The mood turned suddenly frosty inside the Channel 9 studio at Accor Stadium when Phil Gould refused to answer the million dollar question on Wednesday night.
With every figure in the NRL sharing their verdict on the controversial moment Kalyn Ponga was sent off in the second half, Gould bluntly refused to give his thoughts on the subject.
The former NSW coach watched on as NSW pulled off a 22-20 win for the ages with James Tedesco scoring a miracle 79th minute try to complete the comeback.
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Ponga’s send-off with 23 minutes remaining proved the turning point of the match with Queensland commentators and former players blowing up at referee Ashley Klein’s decision to overrule the Bunker match official and give Ponga his marching orders.
NSW icon Andrew Johns and Queensland legend Cameron Smith were both in agreement in commentary on Channel 9, saying Ponga’s shoulder charge to the head of Blues winger Tolu Koula did not warrant being sent from the field.
However, Gould refused to answer when asked about the incident after the game.
Channel 9 host James Bracey needed to show his class in trying to move on from the topic after Gould’s question snub left the broadcast hanging in a long, silent moment.
You can watch the awkward moment in the video player above.
“Gus you’re heavily involved in club land as well, players, do they see it like that?,’’ Bracey asked the Bulldogs general manager of football.
“That they have the responsibility as defenders to look after whoever they are tackling?’’
Gould paused before replying: “James I suggest you ask someone else, rather than me. If you don’t mind.
“I’d like you to keep your job.’’
Bracey attempted to pick up the discussion point again before Gould quickly moved the discussion elsewhere.
“We’re having an open discussion about an incident there on the park tonight and in the end it has gone wrong for the player, no doubt about that,’’ Bracey said in response.
Sitting alongside Gould on the panel with Bracey and former Blues coach Brad Fittler, former Queensland captain Darren Lockyer let his frustrations show.
“I’m still in shock over that Ponga decision, that’s the turning point, there will be a lot of people north of the border that struggle with that decision,” Lockyer said on Channel 9 post-game.
“Brad (Fittler) and I on the sideline, we could hear the thump. I heard the noise and it was sickening from a distance.
“I think Ashley Klein, at the start, when he first (saw) it and heard it, I think he always had this in his mind.
“What I am surprised at, when it went up to the bunker and they’ve reviewed, the bunker was suggesting that it was only 10 minutes. But Ashley Klein didn’t want a bar of it.”
Brad Fittler said as the defender, Ponga had a responsibility not to lead with his shoulder.
“You have full responsibility (when defending)…he had an opportunity to calm down, to slow down,” Fittler said.
“His last action was going into the tackle. His shoulder hit his shoulder and it ended up being a head clash. But the big thing is, whether he should be sent off or not, as a defender you have got the responsibility.
“If you’re going to come into tackles in those situations, you have got full responsibility. You need to be on the negative, on the downside, rather than being aggressive. That’s why he sent him off.”
Queensland coach Billy Slater and his assistant Johnathan Thurston looked in a state of shock in the Maroons dressing rooms post-game as the reality of the defeat set in.
In an extraordinary twist to follow the game, Ponga was only hit with a Grade 2 shoulder charge in a result that will see him escape suspension.
Koula has entered NRL concussion protocols and will miss the next two rounds for Manly as he recovers from the head knock.
Joseph Suaalii was given a four-match suspension for his high shot on Reece Walsh in the 2024 Origin series.
Ponga is just the seventh player in Origin history to be sent off.
