St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor will wait to hear back from the NRL next week before commenting about his breach notice for his verbal attack on the referees.
McGregor is facing a $10,000 fine for calling the officials in last week’s loss to Newcastle “incompotent and embarrassing” but has yet to indicate whether he will appeal the penalty.
“I’ve got a couple of days left to respond which I will do, and I’ll make further comment next week after I get the response back,” McGregor said on Thursday.
McGregor this week became the first coach to come under fire from the NRL for berating officials, despite rival coaches also turning the heat on the game’s whistleblowers this year.
Canberra coach Ricky Stuart escaped sanction for his spray a fortnight ago, while South Sydney counterpart Michael Maguire took issue with concussion protocols last week.
Asked whether the NRL is being inconsistent with its punishments, McGregor said: “I’d prefer to reserve comment until I have a chance to respond to the actual breach notice.”
The fourth-year Dragons coach did admit, however, to speaking with referees boss Tony Archer this week to air his grievances over a number of issues.
But he is unsure whether the conversation would prove beneficial in the long run.
“I emailed Arch after the game. I texted him on the phone and emailed him through a dozen clips of the game and got a response back, so we did talk,” McGregor said.
Asked if he was happy with the outcome, he said: “I’ll tell you next week.”
Ahead of Friday’s clash against the Rabbitohs, the Dragons are equal on 24 points with Penrith but ahead in eighth spot on points differential.