Why Phil Gould blocked Stephen Crichton from appearing at NRL judiciary over biting claim

Bulldogs supremo Phil Gould has revealed that he ordered Stephen Crichton not to give evidence in the Kyle Flanagan judiciary biting case. The Canterbury football manager said the NSW Blues star was prepared to provide his version of events to the judiciary via video link before he told him not to.

On Tuesday night, Flanagan fronted the NRL judiciary, pleading not guilty to biting Crichton on the nose midway through the second half of the Bulldogs' 28-10 Round 23 win, despite video showing that he took a nip as the pair wrestled on the ground. And it was that footage that Gould says made up his mind that he wouldn't allow Crichton to testify.

“The judiciary does not call players to appear before them to give evidence who have been allegedly hit by high tackles, been subjected to so-called crusher or hip-drops tackles,” Gould wrote in a text message to the Bulldogs board and the NRL, shared by The Sydney Morning Herald.

“Where video evidence is clearly available, there should be absolutely no reason for victims of illegal acts to have to appear before the judiciary to give evidence. If the MRC believes it has the evidence it needs to make a charge, then one assumes they believe they have the evidence necessary to prove their case.

“Any player charged with an offence always gets the chance to defend themselves if they so desire. The judiciary has always been reluctant to hear evidence from the alleged victims in these instances, citing their belief that players generally support each other under the unspoken ‘what happens on the field, stays on the field’ act.

“If a player makes a complaint that cannot be clearly supported by video evidence, then of course that player should be required to supply a statement of evidence to support his claim. However, where video evidence is clearly available, the victims of alleged illegal acts should not be required to appear before the judiciary to give evidence.”

Crichton didn’t respond angrily to the tackle at the time or make an on-field complaint, although he was seen wiping what appeared to be blood from his nose as he returned to the defensive line. It was only after the match he opted to make a formal complaint.

Kyle Flanagan claims he didn't intentionally bite Stephen Crichton

The Dragons half claimed his eyes were closed at the time of the biting incident, and says he had an involuntary partial closing of his mouth. "I partially closed my jaw. I did not bite Stephen Crichton," Flanagan said. "I didn't cause those injuries (Crichton's bloody nose)".

However, the judiciary concluded that the bite was in fact intentional as at one point Flanagan's mouth was fully closed around Crichton's nose. "At a point in time when Crichton's head was moving upward, his nose is held back and compressed in your mouth and is then released," Gyles said to Flanagan. "Crichton is putting pressure on your face and acting aggressive to you, in a way you didn't like.

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"The reason his nose came into your mouth was because you moved your head to the left. It was your move that put his nose in your mouth. You clenched your jaw, so what was between the bottom teeth and mouthguard was Stephen Crichton's nose." Flanagan was handed a four game ban for the act after the NRL judiciary found him guilty, meaning he will be able to return for the first week of the finals if the Dragons qualify.