Melbourne enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona will miss Sunday’s NRL Grand Final after his grade-three tackle charge was upheld by a disciplinary hearing on Monday.
The NRL panel unanimously upheld the five match ban, with the 28-year-old also expected to miss New Zealand’s Pacific Championship matches against the Kangaroos and Tonga – and will likely not play again until Round 2 of next season.
On Saturday, the prop forward was informed by NRL officials that he was facing a five-match suspension after he was sent to the sin-bin following a high shot that knocked out Sydney Roosters forward Lindsay Collins during Storm’s 48-18 preliminary final victory on Friday.
There was a chance that the 28-year-old would have been able to play against Penrith this Sunday, with Storm confirming that they were looking to persuade the judiciary panel to downgrade his charge to a grade-one sanction and a $3,000 fine.
Asofa-Solomona flew into Sydney for the hearing and appeared alongside his lawyer, Nick Ghabar, after the defence had been successful in fast-tracking the hearing from it’s usual Tuesday evening slot to Monday.
More to follow…
More to follow…