Bradford want Leeds defeat REVERSED!
Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 11:57 am
Sorry is this is on a Ganson thread but saw this (www.skysports.com)
Like thats ever going to happen!! It isnt Leeds' fault is it? and it wont matter anyway will it? the only thing that will matter is the play-off positions at end of season if Bradford are within 2 points (and a place) behind Leeds... even then it was a mistake and wasnt leeds' fault.BULLS WANT LEEDS DEFEAT REVERSED
Bradford have called on rivals Leeds to hand over the points from their Millennium Magic clash after referee Steve Ganson admitted he had made a crucial error.
Ganson has accepted that he wrongly awarded the Rhinos' match-winning try as they edged home to a 42-38 success in the top-of-the-table meeting.
The match official said he blundered in not consulting video referee Ashley Klein over the try from Leeds substitute Jordan Tansey and apologised to Bradford for his mistake.
The decision caused a storm, with Bradford coach Steve McNamara claiming afterwards that his side had been 'cheated' of victory and chairman Peter Hood has called for the result to be reversed.
In a statement, Hood said: "I want to take this opportunity to publicly place on record my sincere appreciation to Leeds Rhinos chief executive Gary Hetherington for his kind words of consolation in the immediate aftermath of the game and for his honesty in recognising the injustice.
"I also thank the Leeds head coach Tony Smith for his honest comments reported in the media.
"The Leeds Rhinos club is justifiably a proud club, with a great tradition, and a club which above all values its reputation for right and fair-dealing in everything it does.
"For these reasons I shall be inviting the Leeds Rhinos to do the right thing again now, for the benefit of their own reputation certainly, but also for the good of the great game of rugby league, to voluntarily hand over to Bradford Bulls what is, as the whole game now acknowledges, rightfully ours - the two points so cruelly taken from us by Mr Ganson's failure to act."
Slow-motion replays indicated that Tansey was clearly offside as he chased captain Kevin Sinfield's penalty kick at goal which rebounded off a post.
Ganson had earlier called on Klein eight times to rule on the legitimacy of tries and Bradford players were incensed when he gave Tansey's try right on the hooter.
The referee declined to comment after the match, but has since owned up to his error of judgement.
"After reviewing the video footage from the game it is clear that I made the wrong decision in awarding Jordan Tansey's try," he said. "In hindsight, I wish I had referred the decision to the video referee.
"At the time, my focus was on ensuring that the Bradford Bulls players were not putting off the kicker, rather than ensuring all the Leeds Rhinos players were onside.
"I didn't refer the decision to the video referee as both touch judges, who were stood behind the posts awaiting the conversion, had a good view of the grounding and I didn't feel the need to check for offside as it's very rare that players from the attacking side are in front of the kicker.
"However, the video footage shows that I was wrong not to do so as a number of Leeds players were offside.
"I would now like to offer an unreserved apology to all those concerned, especially the players, officials and supporters of the Bradford Bulls."
However, Ganson's apology has done little to stem Bradford's anger, and Hood said: "Whilst Mr Ganson's apology is fine as far as it goes, and gratefully acknowledged, sadly he omits any mention of why the `penalty' was awarded in the first place and importantly - by whom?
"As has been widely reported in today's newspapers, there was no infringement by a Bradford player - this is clearly confirmed by the video evidence.
"Sadly, there is no mention either of what role, if any, video referee Ashley Klein played in `assisting' Mr Ganson not to go to the screen.
"Later in the week, therefore, we shall be demanding an answer to these and maybe other questions - such as the no small matter of Mr Klein's other contributions to the outcome of game - from RFL match officials director Stuart Cummings."