LeagueNews.co | Jason Patrick
Stephen Crichton was all set to take the field via video link in the Kyle Flanagan judiciary bite saga, but that plan was tackled to the ground by Bulldogs bigwig Phil Gould.
According to reports from news.com.au, the Bulldogs center was raring to go with his testimony until the club's football manager Gould threw a flag on the play.
The Sydney Morning Herald has the inside scoop, revealing that Gould made a decisive interception due to crystal-clear video evidence capturing Flanagan sinking his teeth into Crichton during the Bulldogs' 28-10 victory over the Dragons in Round 23.
Flanagan was sin-binned for four matches as a result of his chomp.
In a classic move straight out of the rugby league playbook, Gould sent a text message to the Bulldogs board and the NRL, outlining his reasons for blocking Crichton's testimony.
"The judiciary doesn't bring players onto the field for testimony in cases of high tackles or questionable tackle tactics," Gould explained, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald.