Towing Pola home would reward unauthorized initiative

What if one or two destroyers had towed the Italian cruiser Pola back to Alexandria after Cape Matapan?

They would probably have been forgiven for exceeding their orders and received a major salute for capturing the cruiser.

In this hypothetical, the destroyers succeed in towing Pola to Alexandria despite instructions against doing so. Bringing the captured cruiser into port would be expected to earn an enthusiastic salute and leave the crews in good standing. The feasibility of towing the damaged cruiser is left open.