‘How Should the Game Perceive Itself?’: James Schiller Sent to the Sin Bin as Knights Endure Fourth Consecutive Defeat

Newcastle endured their fourth consecutive defeat as the Sharks capitalised on a pivotal sin bin in the second half during their clash on Sunday afternoon.

The home side started sluggishly at McDonald Jones Stadium, with five-eighth Fletcher Sharpe seeing a try disallowed by the Bunker—a score that would have levelled the match.

Cronulla headed into halftime with a 16-4 advantage and came out strong in the second half, although centre Mawene Hiroti was thwarted in a desperate tackle from James Schiller.

Video replays highlighted Schiller’s impressive effort, managing to prevent Hiroti from scoring, but the match officials spotted a breach in rules.

Schiller was sent to the sin bin by referee Ashley Klein, prompting an outburst from club legend Andrew Johns during the commentary.

“What’s going on? The linesman is only five metres away, and the referee is right there, yet they both missed the high contact,” exclaimed Johns on Nine.

“He was saving a try. What direction do we want the game to move in? He gave his all to prevent a try, something he’s trained to do.

“And for that, he’s being penalised?”

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Phil Gould shared similar sentiments, expressing his dismay with a classic “dear oh dear” regarding Schiller’s sin binning.

Hiroti received treatment from Sharks trainers while Schiller made his way off the field.

With the Knights down to 12 men, Cronulla seized the opportunity, scoring consecutive tries by Sam Stonestreet and Will Kennedy to widen their lead.

Toby Rudolf nearly added to the tally while Schiller was sidelined, but the Sharks player fumbled the ball right over the line.

The match’s closing moments saw both teams make errors, but not before Greg Marzhew dazzled with a remarkable solo try, evading multiple tackles to reach the try line.

Hiroti capped off the game with a late try, while Schiller managed to score a consolation try, but the Sharks ultimately triumphed with a 34-14 win.