Elliot Whitehead banned over Brandon Smith tackle

Whitehead hit with lengthy ban for season-ending tackle on Smith

Canberra’s Elliott Whitehead has been hit with a lengthy ban and up to $5000 in fines for three separate incidents on Sunday, including a hip-drop tackle on Sydney Roosters’ hooker Brandon Smith that is feared to have ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).

Whitehead, who is off to Super League next year, has been slapped with a minimum three-game suspension for the dangerous contact, along with a minimum $3600 in fines for tripping James Tedesco and contrary conduct on Angus Crichton.

The Raiders veteran was sent to the sin bin on two separate occasions for the incidents involving Smith and Crichton in the Raiders’ 14-12 victory over the Roosters.

The charge means Whitehead will almost certainly miss his final game as a Raider after nine seasons at the club, with the 34-year-old off to England next year, unless he can get the ruling overturned at the NRL judiciary.

Whitehead’s suspension is compounded by a season-ending fractured cheekbone and broken nose for Raiders fullback Jordan Rapana, who suffered the injury during a collision with Tedesco in the early minutes of the match. Rapana is also off to play in England next year.

Whitehead told reporters he tried to apologise for the injury to Smith after the match, but Roosters coach Trent Robinson “had a go at me”.

“I didn’t mean to do [that to] Brandon. I know he’s come up with a bad injury and stuff, and I’m sorry to him for that,” Whitehead said. “I went over to ask about Brandon and Trent Robinson’s had a go at me. I went to apologise, and he’s turned on me, so the way he’s done that I thought [he] was out of order.”

Robinson confirmed he and Whitehead exchanged words after the match, and claimed the hip-drop tackle was common in Whitehead’s game.

“He came up and just wanted to ask how Brandon was, and I just said it was too many times. The hip-drops been pretty common in his game for a long time, and I just said it’s too many times. It’s cost us a player,” Robinson said.

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“That was it. He said it was an accident, and I just said, ‘Look you’ve done it too many times’. That was it.

“He’s done a lot in his career. It’s been pretty common. If you go and have a look – I like Elliott, watched him since he was in Bradford and Catalans – but it’s been pretty common and that was what I said. I know he’s opened it up here [press conference] which is why we’re talking about it, and I wouldn’t usually want to talk to you guys [reporters] about it, but he opened it up, and it’s been really common in his game his whole career.”