LeagueNews.co | Jess Malloy
Latrell Mitchell, the South Sydney Rabbitohs fullback, has been suspended for a late tackle on Sua Fa'alogo, causing him to miss the Magic Round.
In his first game of the 2025 season at fullback, Mitchell was sent off after hitting Fa'alogo high and late when Fa'alogo was making a break.
Reports indicate that as Fa'alogo passed the ball, he lost balance, lowering his body height.
This led to Mitchell's tackle appearing more dangerous.
Despite some fans believing Mitchell had committed to the tackle before Fa'alogo's dip, the recent enforcement of stricter penalties for head-high tackles justified Mitchell's 10-minute binning.
The match review committee subsequently handed him a one-game suspension.
NRL boss Andrew Abdo defended the league's stance on high tackles, while former player Mat Rogers expressed disbelief over Mitchell's exclusion from the Magic Round.
Rogers suggested that the standard of punishments has become excessive, arguing that Fa'alogo's slip into the tackle distorted its severity.
During a discussion on SEN Radio, he contended, "Mitchell should have escaped a suspension because Fa'alogo slipped into the tackle, which made it look a lot worse than it was." Rogers's comments reflect a growing divide among fans and analysts over the appropriateness of suspensions related to high tackles in the NRL.