The NRL referee who quit after receiving thousands of death threats from Mate Ma’a Tonga fans will return to the NRL field this weekend.
Long-serving Australian rugby league referee Matt Cecchin was criticized after he disallowed a try that would have helped Tonga beat England in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup
Six months after leaving Australia as a result of death threats, Cecchin has been named to take charge of Saturday’s clash between Manly and Sydney Roosters at Lottoland.
Cecchin denied Andrew Fifita a try which would have sent the Tongans into the final against Australia, prompting some fans to bombard him on social media.
Cecchin’s decision to not award the try was later endorsed as correct.
He had planned to head to the English Super League in 2019 however a visa hiccup scuppered those plans.
He returned to Australia and oversaw a NSW Cup game last weekend before being asked to step up to first-grade once again this weekend.
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