I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong regarding the rules, but is it not against the rules to attack the kicker, but alright to attack the ball. If I'm right, then whether Hoffman was late or not is irrelevant as he quite clearly attacked the kicker. Unless you can attack the ball with a shoulder charge.

Sour Grapes !! Doesn't get a mention if Saints win the game.

Really? I think the extent of Wheelers injury and the lack of action taken by the officials to halt play would suggest otherwise.

That's my understanding, Paul. The rules have changed since Hooperman specialised in it.

Its hardly surprising Wheeler got hurt with a bit of contact - he seems to be a player who cant go a couple of games without picking up an injury of some sort. Saying that fingers cross it ain't too bad because he is a talent and doesn't deserve the luck he is getting with injuries..

Surely the fact that none of the officials nor the official in the stand felt the need to call the incident back says that Hoffman was committed and the injury is just an unfortunate aspect.

Yes, of course. Just as surely as the fact that an official failed to call the forward pass which led to your first try must have meant that the forward pass the whole world saw wasn't in fact a forward pass.

Refs make mistakes/are incompetent (delete as you feel appropriate). In addition, where late tackles on the kicker are concerned, they all interpret 'late' differently.

Since you are going to harrass me until I give you an answer, because you are little more than an old troll, I watched the game again on Good Friday. What's your point?

He wants to know did you get stopwatch out and time the hoffaman " assault "

Good, then you will have seen that Hoffmans tackle is no later than Gardners. Both players are committed to the tackle, so there was no problem.

I didn't call it an assault. I didn't use that word or imply it. I called it a late hit. And it was a shoulder charge to his shoulder. How do I know? I've just watched the first half again because I loved our play while Gary Wheeler was on the pitch. We looked so good. And then that git Hoffman took him out.

And no, Rogues, the two were not comparable. When a player is pressurising a kicker he is not supposed to tackle the kicker but intercept the ball or distract the kicker. He shouldn't have been touching Wheeler, never mind taking him out so late that he had chance to look up.

Priceless!
Criticism of Hoffman from fans who excused Hooper for years when he did it three or four times a game, season after season.

Ah, so that makes Hoffman's dirty hit ok then, yes?

For gods sake give it up! He was committed to the tackle and was no intent. It happens every week by saints players and every other player in all levels of rugby.

The fact he was hurt is unfortunate but that's rugby. Also the fact we lost don't help.

If we'd won and and wheeler hadn't have got hurt you'd not even mention that tackle.

Exactly - people are judging the incident on the injury and not the actual fact that there is a millisecond between Wheeler commencing the kick and Hoffman jumping.