The stolen NFL rule that could have saved Newcastle against the Panthers

The NRL 'stole' the golden point concept from American football a few years back, but left out one vital aspect of the NFL rule.And had they taken the full NFL model, the Newcastle Knights may well have drawn - or even won - Saturday night's thriller against the Panthers.In the NFL's extra time, if a team kicks a field goal before the other team has touched the ball - as happened on Saturday night with Nathan Cleary's winning field goal 40 seconds into golden point - the game is not over.The NFL's lawmakers deemed it unfair that a team could lose in extra time without having a chance with the ball.So the team that booted the field goal kicks off and the opposition gets one drive to score a field goal themselves, or even a touchdown.The Knights were unlucky to lose on Saturday night and ultimately it all came down to the coin toss at the conclusion of regular time.The Panthers won the toss, and Cleary did the rest. The Knights never got a chance with the ball after dominating much of the game.Had the game been played in New Orleans and not Newcastle, the result may well have been different.