Wayne Bennett has been left "dumbfounded" by a crucial downtown penalty call that cost his South Sydney side the lead in their 25-12 NRL loss to Penrith. Rabbitohs forward Mark Nicholls was picked up for a rarely-sighted downtown penalty, after he advanced beyond the play-the-ball mark before a kick was made. The South Sydney middle was then called out after Stephen Crichton fumbled the ball on taking it back to the line, allowing Nicholls to scoop it up. Nicholls was more than 10 metres from Penrith when they received the ball, but under NRL rules he should have stayed away from the play entirely or risk giving away a penalty. The call allowed Nathan Cleary to slot over a penalty from 40 metres out, giving the Panthers a lead they never relinquished. "We were all a bit dumbfounded by that one," Bennett said. Mark has done it all his career, so many others have. I don't know where it came from. "No-one has any idea on it in that change room. They are all guilty of it. "It was a big moment in the game."
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