Andrew Johns stunned viewers by going silent during Nine’s coverage of the Wests Tigers’ golden point win over the Sharks, revealing it was a deliberate act of protest.
With 23 minutes left in Sunday’s match, Johns put his microphone down and refused to commentate, angered by what he saw as an overzealous crackdown on high contact. The flashpoint came after Fonua Pole was sin-binned for a tackle that was initially missed by on-field officials but later picked up by the Bunker.
“Oh, it was just frustrating. It was doing my head in,” Johns said on Freddy and The Eighth. “I just wanted to throw the microphone. So I left it up to Freddy and The Tank, they unloaded.”
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Calls for change amid Bunker backlash
While initially joking that it was “just another sooky pants moment,” Johns made it clear he believes the NRL had gone too far in round eight, which saw a staggering 18 sin bins. He welcomed the league’s decision to limit Bunker interference to only “serious acts of foul play” from Magic Round onwards.
“I think the Bunker, things like when two players go up to catch a ball, just show it in real time, have a look at it twice,” Johns said. “If the ball touches their finger and goes into another player, who cares? Just show it in real time. Same as when a ball’s bouncing from a grubber kick, if someone dives on the ball, just show it in real time.
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“Every time the ball goes into the air, it feels like we're looking for a reason not to give the try, just show it in real time. If it looks like a try, it’s a try.”
Freddy Fittler also weighed in, saying the crackdown may be protecting the wrong players. “About 60 per cent of people getting taken off the field is because they’re tackling,” he said. “So it tells you we’re protecting the wrong person.”