Interim NZ Warriors coach Todd Payten has labelled the controversial decision to sin-bin Jazz Tevaga during their 24-18 loss to the Parramatta Eels as the "wrong call".
For the second year running, a controversial defeat to the Eels has all but ended the Warriors' hopes of making the NRL's top eight and a loss next weekend to the Cronulla Sharks would officially end their playoff hopes.
With his team trailing 4-0 early in the first half, Tevaga was sent to the sin-bin after shoving opposite Nathan Brown in the face.
Brown reacted by slamming Tevaga's face in the ground, resulting in a bloody nose.
Referee Grant Atkins then sent Tevaga to the bin for fighting, a decision commentator Andrew Voss labelled the "worst sin-binning" of all time.
The Eels made the most of the one-man advantage, scoring two tries to lead 16-0, a deficit the Warriors couldn't recover from.
Payten says he spoke to Tevaga, who told him Brown wouldn't let go of his jersey.
"I thought it was the wrong call," he says. "He was trying to push him off.
"In the context of the game, it was huge and it was the wrong call in my opinion.
"If anything, they should both have been sent to the bin. Nathan has come back in with a questionable knee and we're trying to stamp out retaliation, so I don't see why one goes and not the other.
"It was an attempt to escape from the tackle and push the offending player away from him, so he could play the ball. It is super-hard to defend with 12 men."
Eels coach Brad Arther claims he "didn't see it closely enough", so couldn't comment on the incident.
Payten refuses to blamed the sin-binning for their loss, but felt it had a massive impact on the game.
The Eels had dominated the opening exchanges and the Warriors were just starting to build momentum, something they didn't get back until late in the half, when they scored two freakish tries.
"It's had a big impact on the game," says Payten. "We had some other chances to win the game.
"In the context of the game, that put us under a heap of pressure. We lost the game by four points and they scored two tries in that 10 minutes, so it had an impact."
The Warriors must win all three of their remaining games to have a sniff at making the top eight, as they sit four points behind the eighth-placed Sharks, who they play next weekend.
Payten also believes captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was tackled in the air late in the contest, with Atkins instead handing the Eels a penalty that allowed them to move six points clear.
The interim coach had just 20 players to choose from. When a team is named on Tuesday, it usually features 21, but the Warriors had no other players to choose from.
He hopes George Jennings and Daniel Alvaro will be allowed to return to the Warriors - the duo were unable to play, as they're contracted to the Eels.
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