Bell suspension blow to Kiwis

Press, 24 July 1986, Page 27

Bell suspension blow to Kiwis

NZPA-AAP SYDNEY The New South Wales Rugby League judiciary has presented the New Zealand coach, Mr Graham Lowe, with a selection headache in the countdown to next Tuesday’s third test with Australia in Brisbane.

The winger Dean Bell, a member of the Kiwis’ two test teams in the current series, was banned on Tuesday from the Brisbane test when suspended for a month by

the N.S.W.R.L. tribunal. Bell was suspended until August 19, after he was found guilty of a headhigh tackle during Eastern Suburbs' premiership clash with Canberra at the Seiffert Oval last Sunday.

He will miss next Tuesday evening’s final test against Australia at Lang Park and, the five-match tour of Papua New Guinea beginning, on August 1.

Mr Lowe heard about Bell’s suspension only

minutes after watching his team beat the Queensland Country champion Wide Bay, by 32-7 at Kingaroy on Tuesday evening. So vital was Bell’s appearance next Tuesday that Mr Lowe had considered going to Sydney to make an eleventh hour plea on his behalf. Instead, he stayed with the tourists in Kingaroy to evaluate fringe players for next Tuesday’s match, which carries crucial World Cup points.

It is not the first time suspension has cut into Bell’s national team play»ing duties. He was suspended for eight weeks on a similar charge a year ago, and missed the first four matches of the Kiwis’ tour of England and France. However, the judiciary chairman, Mr Richard Conti, QC, said that it was “regrettable” his committee had to Inform him of his exclusion from representing his country in the coming weeks.

“The offence must be punished and invariably it is,” he said. “There is a small margin for error (for ball-and-all tackles) and players who take that risk should not do so simply in the hope that it doesn’t turn out to be dangerous.

“We think it was a dangerous tackle, and fortunate it did not result in injury to the player.” Mr Conti ruled out any thought of consenting to mitigate a . lighter sentence with an added fine as “it isn’t consistent with the range of suspensions that tends to be adopted with this offence”.