Dragons to lodge formal complaint on Vegas golden point thriller

The St George Illawarra Dragons are set to write a letter to the NRL head office in a bid to get some clarity surrounding refereeing decisions during their Round 1 clash.

There has been a fair share of public outrage over the refereeing decisions made during the Dragons VS Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs, which saw the Belmore outfit win in the final minute of extra time.

With the Dragons blowing their captains challenge early in the contest, they had to roll with the punches of what referee Grant Atkins and the NRL Bunker saw.

Dragons coach Shane Flanagan highlighted five moments that needed clarity, with the Daily Telegraph reporting the club will reach out to the general manager of NRL officiating, Jared Maxwell. 

The five incidents were:

• Ryan Couchman was deemed to have illegally stripped the ball from Bronson Xerri in the closing moments of extra time.
• Connor Tracey was allowed to run downfield 60 metres after Jacob Kiraz was ruled to have knocked back the ball. Resulting in scrambling defence and under goal-line pressure. 
• Winger Setu Tu was penalised for an escort before being pushed in the back by Viliame Kikau, where Clint Gutherson marches down field, where the challenge wasn't overruled.
• Bulldogs skipper Stephen Crichton was not sent to the sin-bin after making contact on Tu's head, while also later being cleared by the MRC.
• An error by Moses Suli, in which the Red V outfit believes it was propelled backwards.

The Dragons were also on the wrong end of the penalty count, which finished at 9-3 in favour of the Bulldogs. 

It came during their heartbreaking loss, where an improved Dragons outfit dug deep in defence and showed glimpses of a strong 2026 campaign.