LeagueNews.co | Cooper McEnroe
Rugby League coach Ivan Cleary has weighed in on the controversial calls that surrounded his team's narrow loss to the Melbourne Storm.
In what was a battle of the heavyweights, Cleary acknowledged the opening try by the Storm, which was clouded in controversy after Nathan Cleary was seemingly taken out off the ball.
However, Cleary refused to blame the loss solely on that decision, attributing some of the fault to Izack Tago's defensive read which allowed the Storm to break through and score.
Cleary compared the defensive mishap to a similar one in their game against Parramatta last week, emphasizing the importance of making the right defensive decisions on the field.
He mentioned, "I always thought if you make a bad defensive read on the outside, it doesn't matter what happens on the inside.
It used to be a rule, I don't know if it still is, but I was comfortable with that."
When questioned about a late penalty against James Fisher-Harris for a supposed late hit, Cleary remained tight-lipped and chose not to comment on the matter.
The penalty awarded to Nick Meaney allowed the Storm to edge ahead by the eventual winning margin, leaving Cleary and his team ruing missed opportunities and calls that didn't go their way.