Archer said the pass from Latrell Mitchell to Daniel Tupou should have been ruled forward, a play that led to Gordon scoring a fortuitous try in the 73rd minute to give the Roosters a 14-12 lead over Penrith.

"After reviewing all the available angles and slowing the play up, I have determined that the pass is forward. It's my expectation that the referees should have ruled that way," Archer said.

But the Roosters have fended off suggestions they were lucky in securing two points at the foot of the mountain to maintain their unbeaten start to the season.

"You see a million of them in the game, it's just because they're running at such high speed it looks forward," Gordon said.

"You get the protractor out or the ruler and all that, angles. It's hard to tell. I thought it was the right call, I was on the inside so I couldn't see it live but it looked all fine to me.

"The touchie was right beside it and he was running at the same pace. He's probably got the best angle of everyone and called play on. Play to the whistle, as the old saying goes.

"If the call went against it then you can probably cop it on the chin but it went our way. It's one of those 50-50 ones. We've got the two points."

Tupou kicked the ball ahead after receiving the Mitchell pass with Gordon chasing through and kneeing the ball ahead of himself before regathering possession and scoring the try.

Penrith coach Anthony Griffin refused to give an opinion on the incident post match, or on Gordon's late try-saving tackle on Tyrone Peachey which left the parochial Panthers crowd demanding a penalty for a high shot.

Roosters captain Boyd Cordner backed Gordon's stance on the Mitchell pass.

"From where we were on the field I thought it was OK – as players we're told to play to the whistle and I think we did that," Cordner said.

"If the NRL, the refs or whatever have come out and said that then so be it but I thought it was OK.

"That's footy. It's tough for the refs sometimes, they're just humans, they're not going to get every call right. I couldn't imagine reffing it, they do a good job and sometimes they don't get the raps they deserve."

The Roosters scored three tries to one in the win over Penrith producing an enormous defensive effort, after making 17 errors in the game – the most of any team this season.

"It's not really a concern at this stage, obviously it's something that we're going to have to fix up and get better and be more consistent there if we want to be pushing to be one of those good teams to be up there at the top of the ladder," Cordner said.

"It [the defence] was massive. For the attacking strike that the Panthers have, with [Matt] Moylan, their halves, also their strike with Peachey out wide.

"It was a massive focus for us and I thought we scrambled really well and saved that game and it was based on our defence.

"To have a few games like that early on in the year and to get away with some victories, it gives you some confidence. If that was last year in those games we probably would've lost."