Grant Atkins could be just 80 minutes away from ousting Ashley Klein as next Sunday’s NRL Grand Final referee.

Klein has been in charge of the last three deciders, but came under fire for blowing no fewer than 18 penalties during Friday night’s preliminary final between Melbourne and Cronulla.

Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said the Storm deserved the win and were the better side, but the stop-start nature of the game would have made it difficult viewing for the fans – and hoped there would be no repeat next week.

One of the few times Klein should have blown the whistle was the 64th minute when Harry Grant appeared to execute a hip-drop tackle on Sharks flyer Ronnie Mulitalo.

Mulitalo hobbled around for a few minutes but was able to finish the game. In Grant’s defence, even if the match

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