Looks like a good old fashioned fore-arm smash to me - unless he intended to "tackle" Deacon by hitting him in this way then it is an illegal challenge.
From the above view it looks like if Deacon had not "dipped" then Vagana's fore-arm would have hit him the throat - which could have had a similarly serious outcome.
This is thuggery and should be treated as such. Imagine the reaction from the NRL if that had been Newton on Johns.
In union there is the sharp shoulder rule which means that tackles like this are illegal below the shoulder too - perhaps we should consider implementing it in RL?
"And Martin Offiah, trying to make some space, now then..." - Ray French, Wembley 1994
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Interviewer: So that obviously means that you're not going to St Helens and you're not going to Leeds?
Frano: I don't know why I would ever want to go to St Helens or Leeds
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Fielden could only be saying this so he can get his own back if we play the Kiwis again. With Morley and Fielden on the pitch...... :conf: well as they say...what goes around comes around! I sit true that Deacon had to have screws in his mouth to hold his face together?
........and on the 8th day, God made Wigan Warriors!
