Lebanon half Adam Doueihi will continue to challenge his one-match ban for dissent after he was found guilty of verbally abusing referee Grant Atkins during the Cedars' opening loss to New Zealand, according to NRL.com.
The decision comes after Doueihi attended a specially-convened World Cup judiciary hearing earlier in the week. Despite the three-hour process, the Lebanon half was unsuccessful in his attempt.
The Cedars are exploring every avenue in the hopes of getting Doueihi back for the all-important game against Ireland – a clash that many see as likely to decide who will qualify from Group C in second place.
While Lebanon had initially withheld their hopes of an appeal until they had heard the audio of what Doueihi actually said to the referee, that evidence has not been forthcoming thanks to a ‘technical glitch' at the time, which means there is no way to verify which version of events is most accurate.
It's clear there is a difference of opinion on what words Doueihi employed, with Atkins saying he told Doueihi “you're not going to call me the c-word” as he sent him off. Doueihi insists he didn't say the word in question.
We're not done with this story yet: Lebanon have lodged an appeal overnight in a desperate bid to have Doueihi play in this weekend's match against Ireland. A appeals hearing will be held on Thursday night (UK time) to determine whether Doueihi can play.#RLWC2021
— Dan Talintyre (@dantalintyre) October 19, 2022
Doueihi was repentant after the game, offering Atkins an apology – and he also received a character reference by coach Michael Chieka, who is also his uncle.
The appeal hearing will take place on Thursday evening, UK time.
