Canterbury Bulldogs director of football Phil Gould was the man behind blocking Stephen Crichton from appearing at the NRL judiciary last Tuesday.
In a case that ultimately saw Kyle Flanagan banned for four weeks over an alleged bite of Stephen Crichton's nose, the Bulldogs' centre didn't front the judiciary to provide evidence despite lodging the initial complaint.
Video evidence and the NRL's appointed prosecutor was enough to find Flanagan guilty and see him handed a four-match ban that ensures he misses the remainder of the regular season.
Flanagan himself provided evidence during the trial.
The Sydney Morning Herald however is reporting Crichton wanted to appear, only to be blocked by Gould who sent a text to the NRL and Bulldogs' board outlining exactly why his star captain and likely the Bulldogs' most important player should go nowhere near the hearing.
“The judiciary does not call players to appear before them to give evidence who have been allegedly hit by high tackles, been subjected to so-called crusher or hip-drops tackles,” Gould reportedly wrote according to the publication.
“Where video evidence is clearly available, there should be absolutely no reason for victims of illegal acts to have to appear before the judiciary to give evidence. If the MRC believes it has the evidence it needs to make a charge, then one assumes they believe they have the evidence necessary to prove their case.
“Any player charged with an offence always gets the chance to defend themselves if they so desire. The judiciary has always been reluctant to hear evidence from the alleged victims in these instances, citing their belief that players generally support each other under the unspoken ‘what happens on the field, stays on the field' act.
“If a player makes a complaint that cannot be clearly supported by video evidence, then of course that player should be required to supply a statement of evidence to support his claim. However, where video evidence is clearly available, the victims of alleged illegal acts should not be required to appear before the judiciary to give evidence.”