution to demote referee Adam Gee for this weekend’s finals, with the grand ultimate whistle-blower a shock omission.
Gee officiated the 2023 grand ultimate between Penrith and Brisbane however was not given a sport to regulate on the opening week of the finals with Ashley Klein, Gerard Sutton, Todd Smith and Grant Atkins most popular.
Gee, who was not named within the NRL Bunker for any of the clashes both, has been chosen to be the standby referee for Penrith v Roosters in addition to Saturday’s Cowboys v Knights conflict in Townsville.
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“Very stunned,” Johns stated of the NRL’s resolution on Broad World of Sports activities’ Immortal Behaviour.
“Final yr’s grand ultimate was among the best officiated for a very long time in an enormous sport. He stayed out of it and put his whistle away and it confirmed.
“It was among the best grand finals. I used to be actually stunned and I feel everybody is basically stunned, however they’ve their causes.”
Chatting with reporters concerning Gee’s non-appointment, NRL head of soccer Graham Annesley stated the choice was based mostly on performances throughout the season.
“We solely have 4 video games this week, and match officers have been chosen on type,” he stated.
“Todd has earned his spot based mostly on actually strong performances all through the season.
“We’re lucky to now have extra referees able to controlling finals than we have now video games out there.
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“Competitors for positions inevitably drives improved efficiency and consistency.”
Annesley didn’t rule out naming Gee for the rest of the NRL finals sequence, after he officiated video games each week throughout final yr’s sequence in addition to the eventual decider, which Penrith snatched within the ultimate seconds.