Voss calls for overhaul of NRL shot clock after costly error

SEN’s Andrew Voss has called on the NRL to overhaul the shot clock system after the blunder that cost the Warriors in Round 15.

The Warriors were penalised 17 minutes into their clash with the Sharks, when Chanel Harris-Tavita failed to complete a drop out before the shot clock sounded.

New Zealand players complained to referee Gerard Sutton that he had told them they had “five more seconds” before the buzzer rang two seconds later, with coach Andrew Webster calling the incident "embarrassing" post-match.

Harris-Tavita could not see the shot clock because the screens were showing advertising instead of the countdown, hence why he asked Sutton.

The Sharks kicked a two-point penalty off the error, which proved costly for the Warriors, who ultimately lost the match by two.

“When you ask the question, because you can’t see it on the clock, and the response is, ‘You’ve got five seconds’, and you kick it in two … I never blow up. That’s embarrassing,” Webster said.

Now, Voss is encouraging the NRL to take a leaf from basketball’s book, and install two shot clocks at either end, independent of screens, so there is no risk of a similar error occurring.

“Now, I'm a great basketball fan and watch a lot of it,” Voss said on SEN 1170 Mornings.

“Could you believe, I've actually operated the shot clock in representative basketball games. It's a high-pressure job, but it's important to the fabric of the game.

“So therefore, that role is taken with the greatest seriousness. It's as important as any other role.

“So, in the NRL, we also have a shot clock. Not as important as the shot clock in basketball, but in terms of the running of the game, still very important.

“Surely, it's a bloody simple fix, isn't it? Clock at one end, clock at the other, independent of the big screen, it's the shot clock… doesn't matter what's on the big screen, what ad they're running. It's there and the countdown's there, visible, seen, bang.

“There's one at the northern end; there's one at the southern end. Broadcasters can put it on their screens if they like, so the viewer at home knows what's going on.

“How simple would that solution be? Put a sponsor on it if you want!

“It's not the biggest issue, but let's get professional.

“What happened the other night, laughing stock areas really!”