Hunt in the clear

Brisbane full-back Karmichael Hunt will be free to play in Saturday night's preliminary final against Melbourne despite being charged by the NRL match review committee on Monday.

And Broncos skipper Darren Lockyer is also in the clear despite attracting attention for attempting to use his boot to stop Dragons winger Brett Morris from scoring a try.

Hunt was cited for tripping St George Illawarra five-eighth Jamie Soward in the closing minutes of the first half last Saturday, with the Broncos going on to send the minor premiers crashing straight out of the finals with a 24-10 win.

But with the win already coming at a cost with half-back Peter Wallace gone for the rest of 2009 after he broke his ankle with six minutes to go, the news that Hunt will play even if he unsuccessfully challenges his grade one tripping charge is a relief for his club.

With no previous indiscretions adding any loading Hunt faces a reprimand either way, with 75 carryover points if he goes to the judiciary and loses or 56 if he enters an early guilty plea.

While Lockyer and Hunt are clear, Dragon Beau Scott faces up to a two-game ban for a lifting tackle late in the defeat while Gold Coast's Sam Tagataese has also been cited for the heavy hit that sidelined Parramatta's Daniel Mortimer.

Scott's grade one dangerous throw charge would have attracted only 125 points but with this being his second lifting tackle in two years and two other blots on his record also as well as carryover points his total swells to 297 points if he fights the charge and loses.

But even if he pleads guilty Scott will still miss the first two games of 2010.

Tagataese meanwhile can escape with a reprimand if he pleads guilty to dangerous contact (grade one) with a kicker for the fourth-minute incident that left Mortimer with a hip injury and battling to be fit for this weekend's preliminary final against the Bulldogs.

Meanwhile, the Penrith Panthers have extended the contracts of Maurice Blair and Shane Elford on Monday.

Both Blair and Elford were out of contract at the end of this season however both have agreed to terms to stay another year at the club.

Shane Elford played his last game for the club in Round 22 against the Dragons where he suffered a broken eye socket and it was feared he may have played his last NRL game.

"It's a positive step forward re-signing these two players," Leary said.

"It's a positive move that is able to keep the playing group together for another season."