I've just watched it on the iplayer and he is nowhere near the ball. It looks deliberate to me.

I didn't say he ended up near the ball, but that he was searching for the ball. Even on the still picture you should note just how low down Hill's head is, it's level with Hardaker hip so very conceivable the ball was what he was hoping to get......considering to he can't see from his angle where the ball is but would be around the region his hand swings for.

The sooner rugby players start suing internet trolls for defamation the better.

The BBC guy at the match said it was watched by the video ref, and it was watched after the match after comments, and said his finger never went close to the eye, but was pulling the head guard.

I haven't seen, so can only comment on what the media guy said. But would presume if video ref saw it, at least something would be on report if a doubt.

For gods sake the injury below his eye was a different incident , maybe your just trying to deflect from being well beaten in a semi final . Saying that Y.G . some of your previous posts on different forums put you in a league along with sir aidrian morley poster and thats not a good place to be .

They were over the try line. Hardaker will have been wanting to hold the ball up to prevent a try. You think that instead of trying to prevent the ball from being grounded Hardaker instead decided to stick his finger in Hill's eye so that he'd drop the ball, and that he managed to pull off that perfectly?

You probably do. But it says far more about you than it does about the incident.

Ok numpty i'll bite the slow mo replay shows his hand come up and make contact with the eye for a split second all in the motion of making the tackle you are talking utter bollox its purely accidental.
Toddle off!

There were, what, five slo-mo replays of it and neither the commentators or video ref saw a thing worth commenting on. But Craig Galloway photography knows different.

plays for leeds.... no case to answer !!!!

Haha. Getting sued for having an opinion? I've heard it all now.

wow, a real witch hunt going on here.

Until i hear Chris Hill come out and make a claim of a gouge (which doesn't appear to be the case) or the RFL say they are looking into it then its a non issue to me and this thread should be deleted.

I respond to posters as I find them there is not one angle either in slow mo or at full speed that shows it was a deliberate gouge but because some amateur photographer caught a well timed still there's faux uproar.
If you want reasonable debate bring it to the table otherwise get yerself round to J. Monaghans house with a box set of the Dog rescuers!

My reasonable debate is simply that from the footage I have seen, it was a deliberate gouge from Hardaker. That doesn't make me a troll or a numpty, just simply someone with an opinion that won't be popular amongst Leeds fans.

Getting sued for distributing an opinion that can cause serious harm to someone's reputation is not a new thing. There can be an "honest opinion" defence but I'm not sure you'd qualify.