Andrew Johns goes ballistic over NRL act that 'shouldn't be allowed'

Andrew Johns has lashed out on in a live TV segment on Channel Nine after two players were hit with ugly 'third-man in' tackles over the weekend.

Broncos forward Patrick Carrigan faces a lengthy ban for a tackle that broke the ankle of Wests Tigers utility Jackson Hastings on Saturday night.

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Carrigan was the third man into the tackle and dropped his weight onto Hastings' ankle as they fell to the ground, a tackle referred to as a 'hip-drop'.

Carrigan avoided being sin-binned but on Sunday was referred straight to the judiciary, meaning any ban length rests in the discretion of the panel.

The State of Origin hero's tackle came after Joseph Tapine was hit with a 'cannonball' earlier on Saturday, before he was sent to the bin for punching Aaron Booth.

The Raiders forward was being held by two Gold Coast Titans players before Booth dived in at Tapine's legs to bring him down.

Tapine then lashed out at Booth in an ensuing melee and was subsequently sent to the bin for his troubles.

In the aftermath of the dramas on Saturday, Johns lashed out at the NRL and said the 'third-man in' tackle needs to be eradicated from the game.

“When there’s a two-man tackle and there’s no momentum, we have to eradicate the third person coming in,” he said on the Sunday Footy Show.

“I can’t blame him for reacting like this. If there’s two men in the tackle and they can’t get the player down, then one has to change his technique and go down.

“That third man should not be allowed to come in. It’s dangerous.

“They’re worried about the third man destroying their knees and ankles.”

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The Tigers confirmed on Sunday that Hastings would require surgery on his ankle after the tackle from Carrigan, ending his year early.

Interim Tigers coach Brett Kimmorley said hip-drop tackles could cause serious damage and needed to be abolished from the game.

"It's a horrendous tackle and the outcome can be really bad," he said.

"It's something that's crept into the game a little bit."

Under the NRL judiciary process, Carrigan's contact is considered worse than a grade-three, meaning he can expect at least three matches with an early guilty plea.

However the judiciary code also dictates that panel members have the power to consider Hastings' injury in the ban, potentially resulting in a longer suspension.

That topic has already emerged as an issue of contention, with Brisbane legend Gorden Tallis criticising the system on Sunday.

"The injury should never come into it," Tallis said on Triple M radio.

"Calling it live and watching the replays, I thought he would have been unlucky to get a week or two.

"I think it was an accident."

Carrigan later apologised and said: “I hope he is alright. It wasn‘t intentional.

"I felt like I hit him a bit higher. I don’t know if I winded him, but I heard him wince and then he fell backwards.

“At the end of the day, I don‘t want to see anyone get injured, so I hope he’s alright. It is what it is.’’

with AAP

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