The NRL's referees boss Robert Finch says Manly are out of step with other clubs in criticising the league's new two-referee system.

The premiers hit out at the move, claiming it had confused them in their surprise 34-12 loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday night.

"Two referees? I'm not a fan," coach Des Hasler offered before he was even asked about the move.

"I just thought there were two different interpretations between the two referees."

Hasler said his captain, Matt Orford, did not know which referee to approach to question decisions.

"I didn't know. I'll ask you, who did you think was the dominant referee tonight?" Hasler said.

Asked about the problem, Orford replied: "No comment".

But he elaborated when asked about the sin-binning of hooker Matt Ballin after a first half brawl.

"I didn't get a clear explanation on why, I'm still unsure why he got sent for 10," Orford said.

"The two referees, they've got a few things they've got to iron out and there's a few things they've got to look at ... they just need to clear up who's the boss out there."

Finch said he had sent a text message to Hasler asking for the specifics of his complaint, adding Manly were behind the eight-ball because of their trip to England for the World Club Challenge.

"We've been out to a myriad (of) training sessions ... and to not understand that the controlling referee is the referee who's been in the same position for the last 50 years (is surprising)," Finch told AAP.

"They haven't trialled here, they were in England and that feedback I haven't received from any other club."

Finch described the first weekend of dual match officials as "a promising start" and was backed by Sydney Roosters coach Brad Fittler.

"All in all I think it's good for the game," Fittler said.

"It's a lot better to watch anyway, it's better than last year when we kept stopping and going to the video ref."

Hasler will no doubt welcome the spotlight shifting elsewhere after his club's horror week in which star fullback Brett Stewart was charged with sexual assault.

He claimed the absence of Stewart was not a contributing factor to his side's surprise loss to the 2008 wooden-spooners.

"We've been training together for a long time now and all those players that came into the squad had trained in all those positions, they knew exactly what was going on," he said.

"We were just poor."

The NRL, too, would have breathed a sigh of relief after an opening round of one-point heart-stoppers, big crowds and the rise of a Lebanese-born Muslim, Hazem El Masri, to become the premiership's greatest point-scorer with 2,184 points.

Brisbane's one-point win over North Queensland came in front of over 45,000, while nearly 20,000 turned out to witness El Masri's record, and also in Auckland, where the Warriors used Sonny Fai's memory to inspire a 26-18 win over Parramatta.

South Sydney's emergence to flog the Roosters 52-12 - their biggest win over any side since 1980 - in front of 24,000 at the Sydney Football Stadium was another timely boost to the game.

"South Sydney's probably got the best squad they've ever had for 2009," captain Roy Asotasi enthused.

On the Gold Coast, the Titans came from behind to beat Newcastle 34-20, while Cronulla scored a scrappy 18-10 win over Penrith at Shark Park.

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