The NRL have elected to drop Todd Smith from lead refereeing duties and Gerard Sutton from a spot in the bunker respectively for Round 12 after they controlled the dismally officiated Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm clash last Thursday.
Smith and Sutton were responsible for a number of controversial decisions - many of which were found to be wrong on Monday during Graham Annesley's weekly footy briefing.
The duo have ultimately paid for the below average performance with their spots this weekend. Smith has been reduced to a touch judge job in the Cronulla Sharks and Newcastle Knights clash on Saturday afternoon, while Sutton's only appearance for the weekend will be as the referee in the Canberra Raiders and Manly Sea Eagles clash on Sunday afternoon to close the round.
The extra spot in the bunker is taken by Ashley Klein, who has a busy weekend with two games in the review box and one on-field - he is in the bunker for the Broncos and Panthers, and on-field for the Rabbitohs and Eels, which could be the games of the weekend.
Adam Gee will be on-field for the Broncos and Panthers, while Grant Atkins will be in the bunker for South Sydney and Parramatta. Gee was rested last week and effectively returns to replace Smith.
Felise Kaufusi, Jesse Bromwich and Kenneath Bromwich's first game against the Storm will be controlled by Grant Atkins.
Here are all the appointments for Round 12.
Brisbane Broncos vs Penrith Panthers
Referee: Adam Gee
Touch judges: Wyatt Raymond and Chris Sutton
Bunker official: Ashley Klein
Standby referee: Chris Sutton
Standby touch judge: Nick Morel
St George Illawarra Dragons vs Sydney Roosters
Referee: Peter Gough
Touch judges: Jon Stone and Kasey Badger
Bunker official: Chris Butler
Standby referee: Kasey Badger
Standby touch judge: Kara-Lee Nolan
South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Parramatta Eels
Referee: Ashley Klein
Touch judges: Drew Oultram and Belinda Sharpe
Bunker official: Grant Atkins
Standby referee: Belinda Sharpe
Standby touch judge: Tom Cambourn
Cronulla Sharks vs Newcastle Knights
Referee: Liam Kennedy
Touch judges: Todd Smith and Dan Munroe
Bunker official: Matt Noyen
Standby referee: Todd Smith
Standby touch judge: TBC
Wests Tigers vs North Queensland Cowboys
Referee: Ben Cummins
Touch judges: Phil Henderson and Nick Beashel
Bunker official: Kasey Badger
Standby referee: Phil Henderson
Standby touch judge: Cameron Paddy
The Dolphins vs Melbourne Storm
Referee: Grant Atkins
Touch judges: Ziggy Przeklasa-Adamski and Michael Wise
Bunker official: Adam Gee
Standby referee: Ziggy Pzeklasa-Adamski
Standby touch judge: Nick Pelgrave
Canterbury Bulldogs vs Gold Coast Titans
Referee: Chris Butler
Touch judges: Drew Oultram and Chris Sutton
Bunker official: Ben Cummins
Standby referee: Chris Sutton
Standby touch judge: Daniel Luttringer
Canberra Raiders vs Manly Sea Eagles
Referee: Gerard Sutton
Touch judges: Darian Furner and David Munro
Bunker official: Ashley Klein
Standby referee: Darian Furner
Standby touch judge: Mitch Currie
I believe that there are too few referees on the panel for first grade. There need to be more, to encourage com petition. You can’t say there is any competition if a bunker ref has a poor game, but next week is running round on the paddock as if nothing had happened.
I would have liked to see both demoted to NSW Cup or Q Cup, and a couple of refs from those competitions brought up to ref first grade for the week.