I won't mention the ref to start with, yet again we've lost a game having had it won. This inability to close out games against the top sides is bound to come back and bite us on the bum late on in the season, and in this case, not only have we not won we've not picked up a bonus point due to Dane McDonald literally throwing it away. Whether he's good enough for this level is up in the air but he certainly isn't a half back. Widnes got back into the game due to their aggression and physical play, at times they were too physical, and now on to the guy who allowed that to happen...

I fully believe the referee's incompetence cost us the game today, definitely cost us a point at least. Just find out he was in fact only 19 years of age, the fact that the RFL allowed him to have such a big game is a disgrace. He allowed Widnes to become over physical and this took the game away from us. Mark Smith was reffing the game more than the guy with the whistle was. The incident where Sam Barlow was taken out after releasing the ball, with what looked like an elbow/forearm to the face, the referee must have seen because he blew his whistle and gave a penalty, then picked the correct Widnes player out of the line and gave him a talking to, before putting the incident on report. If he's seen the incident, I want to know why he hasn't at least put him in the sin bin, maybe even sent him for an early bath. Then the brawl, first of all I don't think it was a high tackle by our player (Tangi Ropati?) I think it was a fair hit to the shoulder, but the man in the middle thought otherwise. This triggered the brawl in which Mark Smith ran 10 yards to lamp Ropati in the face, for this he was sin binned, as was Tangi, not a clue what for, if it was for the initial hit then that's yet another atrocious decision. In the said incident, there must have been 20 guys throwing punches. How he gave two YELLOW CARDS is beyond me, should've been at least one red.

I just hope we don't get the guy again, or we get him a few years down the line when he's had more matchday experience, but hopefully not at our expense again.

Edit: It was Misi Taulapapa who was involved in the brawl, not Tangi.

Right, ive had to get home and calm down a little before i posted anything. Ive even got my RFL rulebook out just to make sure the rules hadnt changed overnight as i couldnt quite believe what ive seen today.

The referee today was the most useless attempt at a match official i have ever seen. He had absolutley no control over the game whatsoever. Tommorow when i get my League Express i shall change the name from W Turley (Leeds) to M Smith (Widnes) as he was controlling the game for him. Yes, he was 19 years of age. The appointments officer of our league needs to have a very very serious think about what he has done in giving a young man such a big game which he had no chance of controlling and the fight was completely inevitable. The touch judges looked even younger. I doubt theyve even started shaving yet.

As well as the lack of control, some of the decision making was totally daffling. Mark Smith threw (and landed) a punch in full view of the "officials" and after a small confab decided to sin-bin him and an eagles player! Its my understanding looking at my rulebook here that punching comes under gross misconduct and is an automatic red card. Clearly that must have changed. If youd thrown and landed a punch in the pub or on the street youd be arrested and charged with assault. Here its not even a red card. Quite beyond belief.

The tone was set directly from the kick off for the second half. The ball went out on the full and they gove a goal line drop out?
RFL Laws - Section 9, Rule 6b: Offenses incurring penalties - kicker.
A player who kicks off or drops out shall be penalised if he kicks the ball on the full over the touch line, touch in goal, or over the dead ball line.

I was stood next to a Chapmionship level touch judge at the time who couldnt quite believe the level of screw up made. If theyde scored from that set, i dread to think what might have happened.

I quite enjoyed what the BBC Radio Lancashire commentator said: "Mark Smith is rather unlucky to be in the sin-bin here". Correct sunshine, he should have been in jail for assualt!

We did have the game won and let it slip. I think we started slow but fought our way back into it well and deserved at least a point. Whilst we didnt help ourselves the "referee" played a very pivotal role in the outcome of the game and serious questions need to be answered now about this whole farcial episode.

Up the Eagles!

Warren Turley is from Leigh and is the brother of Neil Turley.

Obviously they made a typo when doing his birth certificate.

But understandable the L is very close to the K on a QWERTY keyboard


(reason for editing.................just because I bl**dy can )

Did you see the year 9 touchy when it kicked off?

He ran onto the field and was jumping up and down - I swear he was shouting feight feight feight

it's not even as if the officials can go and have a drink and forget about how bad they were because they won't get served anywhere

aye yes, we won because of the ref. Widnes were rubbish and didn't score any craking tries. Did you see the intercept that Turley did, sublime!!

It did say Leeds but it doesn't really matter where he's from, he was still an embarassment.

What utter one eyed rubbish. Your lot became equally if not more physical with the cheap shots and head shots. The ref never lost the game for you, Sheffield could have built on that lead but they didn't, they lost their heads and threw it away to a Widnes side which as you say is far more physical than yours.

Face it Eagles, you got beaten by the better side today. Suck it up you sore losers.

Clearly we were not watching the same game. I was at Don Valley, where were you? York?