Refereeing intervention
Bagging the referees is easy and often lazy rhetoric.
I’m only human and have been good for a spray on the Neds NRL Unpopular Opinions Podcast from time to time. Generally though, I’ll leave the ref bashing to the comments section on Facebook.
That being said, the quality of refereeing in the NRL has dropped as steadily as the scrutiny has risen, and it’s reached a boiling point in 2025.
Rather than list the myriad of questionable decisions from NRL Round 7 that you’ll read about on the socials this week anyway, I want to focus on one moment that sums it all up for me.
It’s Thursday night at 4 Pines Park and the St George-Illawarra Dragons are ambushing a desperate Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles side.
Chasing points and with the clock winding down, Manly force a goal-line dropout.
St George – looking to halt Manly’s momentum – set for the short drop out and bring the ball down bang on the 10 metre line.
Referee Peter Gough is in good position near the bounce and quickly declares the ball has not cleared the plane. The five or six Dragons players also in perfect position all play the whistle and freeze on Gough’s call, while Haumole Olakau’atu dives on the loose ball and is penalised.
When Manly challenge the penalty however, the video shows St George have absolutely nailed the short drop out attempt. The ball has come down just over the 10m line and bounced back towards a plethora of Dragons players in position to regather, but because Gough got the call wrong and only St George played the whistle, it’s the Sea Eagles who end up with possession.
In summary; Dragons nail the drop out and play the whistle + Ref gets the call wrong + Manly concede the penalty = Manly ball.
Ridiculous.
When Damien Cook challenged Peter Gough on the field, Gough’s response summed it up:
“I know what you’re saying mate but that’s the process.”
We can bitch and moan about refereeing blunders every other week but the fact is, things won’t improve until the NRL fixes the systems and processes that inform those refereeing blunders.
I’m no Gough fan, but his hands were tied here and it highlights everything that’s wrong with refereeing in the NRL right now; too much input from The Bunker and not enough autonomy & common sense from the officials on field.
Isaiya Katoa is HIM
If you need any more evidence that Isaiya Katoa is going to have a very, very long future in first-grade, look no further than NRL 2025, Round 7 v Melbourne Storm.
With every single touch on Friday night, Katoa fixed and bamboozled Storm defenders to create space on the outside. I’ve spoken before about his tempo changing stutter-steps as he crabs across the field, and Round 7 was the best example yet.
The double-pump fade for Connelly Lemuelu’s try was absolute filth and is becoming an ominously familiar part of Katoa’s game right now; a few weeks ago he did the same thing to put Felise Kaufusi into an offload situation near the line for another Dolphins try.
Katoa’s teammates are now enjoying highlight reel moments thanks to what he’s doing two or three passes earlier.
It’s Kodi Nikorima with the flick pass assist here, but look at what Katoa is able to do with less than a second on the ball in the lead up:
THE FLICK PASS! 😍#NRLDolphinsStorm Telstra Moment of the Match pic.twitter.com/YCyHvunaLB
— NRL (@NRL) April 18, 2025
Straightening off his left foot and faking to the inside, Katoa engages both the marker (Alec Macdonald) and A defender (Josh King) with just two steps.
Quickly squaring his shoulders and shaping this time to the outside, Katoa then manages to drag the B defender (Tyran Wishart) in towards the ball with another single step. He slows his tempo ever so slightly to sync with Josh Kerr’s (17) decoy line, inviting the C defender (Eli Katoa) to also fold in and buying himself time to pivot and pass out the back into space.
With just four steps on the ball, Katoa engages no less than four Storm defenders to create total chaos in the defensive line.
He allows Nikorima to play deep which invites Kane Bradley to jam, subsequently creating the space for Herbie Farnworth to cut back in field and find Nikorima again.
It won’t appear on Katoa’s highlight reel or even earn him SuperCoach points, but Redcliffe don’t score this try without Katoa’s work in the lead up.
The way Katoa is playing right now makes Redcliffe genuine finals hopefuls. Currently ranked fourth for total run metres, the Dolphins have got things right around Katoa in the past three weeks which has allowed him to flourish.
Canberra makes for an intriguing matchup in NRL Round 8 given their strengths through the middle of the field. Katoa needs a fast ruck to work his magic and the challenge for Redcliffe’s pack this week is to go with the Raiders long enough through the middle to earn Katoa enough positive looks in attack.
Origin forecast
Injuries have hit the NRL hard this season and we lost another few State of Origin hopefuls in NRL Round 7.
We’ve spoken about the importance of squad depth on the Neds NRL Unpopular Opinions Podcast at length. It might take 27 rounds to bear fruit, but the better teams in the NRL come finals time will be those well placed to handle injury and Origin enforced absences.
With the representative season just around the corner though, the same principles will likely apply to the 2025 State of Origin series.
We rarely see two full-strength outfits for all three games, but the rate of injuries and suspensions to start the year suggests the pinch might be felt a little more by coaches Billy Slater and Laurie Daley this season.
On paper, it’s New South Wales with the depth advantage.
From fullback, centre, backrow to prop, the Blues have genuine options with Origin experience to choose from. In the second row alone, names like Liam Martin, Angus Crichton, Hudson Young, Keaon Koloamatangi, Haumole Olakau’atu and Jacob Preston are all appealing options at time of writing.
Queensland’s stocks are a little lighter. Their organised, purposeful approach to selections has made for a connected camp and a clear succession plan in the past, but injuries threaten to derail that coordination.
You’d be an idiot to rule out the Maroons based on how things read on paper. NSW fans might be better served holding off on the $1.60 offered for the Blues to win the series at time of writing, and wait to get on after Game I at Suncorp.
The unknown for NSW is what changes Laurie Daley will make to a winning team.
Michael Maguire did a superb job of selecting players and assigning them a specific and complementary role within the team last series – Spencer Leniu’s impact role is a good example.
The challenge for Daley will be to replicate that clarity within his squad.
For Slater, selecting a first choice 17 will be his first challenge in the wake of recent injuries to Harry Grant, Reece Walsh, Max Plath and David Fifita.
Who are you backing to win the 2025 State of Origin Series and why? Let us know in the comments