Warriors sponsor CEO Jason Paris stands by claims of ‘unconscious bias’

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A New Zealand chief executive, Jason Paris, stands by his allegation of unconscious bias against the Warriors by NRL match officials, but has backtracked on his claims of cheating.

Paris, who runs New Zealand telecommunications giant, the naming rights sponsor of the Warriors, has decided to clarify his remarks on Saturday which caught the attention of the rugby league world.

After the Warriors lost 18-6 to the Panthers in their Magic Round clash in Brisbane, Paris went wild in a tirade on Twitter where he alleged “first-rate cheating” and that the NRL bunker and the referees were biased against the Warriors.

In addition to the post going viral, it also reached the NRL, which opened an investigation.

On Monday, Paris said he made the comments in the heat of the moment as an avid fan and decided to clarify his statement regarding the perceived bias.

Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Warriors captain Tohu Harris talks to referee Todd Smith moments before Demitric Sifakula was controversially sent to the trash can against the Panthers.

I don’t think NRL referees cheat, he said. They come to work every day to do their best for the game.

However, I believe there are unconscious biases happening every week against the Warriors that need to be addressed, Paris said on Twitter. All we want is consistency, but we don’t get it.

Almost since the club’s inception in 1995, many Warriors fans have felt that the club has not been deemed fair by match officials.

In 2019, former Warriors manager and Kiwis grand league champion Mark Graham revealed he believed an unconscious bias against the Auckland-based club was behind a series of decisions controversial refereeing during this season.

SPORTS SKY

Panthers pounce on wounded warriors.

Graham also revealed shocking details surrounding an incident while coaching the club, between 1999 and 2000, when match officials were caught into their microphones making racial slurs at a Warriors player, essentially saying it didn’t matter if it was a contentious appeal because the player was of Polynesian descent.

“I knew every game we missed we were playing uphill and probably going to have poor contact with the green,” Graham said in 2019.

Paris could be in trouble with the NRL for his comments but he welcomed the investigation.

Take opinions and analyze video footage from previous matches and compare our decisions with those of other teams. I think he will see that we are at a disadvantage, then we can figure out why and take steps to fix it, Paris said.

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