Mike Cooper counters sin bin logic with Wigan Warriors prop left gobsmacked

Wigan Warriors prop Mike Cooper was left 'gobsmacked' following his controversial sin bin - after being told by the referee his tackle was too forceful. Cooper was controversially shown a yellow card just two minutes into the Challenge Cup Final in what is believed to be the quickest card ever shown in a final.

The forward was sent for a breather after catching Warrington Wolves' Josh Thewlis around the head, but only after the winger had slipped and fallen in front of him at the last season. Cooper had already started his tackle motion and was in the process of executing the tackle before Thewlis had fallen. But that didn't prevent him being shown a yellow card.

It was a decision that was widely criticised across the game, with even more frustration felt when Matt Dufty was also sin-binned a minute later, which was also deemed harsh by many, including the BBC punditry team.

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The 35-year-old was understanding of the decision after the game, with new laws being introduced to remove contact to the head. However, he was left stunned by the justification and believes common sense needs to be applied to incidents like the one he was involved in.

"He said I went in with too much force," Cooper told Rugby League Live. "That's what got me so gobsmacked, really. I don’t tell him how hard to blow his whistle.

"Fair enough, sin-bin me or send me off. But the explanation was there were mitigating factors, but there was too much intent in there. It’s not his job to tell me how hard to hit someone, so I just thought that was a bit ridiculous. But we handled the situation well.

"I back the RFL’s reasons for it with insurance and disciplinary, but there’s got to be some common sense at some point. At that speed, nobody at the RFL and none of the referees have been in that position that I’m in, which is Josh Thewlis, who’s 20K lighter than me, is quick, playing in front of 65,000 people and he slips right in front of me. It’s a milli-second. Sugar Ray Robinson wouldn’t have been able to move that quick. And I’m 35. But it is what it is and it doesn’t matter."

Cooper now faces a wait to discover whether he will be banned for the tackle, with the Match Review Panel set to look into the incident on Monday.