Hurrell incident an accident, say Warriors

Konrad Hurrell's knee raise charge was clearly accidental, say the Warriors, who decided it wasn't worth contesting at the NRL judiciary.

NZ Warriors centre Konrad Hurrell raises his knee in a tackle

The Warriors say Konrad Hurrell's raised knee incident wasn't worth contesting at the NRL judiciary. (AAP)

The Warriors believe Konrad Hurrell's knee to the head of Anthony Tupou was accidental but pleaded guilty because they felt there was little chance of successfully defending him at the NRL judiciary.

Assistant coach Andrew Webster says Tupou should shoulder much of the blame for the incident during Saturday's game in Sydney which left the Cronulla Sharks backrower with a shattered jaw because of an untidy tackle technique.

However, the Warriors chose not to contest a grade-three dangerous contact charge for a raised knee which resulted in a three-game suspension for the powerful centre.

"Obviously it was accidental and the Sharks player got his head in the wrong spot, but we felt like we needed to move on," Webster said.

"We didn't feel like we were going to win that anyway with the current situation at the judiciary."

If Hurrell had fought the charge and lost, he would have been banned for four games.

He will be available again when the Sydney Roosters visit Auckland on June 13.

Hurrell's suspension continues a disrupted year for the 23-year-old, who missed the Auckland Nines and the Warriors' two NRL trials after off-season wrist surgery.

Tupou has undergone surgery on his jaw but it is unclear when the former Kangaroos forward will be back on the field.


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Source: AAP


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