Simonsson holds no grudge against Tiger as Eels seek cap relief for injured stars

Luckless Parramatta three-quarter Bailey Simonsson says there are “no hard feelings” towards Luke Laulilii for the tackle that ended his season, as Eels powerbrokers formally approached the NRL about the prospect of granting salary-cap dispensation to teams suffering serious injuries from foul play.

Laulilii has been hit with a one-match ban for a midair tackle that resulted in a serious ankle injury to Simonsson.

Tigers coach Benji Marshall and teammates said Laulilii did not deserve to be binned for his effort on Simonsson as the pair contested the ball approaching the hour mark during Monday’s golden-point epic, which the Tigers won 22-20.

Speaking from his hospital bed in Norwest Private Hospital on Tuesday morning, Simonsson said he held no ill will towards Laulilii over the incident.

“It’s the game we play, risk comes with it,” Simonsson told this masthead. “No bad feelings at all, it’s an accident. Shit happens in footy. I reached out to a couple of the boys I know at the Tigers to make sure he didn’t feel bad.

“I didn’t want him to feel like it’s his fault, it’s an accident … I didn’t see it as foul play, it’s just one of those things. It could easily be me in his position on the other side of the ball. No hard feelings. It is what it is.”

Simonsson, whose season is over, is booked for surgery on Tuesday afternoon. While his unavailability further tests the depth of an injury-ravaged squad, the former Raider is backing the Eels to overcome the setback.

“It gives opportunities,” Simonsson said. “Apa [Twidle] came in last night and did really well. It’s good to give someone else a shot.”

Simonsson suffered a dislocated ankle and was taken from the field on the back of a medicab, then taken to hospital.

“I didn’t agree with it, it’s as simple as that,” Marshall said of the sin-binning on Monday night. “If he [Simonsson] didn’t get injured, would it have been the same result?”

The Eels’ depth is being tested due to a bulging casualty ward that contains Simonsson (ankle, season), Jonah Pezet (hamstring, TBA), Sean Russell (concussion, TBA), J’maine Hopgood (ACL, season), Matt Doorey (knee, season), Isaiah Iongi (ankle, round 13), Jordan Samrani (knee, round 10) and Will Penisini (groin, round seven).

In the cases of Simonsson, Iongi and Hopgood, they were the victims of illegal tackles that will result in them missing an estimated combined 49 weeks of play. The perpetrators will only be suspended for a combined six matches.

Eels chief executive Jim Sarantinos sparked debate last week when he told this masthead that there should be a mechanism that compensates clubs whose players are injured, especially when foul play is involved. He doubled down after losing Simonsson, and is now petitioning the NRL to address the issue.

“It’s obviously presenting some challenges to our roster,” Sarantinos said on Tuesday. “Any club that loses three players to injuries as a result of foul play is going to be impacted. It’s something we’re taking up with the NRL to share our concerns and commence a dialogue on how this may be able to be addressed.”

A salary-cap exemption of up to $350,000 per player is available to clubs whose stars are injured during representative duty, but there is no dispensation for players injured at club level.

Sarantinos stressed he had no issue with the sanctions handed out to those who had injured Parramatta players.

“This is not about saying those players should be suspended for longer, that’s not our position,” he said. “The position is that our roster has been impacted unfairly and I feel there should be some mechanism to provide some relief in those circumstances so we can supplement our roster.”

Laulilii, Penrith’s Mitch Kenny and St George Illawarra’s Ryan Couchman, the three players charged with the respective offences, will miss a combined six matches.

Parramatta coach Jason Ryles said none of the tackles were intentional, “but there’s a reason those actions are outlawed, [and it is] because of what we’re going through now”.

Ryles had already asked club officials to ask the NRL if that was even an option, and said, “surely it would be something worth considering [if it is] foul play, a season-ending injury; I think common sense would prevail.”

For the Tigers, Starford To’a (foot) was listed to play in reserve grade on Monday and is one option in the outside backs with Laulilii ineligible, while Taylan May (shoulder) is close to a return, but will not be ready for the Knights. Marshall confirmed Jarome Luai was also unlikely to return from a knee injury.

Meanwhile, Turuva explained the moment Eels fullback Joash Papalii stood over him and screamed in his face when he drove the centre into touch during an often emotional contest.

“Something happened between us earlier in the game,” Turuva said.

“When we scored I got into him, I carried on a bit, so when he was involved in the tackle where they took me out, he got stuck into me. Fair play to him. It was good. These Easter clashes can get fiery.”