Static? I don't call someone bouncing on their toes watching a runner and then turning into their path, 'static'. He blocks him, simple as that. It's hardly an uncommon tactic.

Go on, watch it again and watch him carefully. He's looking at Flower throughout, staying agile on his toes as RL players should. Then he turns his back into Flower's path. Honestly, if you can't see that you're either blind, blinkered or a rare type of stupid. Pick one.

I get it. It's cool to condemn Flower. Nothing - and I repeat this for the terminally idiotic - can excuse what happened. But to pretend Hohaia played no part in instigating events shows either a childish agenda or a lack of understanding of what goes on on the RL pitch.

He went for the block and took exception when Flower clobbered him out the way. Flower then took exception to the arm in the face but took things way too far and has rightly served his time.

Awaits the next Hohaia denier. Does that rhyme?

Around the town of Wigan there is sport motto saying "Believe" which gets distorted when the rugby team loses, the fans are lost and retort to "MAKE BELIEVE" and go into denial mode.

That's even worse!

Cronus. Thankyou for the laughs. You've brightened my day up

Regards

King James

Did anybody see the last minute of the 1st half of the Rabbitohs v Bulldogs match at the start of April? The infamous Jammer Graham dummy spitting extravaganza?
Do you recall the moment Issac Luke ran from dummy half and dived over the line only to be greeted by a Kasiano's knee to the back of his head while simultaneoulsy receiving a full frontal swinging kick assault to the face by one of the Morris brothers? Now that was a head injury, yet Luke played in the test match on Sunday. It made the Hohia incident look like a school play ground fight yet he was given the all clear to play? How does that work, I'm no medical expert but that was the worse double head tackle I've ever seen.

A bit flippant, I know, but I doubt there's that much to hurt in Isaac Luke's head.

...and generously stepping up to the role...



Especially that stupid "Regards" thing. Not sure what you're trying to achieve. Puts you down there with Capdouze and his name fetish.

The reason that a lot of non-Wigan fans are struggling with your view of events is the simple fact that NOTHING excuses Flower's second punch on Hohaia. He did nothing to deserve the second punch.

Bringing all the earlier stuff into it is as irrelevant as what Flower had for breakfast that morning.

And now you'll go and find where I've said otherwise. You can, can't you?

You prove my point. Some people simply can't differentiate between acknowledging the 'earlier stuff' - that Hohaia played a part in instigating and escalating the incident - and what followed. Both players were responsible for escalating the sequence of events disproportionately. Flower, ultimately, took it way too far.

To my knowledge, no-one - myself included - has said that second punch was anything but utterly disgraceful.

I think Rhino's point is that the second punch makes all before it moot. There's little point in acknowledging/discussing who started it, who escalated it and who finished it.

That would be correct if plenty of people weren't claiming Hohaia was an innocent little cherub who did NOTHING at all, and Flower is just a big nasty who knocked him to the floor for no reason as he ran past, and then punched him not once but twice, the second being the worst single incident ever seen in the world, ever.

In any incident, instigation and escalation, responsibility and retaliation are taken into account. This is no different. Hohaia and Flower both played their part, Flower went too far.

You and a lot of other Wigan fans are just embarrassing themselves with this.

Hohaia did nothing in the initial play to warrant being clobbered from behind by Flower. He may have been attempting to disrupt the Wigan runners from getting to the ball, but so what? He's playing sport at the time, trying to gain an advantage for his team. You will see this at EVERY attacking kick made in Rugby League and it does not entitled you to strike at the player blocking you.

The second point is your and a lot of other Wigan fans assertion that Hohaia should have been sent off for 'elbowing Flower in the face'. It was a shoving motion with the arm, not the elbow and it is incredibly cringeworthy that you lot suggest he should have been sent off for it. If that's a red, you'd have reds in every Grand Final, which clearly doesn't happen.

What happened after it was ridiculous and should have lead to criminal proceedings. Flower is a mindless thug who has no place in the game, he could easily have killed Hohaia with that second punch. And yet the Wigan fans saw fit to celebrate his return with a big fanfare.

To suggest that Lance Hohaia played no part in this is as stupid as some Wigan fans suggesting he deserved what he got. He played his part and paid a price but What Flower did makes every action before the second punch completely moot. There's an old saying "For everything a reason".

What we should be grateful for although the game was dragged through the mud is that this wasn't a drugs scandal or a rape claim or even worse a drink driving charge leading to the death of someone. Ben Flower has served his time and both clubs dealt with the situation admirably.

The problem here is typical one eyed RL fans dragging the great game through the mud once again. It's over and been dealt with. Get on with it.

This is now getting boring.

Ye it is, its really sad all this pretend outrage.