Melbourne Storm have leapt to the defence of their captain Cameron Smith amid the latest controversy surrounding their tackling techniques.
Smith was hit with a concerning act notice from the NRL following an indecent involving Canberra winger Bailey Simonsson during the Storm's four-point loss to the Raiders.
The tackle has been heavily scrutinised and Smith received an official warning from the league regarding contact and pressure on the head - although no charge was laid by the match review committee.
NRL head of football Graham Annesley said on Monday that the Storm were no worse than any other club in terms of wrestling tactics and Melbourne assistant coach Ryan Hinchcliffe said "we are really confident with what we do down here and how we go about it".
"There has been a fair bit of scrutiny going on outside, but we know within these four walls everything we train and practice is within the rules," Hinchcliffe said.
"When it is outside the rules, I am sure we will find out about it."
Hinchliffe said there was nothing untoward in Smith's tackle on Simonsson and that similar incidents would occur during most rounds of football.
Get Caught Up: Round 22
"I think you will see he has actually got a hold of his jersey in that tackle,” Hinchcliffe noted.
"It’s a contact sport and there are 300-odd tackles in a game.
"You can see there he has got a hold of his jersey and he is trying to hold him on the ground.
"Yes his hands end up around his face, but if you have a look at all the games from the weekend I am sure you can find 20 or 30 or 40 of those tackles where the hands end up around that area so we move on.”
Match Highlights: Storm v Raiders
The Storm will look to return to the winner's list when they take on the Titans at AAMI Park on Sunday and Hinchcliffe said it was important that his side learn from the mistakes they made against the Raiders.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy said after the match that his players showed a touch of complacency as they surrendered an 18-0 lead and Hinchliffe wants an immediate response against Gold Coast.
"For us it’s about improving on the areas we let ourselves down on during the weekend so we will have a focus on that," he said.
"They have had a bit of an up and down year, but they have got some good players and have been playing some decent footy over the last couple of weeks."
