{"id":805602,"date":"2026-07-17T07:10:20","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T07:10:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/805602\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T07:10:20","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T07:10:20","slug":"sharks-skippers-blunt-call-on-high-shot-controversy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/805602\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharks skipper\u2019s blunt call on high shot controversy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cronulla captain Cameron McInnes<\/a> has called for greater consistency around the NRL’s high contact crackdown, questioning whether players who stay down after contact above the shoulders should automatically be forced to undergo a head injury assessment.<\/p>\n

The NRL<\/a> has placed an increased emphasis on reducing high contact this season, with referees penalising more incidents involving contact to the head and neck area.<\/p>\n

However, the stricter enforcement has also led to concerns from some players and coaches that opponents are staying down after minor contact in an attempt to earn penalties.<\/p>\n

\"NRLSYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – APRIL 01: Cameron McInnes of the Sharks makes a break during the round four NRL match between the Cronulla Sharks and the Newcastle Knights at PointsBet Stadium on April 01, 2022, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Jason McCawley\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

McInnes believes players should continue to show integrity and not attempt to influence referees, despite the Sharks’ struggles in the penalty count this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe penalties we give away that we can control, like offsides or hitting [opponents] in the face, things like that, you can’t argue with, and we will keep working on our discipline,\u201d McInnes said to the Sydney Morning Herald.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn saying that, I believe that we get hit in the face just as much as other teams, but because we don’t lie down, we don’t get the penalties.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you know, as a member of this team and the captain, I’d much rather we play with that integrity than play for penalties.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sharks skipper admitted that players staying down after high contact is not necessarily an issue, but questioned why the same standard is not always applied when it comes to HIA protocols.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuys do stay down after they get hit high or in the face. That’s fine; that’s cool. You can stay down if you get hit in the face, but I thought that if you stay down for longer than 5-10 seconds, you had to go off for a HIA,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that doesn’t always happen, does it? So if you were that hurt to stay down, you probably should go off and get your head checked \u2013 that’s the whole reason we’re doing all this, isn’t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NRLCANBERRA, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 08: Jake Trbojevic of the Eagles leaves the field for a HIA during the round 23 NRL match between Canberra Raiders and Manly Sea Eagles at GIO Stadium, on August 08, 2025, in Canberra, Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

McInnes acknowledged the difficulty referees face in making split-second decisions during matches, but believes there needs to be a clearer process when players remain on the ground following contact.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s not easy for refs to be put on the spot when there’s a lot going on in play for them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if you go down grabbing your neck, looking for the cameras, well then okay, go off and get your HIA. That’s the way I look at it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The comments come as the Sharks prepare for a crucial clash against the Newcastle Knights<\/a> on Friday night, with both sides fighting to secure a top-four position.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cronulla captain Cameron McInnes has called for greater consistency around the NRL’s high contact crackdown, questioning whether players…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":805603,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-805602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/805602","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=805602"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/805602\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/805603"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=805602"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=805602"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=805602"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}