Matt Lodge has been let off the hook following his tackle on South Sydney Rabbitohs hooker, Brandon Smith, which had the star limping off the field in his first NRL match in almost a year.
Many believed Lodge's tackle was a hip-drop and should have been penalised in some manner; however, the Manly Sea Eagles prop was granted the benefit of the doubt, with the NRL seeing no issue with his tackling technique.
Smith, making his debut for Souths and appearing for the first time since he ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee playing for the Sydney Roosters last year, was involved in an awkward collision on Sunday in a 75th-minute Lodge tackle and limped off the field.
Wayne Bennett confirmed in their post-match press conference that the club's newest recruit would be missing 6-8 weeks, after suffering suspected medial-ligament damage "from that tackle."
When asked if he took issue with the tackling technique that resulted in the injury, Bennett responded, "You can make your own opinion on it. I'm frustrated about a lot of things at the moment, but it's not doing me any good."
Lodge and Smith are good friends off the field, with both rushing to the other's side in the events that followed the situations.
When asked if Bennett's comments had any effect on him, Lodge said, "What's more important to me is Brandon Smith. He's a good mate of mine. He's coming to my birthday next week. I was more concerned about Brandon Smith."
Smith echoed his mate's sentiment, taking to social media to throw support behind Lodge.
"Just want to make sure everyone understands Matt Lodge [did] nothing wrong, it was an accident," he said on his Instagram story.
"We are friends, and if you watch, you can see nothing was wrong, so please leave him alone. This stuff happens all the time."
Lodge will be free to play following Manly's bye, while Smith will begin rehab once again.
