Manly Sea Eagles' coach Anthony Seibold has defended Haumole Olakau'atu following a controversial tackle during their recent 32-18 victory over the Parramatta Eels.
Olakau'atu was sin-binned early in the match for a lifting tackle on Eels player Shaun Lane, which Seibold contends was a strong play that unfortunately ended poorly.
The incident occurred just four minutes into the game when Olakau'atu executed a frontal hit on Lane. The momentum of the tackle, aided by Daly Cherry-Evans, resulted in Lane being flipped over and landing on his back.
Lane was taken off the field for a Head Injury Assessment (HIA), but was cleared to return later in the match.
After a lengthy review by the bunker, Referee Gerard Sutton decided to sin-bin Olakau'atu rather than send him off. Depending on the grading of the charge, Olakau'atu could face anything from a fine to a four-week suspension, the latter of which would jeopardise his prospects for NSW State of Origin selection.
"I thought it was an accident," Seibold explained. "It wasn't like a typical lifting tackle. He hit him through the stomach, which is a really good tackle. And then Chez was on top. He did land in an unfortunate position. But he came back on and played the rest of the game. I thought 10 minutes was sufficient for the tackle, so hopefully nothing more comes with that."
Daly Cherry-Evans also commented on the incident.
"I definitely had a role in the tackle," Cherry-Evans said. "It just overcompensated what was happening in the tackle. Ten minutes in the bin was probably fair. I'd like to think that's hopefully all and we'll move on."
Commentators on Fox League also suggested that Cherry-Evans was lucky to avoid any scrutiny on his contribution to the dangerous tackle.
The potential absence of Olakau'atu could pose challenges for Manly, especially given they are without Ben Trbojevic due to a hamstring injury for another fortnight. With Josh Schuster having been released from the club, Seibold may need to rely on Ethan Bullemor and Brad Parker to fill the gap in the second row.
Despite the early incident, Olakau'atu was a standout for the Sea-Eagles throughout the match, particularly in the final stages of the game where he dominated the edge vacated by Maika Sivo who was also given time in the sin-bin for his elbow to the face of Reuben Garrick.
