Canberra forward Hudson Young could face a long NRL ban after being referred straight to the judiciary for dangerous contact with the eyes.
Young will be forced to front the league’s judiciary on Tuesday night, after his contact on the Warriors’ Adam Pompey was deemed too serious for a regular grading.
Under the NRL’s judiciary code, a grade-three base charge for such contact is 500 demerit points, or five games.
This, however, has been considered more serious.
Making matters worse for the Raiders youngster is the fact he has already received a five-week ban for a gouge earlier this year on Aiden Tolman.
As it is his second dangerous contact offence in the past two years, any initial ban handed down by the panel will be doubled due to 100 per cent loading.
The incident was initially missed by match officials but now threatens to rock the Raiders in the lead up to their finals clash with Melbourne.
Replays appeared to show the 21-year-old Young twice make contact with the Warriors winger’s face as he scored a try in the first half.
Young told coach Ricky Stuart after the match he hadn’t raked at Pompey’s eyes, and the players are understood to have spoken after the match.
Pompey is also reported to have since taken to social media after the match to claim he didn’t feel as if he had been gouged.
Regardless, the incident sparked calls for a 20-week ban from former Raiders half Brett Finch in Fox Sports commentary.
NSW State of Origin coach Brad Fittler said the incident brought into question whether Young was ready to play in the NRL.
“I don’t think he is ready for first grade because he’s not handling the pressure of first grade. That is showing that,” Fittler told Nine Network’s Sunday Footy Show.
“After being suspended for five weeks and then someone scores a try and coming in and doing that. You need to learn control.
“Him training for the next five weeks with Canberra, I don’t know it is going to help him. He needs to work on discipline and control.
“He’s going to spend a heap of time on the sideline.”
South Sydney forward George Burgess in July received the longest NRL ban in seven years when he was outed for nine weeks for an offence similar to that with which Young has been charged with.
