![NRL head of football elite competitions Graham Annesley admitted on Monday that Jayden Sullivan should not have been sin-binned against the Cowboys. Picture by Anna Warr NRL head of football elite competitions Graham Annesley admitted on Monday that Jayden Sullivan should not have been sin-binned against the Cowboys. Picture by Anna Warr](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/kZL4qV6yTxfrWZJxKQxjSN/e762e32c-5bbf-46df-9554-83db9541aad2.jpg/r0_239_4682_3111_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Tyrell Sloan, not Jayden Sullivan should have been sin-binned during St George Illawarra's loss to the Cowboys on Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
NRL head of football elite competitions Graham Annesley admitted on Monday the wrong Dragons' player was marched.
Annesley made his feelings clear when asked about the incident during his regular weekly briefing.
"Yes I believe there was a sin-bin required from that tackle because they were trying to deliberately break down play so they could mount a challenge.
"We had two players come in after the tackle had been completed. I think the player that went to the bin was the wrong player," he said.
When prompted by a reporter that Sloan should have been sin-binned, Annesley nodded yes.
"You can't deliberately break down the play to generate a challenge," he added.
Sullivan was controversially sin-binned midway through the first half with the score locked at six apiece for lingering too long in a covering tackle on a runaway Kyle Feldt.
It was a harsh call given Sullivan was pinned underneath Feldt and unable to roll away.
It seems everyone but the on-field referee felt the wrong player had been marched, even Cowboys coach Todd Payten.
"I watched a replay once and I thought the wrong bloke went to the bin. My first thought was it should have been [Tyrell] Sloan that should have gone to the bin."
Though despite the controversial sin-binning, Sullivan was punished even further by coach Anthony Griffin's decision to leave the 21-year-old on the bench when his 10 minutes expired, opting to burn an interchange and sub in Moses Mbye at hooker.
Sullivan remained on the pine, even as the Dragons desperately chased points after getting within 18 following Jaydn Su'A's try with 25 minutes to play.
Meantime, St George Illawarra officials expect to front up to 400 members only hours after potentially making a crucial decision on Griffin's future.
Dragons officials will meet on Tuesday night, with Griffin's future as NRL coach certain to be on the agenda.
Our news app has had a makeover, making it faster and giving you access to even more great content.
Download The Illawarra Mercury news app in the Apple Store and Google Play