A decision by NRL referee Adam Gee, during the fiery clash between the Melbourne Storm and the Canterbury Bulldogs, has totally baffled fans and experts.

During the second half of Friday night’s thriller at AAMI Park, a fight broke out after the Storm’s Nick Meaney tackled Bulldogs five-eighth Matt Burton and forced a knock-on.

But Gee then reversed the decision when Storm winger Grant Anderson decided to let Burton know all about it and patted him on the back of his head ... or rather, his headgear.

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A frustrated Burton then threw the ball at Meaney as the Bulldogs’ Viliame Kikau entered the picture and started throwing his weight around.

Meanwhile Gee decided to penalise the Storm, and his mic picked up what he was thinking.

“What happens is the touch on the back of the head instigates (the melee),” Gee said to Anderson.

“That’s what that reaction is. It’s going against you.”

Commentator Greg Alexander said on Fox League: “Grant Anderson just oversteps the mark.”

But fellow commentator Dan Ginnane was shocked: “Wow. What would have been a knock-on against Canterbury becomes a penalty to the Dogs.”

Veteran NRL reporter Phil Rothfield was also in disbelief.

“I never in my life seen a player penalised for touching a rival’s head,” he vented on social media.

The Storm took a 12-0 lead into halftime but — with skipper Harry Grant sin-binned (and later suspended for two games) for a no-arms shot on Harry Hayes — the Bulldogs managed to get back into the game, with the Storm holding on to win, 20-14.

However, fans were fuming with Gee (and not just because of the decision against Anderson).

“Retire Adam Gee … softest penalty in league history. Pat on the head after a knock-on, we are going to see a lot of penalties if that is now the new standard,” one fan blasted on social media.

And another: “That is disgraceful by the ref. On what earth is patting an opposition player’s head a penalty? It happens all the time! You’re rewarding the Dogs player for overreacting!!”

And another: “Penalty for rubbing a head in NRL is crazy

And another: “Might be one of the worst penalties ever. Penalising a player for geeing up after a knock on? Games gone.”

While another said: “That’s the most pathetic penalty I reckon I’ve witnessed in rugby league. If Kikau didn’t react nobody would have cared.”

More drama followed, when the match also almost went to golden point.

Canterbury looked to have scored with just over a minute remaining off a Matt Burton bomb, which would have locked up the match with a successful conversion.

But the bunker ruled a knock-on by skipper Stephen Crichton, sparking outcry from some fans (although it was the correct call under the rules)

“’You have to re-grip it’. What a ridiculous rule. I am a Storm fan and I think that should be a try for Crichton,” one said.

And another: “It’s so funny how often footballers don’t know the rules of the sport they are paid to play. Stephen Crichton had no idea of the ‘re-grip’ rule there haha.”

Nonetheless, it was a gutsy effort from the Storm, who also lost prop Tui Kamikamica to a head knock.

And with Jahrome Hughes poised to return, they will now consider resting some of their other stars for the remaining two rounds after sealing a top-two spot and moving four points clear of the third-placed Bulldogs.

Melbourne still have two tough top-eight encounters to complete their regular season. They host the Sydney Roosters next Friday night before a Thursday clash against the Broncos in Brisbane.

But with their points difference 144 better than the Bulldogs, they would need to suffer two monumental losses to lose their top-two spot.

Coach Craig Bellamy said the players, as well as medical staff, would have some input into who gets a rest.

Forward Trent Loiero clocked 48 tackles against the Bulldogs while fellow State of Origin forward Stefano Utoikamanu has played 21 matches in his first season with Melbourne.

Second-rower Eli Katoa has also been a workhorse, scoring 11 tries in his 22 matches, while the Storm usually take a cautious approach with their thoroughbred winger Xavier Coates, who against Canterbury bagged his 19th try from 18 games.

Cameron Munster has carried a heavy load in recent weeks with his halves partner Hughes sidelined after a shoulder dislocation.

“We have to lose our two games and probably get beat by a fair bit to get out of that top-two position so we’ll have a bit of a sit down and chat about it,” Bellamy said.

“Hopefully, we’ll get a chance to rest some players. Some players feel that they’d like a rest and then there’s others that don’t, and sometimes if we’re strong that a rest will do them good then we’ll sort of force that.

“That’s something we’ll work out over the next two weeks and take it from there.”

Grant will have an enforced rest after he was hit with a Grade 2 charge.

He received a two-game ban on Saturday morning (with an early guilty plea) and is unlikely to contest the charge and risk an extra week and the first final.

As for Hughes, he was initially forecast to return in week one of the finals, but is now confident about being available for the Broncos match as he continues his rehabilitation on his shoulder that he hurt against the Roosters in late July.

The Storm have only had their first-choice spine on the park for eight matches this season, with fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen also missing a number of games through injury.

“I don’t think he needs to play as far as combinations and things like that, but just, I suppose for his confidence, and having confidence in the shoulder,” Bellamy said of Hughes.

“I’d hate for him to go into a final with a bit of doubt.

“So if we could take that doubt out of it by playing him in our last round, we’ll look to do that, as long as the physios and the medical people think he’s 100 per cent right to play.”

- With AAP