Phil Gould and Billy Slater were left baffled after Parramatta’s golden-point victory over North Queensland ended with a contentious penalty decision despite Mitchell Moses having already kicked the winning field goal.
The Eels beat the Cowboys 33-30, with Moses’ one-pointer appearing to settle the contest. However, referee Liam Kennedy then placed North Queensland fullback Scott Drinkwater on report for dangerous contact with Moses’ legs.
Parramatta were awarded a penalty in front of the posts, allowing Ronald Volkman to add two more points after the match had seemingly finished.
Moses appeared confused by the decision, while Gould and Slater questioned why the penalty kick was required once the winning field goal had been scored.
“If you score a try, you don’t take the conversion in golden point,” Slater said during Nine’s coverage.
Gould later said the unusual conclusion had left statistics expert David Middleton in a “meltdown”.
“If you score a penalty try in golden point, you don’t kick the conversion,” Gould said. “I don’t see any reason whatsoever why they made them hit the penalty goal. The game’s over.”
The decision capped a frantic contest in which the Cowboys had led 30-22 before Parramatta fought back to force golden point and end a two-match losing run.
