Wayne Bennett has come to the defence of halfback Ben Hunt after a pre-season media frenzy regarding his dropped ball in the 2015 grand final. Bennett, speaking at the post-match press conference after Brisbane’s 17-4 win over the Eels, also didn’t miss the Parramatta crowd.

“I just think it’s been the greatest overkill I’d ever seen on a play in my life,” Bennett said.

“No one in our club or in that team has ever blamed Benny. He turns up every week and plays his heart out for us. To me it was a myth.

“Team sport’s built on more than one moment in the game.”

Bennett also hinted that the changes to the interchange made a significant difference on Thursday night.

“I think both teams were pretty tired actually. It was really humid and they were trying hard and we were trying hard,” Bennett said.

“There was a lot of gas being used, and everybody ran out of legs in the end. We had the lead and they couldn’t get back and we couldn’t do anything more with the lead.”