NRL referees axed for Macdonald incident

NRL referees Grant Atkins and Gavin Badger have been dropped following their performance in the match between North Queensland and Melbourne.

The referees allowed play to continue while Nene Macdonald lay with a fractured ankle. (AAP)

The referees that allowed play to continue while Nene Macdonald was down with a fractured ankle will be relegated this week, the NRL has announced.

NRL head of elite football Graham Annesley confirmed whistleblowers Grant Atkins and Gavin Badger have been demoted.

"It's important for me to say that as an administration, we didn't find that acceptable, that it took as long as it did for the game to stop," Annesley said.