Being 'tough' is so ingrained into the culture, players staying down and 'milking' penalties is often more frowned upon than the foul play which gave them the opportunity to do so in the first place.

Let's be clear - both shouldn't be in the game. But the NRL's decision to revert to a one referee system and the 'six again' rule has created a Pandora's box of issues more predictable than a Lewis Hamilton Formula One title.

Let's begin with Thursday night, which ended in a slanging match between rival coaches Craig Bellamy and Brad Arthur after it was alleged Parramatta deliberately stayed down after alleged illegal tackles to 'milk' penalties against Melbourne.

Arthur vehemently denied after the 14-0 win he instructed Eels players to do so, Bellamy making it abundantly clear he believed it was a tactic.

Parramatta finished on the right side of an 8-1 penalty count, and their case wasn't helped when vision of renowned hard nut Nathan Brown staying down after an illegal tackle in a recent game against the Tigers, before rising to his feet immediately after a penalty was blown, was circulated on social media.

The NRL is a cut throat business. The livelihood of coaches and players lives and dies by results, and teams will do anything they can to succeed.

So when the game decided to scrap the two-referee system just before the season restarted after the COVID break, it gave teams a loophole they can exploit.

While there would previously be one set of referee eyes purely dedicated to keeping the ruck clean, the one referee is now required to look after everything himself.

Players know this and are getting away with more slow down tactics in the ruck.

However, players also know that if they're subject to some sneaky illegal play in the ruck, all they need to do is stay down to reap the rewards.

Had the two referee system remained in place, there'd be far less willingness for teams to use these practices as they knew they would cop a penalty.

Canberra coach Ricky Stuart was adamant when questioned about the issue on Friday that staging for penalties is "rife in the game".

"We have to be very careful though because we have a situation at the moment where a lot of attackers back into the defensive line as well," Stuart said.

"Yes, we have to eradicate the tackle but we've also got to be very, very mindful of players milking a penalty out of it, because you've got a players short-term career on the line.

"I think if there is a concern over a crusher tackle, I think that it should be like the HIA. A player is taken off for 15 minutes to assess the injury. Because we don't want a player having to playing on with any type of risk around the spine or the neck.

"There are accidents in the game too and the last thing we need is players laying down milking a penalty from it because it's rife in the game and we need to get that out of it."

I'm all for officials erring on the side of safety and should their be the odd negative impact on the game as a result, then the positives outweigh the negatives.

Since Head Injury Assessments protocols were introduced a few years ago there's no doubt teams have taken advantage at times by feigning concussion to get a free interchange, but the end goal definitely overrides that issue.

It's a tight rope officials will forever tread as they look to balance the safety and welfare of players with the game's integrity.

The rules are there to protect everyone in one of the more brutal and tough games on earth. But there also needs to be a clear deterrent for clubs and players looking to gain an advantage by exposing the loopholes on offer.

NRL fans will put up with plenty. It's a game constantly rocked by drama and it survives regardless. But taking the soft option and playing for penalties will never be tolerated.

Their team may benefit in the short term, but long term it's the game that suffers.

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