Hull FC boss John Cartwright admits he will be seeking clarification regarding at least one of the decisions made by the officials on Thursday night. The Black and Whites played out a dramatic and intense 22-22 draw with Leigh Leopards at the MKM Stadium, with the two sides unable to be split over golden point extra time.
However, the game was marred by a series of controversial incidents involving referee Tom Grant and video referee Jack Smith. Hull were reduced to 11 men in the first half following two sin-bins, with Aidan Sezer’s punishment being particularly harsh for catching David Armstrong high.
Not all of the decisions went against Hull with Lewis Martin being awarded a controversial try in the closing stages of the contest. A huge call in golden point incensed the home support, though, as Hull were denied a penalty for Lachlan Lam’s kick off being caught by Tom Briscoe, with his foot in touch.
Analysing the contest after the game, Cartwright pointed out the lack of consistency from officials while pointing to other incidents.
“I’m still trying to get my head around what constitutes a sin bin,” the Hull FC boss said. “There was a couple after that where Leigh came up with a couple of high tackles, and they weren’t penalised.
“There was a crusher there that went on report but no penalty. I’m trying to get my head around the lack of inconsistency—it’s a big play to lose a bloke to the sin bin, not many teams win when they go down to 12 men. It’s a big disadvantage for a team to have 12 men, especially when I didn’t think there was a lot of force in either one. But they’re the rules.”
On the Briscoe moment, he added: “I’m still trying to understand it because if his foot wasn’t on the line, it should have been play on, and if his foot was on the line, then it’s a penalty to us.
“I need to get clarification on whether they came up with the wrong decision. For me, that’s pretty black and white. If his foot is on the sideline, we get a penalty; if it’s not, it’s normal play on. I’m keen to get some clarity around that.
“I’m trying to take the officials out of it because it was such a spectacle. I hope I’m not sounding like I’m blaming the referee because I’m not. You go through a game, and there are a few decisions that you question, but as a team, you get hundreds of chances to get decisions right.”
The decision was challenged by Hull FC captain Aidan Sezer with replays appearing to show Briscoe’s foot was on the line, but Smith deemed the evidence to be inconclusive.
“I’m not sure if they’ve got the camera angles that they do overseas,” Cartwright added. “I heard that maybe is a bit of an issue, but it seems like they’re just not willing to make a decision.
“It always gets referred back to the referee. I’m happy to just get rid of it. Most decisions go back to inconclusive, but nothing is conclusive—it depends on what angle you watch it at. You’ve just got to make a decision and move forward with it. I think everyone will be happy with that.”
‘What are we doing?’ – Leigh Leopards’ Adrian Lam slams controversial referee calls in Hull FC draw https://t.co/G93cM8KWjH
— Serious About Rugby League (@SeriousAboutRL) March 6, 2025
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