Corey Waddell banned for three NRL matches despite not being sin-binned for high shot on Storm star Tyran Wishart

The NRL’s high shot crackdown continues to have coaches, players, and fans scratching their heads after Manly forward Corey Waddell was not sin-binned for a high shot on Tyran Wishart late in the Sea Eagles’ 48-24 loss to Melbourne but today has been banned for three matches.

The Bulldogs’ fifth win on the trot was soured with Kurt Mann handed a two-match ban for his crusher tackle on Knight Thomas Carr.

The Waddell tackle had commentators bemused with Fox Sports pundit and Penrith great Greg Alexander lamenting, “we’ve seen players binned this weekend for less.”

The inconsistency between what is happening on the field and in the aftermath will likely be used by Titans coach Des Hasler when he talks to Head of Football Graham Annesley after he launched an impassioned spray following his side’s loss about the ad hoc policy.

Five players were cited after round five with Bulldog Jacob Preston and Knight Adam Elliott receiving fines for their high shots, while Newcastle’s Phoenix Crossland was fined for tripping.

The Waddell tackle capped off a forgetful match for Manly with the much-famed Battle of Brookvale showdown between the great foes more a massacre as the Storm ran riot after losing to St George last round.

Fresh off a broken hand suffered only two weeks ago, Jahrome Hughes was the star for the Storm on Sunday as he helped lay on three tries in a pummelling of the Sea Eagles.

His halves partner Cameron Munster also impressed, while winger Grant Anderson scored a hat-trick to help Melbourne stay in the NRL’s top four.

The only concerns for Melbourne were precautionary early marks for fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen and winger Xavier Coates, after a back cork and hamstring tightness respectively.

Otherwise this was one to savour, as the Storm rebounded from last week’s shock loss to St George Illawarra to show again why they are a premiership force.

Melbourne blew Manly apart in two separate seven-minute stints, going from 2-0 down to 18-2 up without Manly touching the ball early in the first half.

And while the Sea Eagles got it back to 18-10 by halftime, the Storm repeated the dose after the break with another trio of tries, while Manly didn’t have a play-the-ball.

Reigning Dally M Medallist Hughes was at the centre of it all.

His first moment of magic came in the first half when he laid on a perfectly lofted ball for Anderson, putting it out in front of the winger to run on to and score.

With the game back in the balance after the break, the Kiwi No.7 fooled the defence when he looked left and threw a long cut-out ball to the right for Anderson to score again.

In the next set Hughes did the damage from inside his own half, throwing a dummy before running downfield and helping send Papenhuyzen over.

“He’s a big part of (the turnaround from last week),” Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy said.

“We know he is a good player and a smart player, but he is a tough unit as well.

“To play tonight after the operation he had on his hand. There was no push from in the club from medical people or players.

“But he put his hand up and wanted to play. I thought he was thousands (to one to play). And he’s very important to the side as we all know.”

Muster also had his fingerprints on the flogging, putting Stefano Utoikamanu across for Melbourne’s first, before the five-eighth scored the second himself.

The loss took Manly’s record without the injured Tom Trbojevic to 16 wins from 48 games since the start of 2021, compared with 38 from 58 with him.

The fullback is due back from a knee injury in a month, but it is unlikely he would have saved them on Sunday.

The Sea Eagles did well to get back into the match at halftime and hung in the arm-wrestle for the first seven minutes after the break.

But when Ben Trbojevic made a half bust and was ruled to have played the ball incorrectly, Melbourne got the ball, scored, and the hosts didn’t cross again until they were 48-10 down.

Manly also lost Jason Saab to an ankle injury late, but they are confident it is only a minor one ahead of Saturday’s clash with Cronulla in Perth.

“The game was just won in two blocks,” Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold said.

“Inside those six sets (where they scored in succession) we gave them field position through a penalty or fundamentals. And they are a very good side, so they made us pay.”