Hull KR boss Willie Peters has given his take on what can be done to stamp out the gamesmanship that appears to have crept into Super League of late.
There have been accusations of gamesmanship on number of occasions in recent weeks with instances of players appearing to stay down following high or late tackles the on-field referee may have missed. The pause in play while the player is seen to medical staff has allowed the video referee to run the rule over such incidents and on a number of occasions punishments such as yellow or even red cards, have been handed out as a result.
Often in those cases the player left on the deck has been allowed to play on as normal, without needing to leave the field for a head injury assessment or further medical treatment. As such, it’s something that has been spoken about widely across the game, with Warrington Wolves boss Sam Burgess being outspoken about what he believes to be ‘theatrics’ in the game, while Jon Wilkin accused players of ‘milking it’ when speaking on Sky Sports last weekend.
It’s widely accepted that the loophole in the rules must be closed then and Peters has given his take on what can be done.
“I think if the player is down for that long and there’s something there, then they probably need to go off, whether it’s a green card or a HIA. But at the moment, they can stay down,” the Rovers boss said.
“It’s not the players though. After Friday, certain players will know that if they stay down when they get tagged in the head then they’re going to get a penalty or 10 minutes or whatever.
“Some players are legitimately injured and that doesn’t mean they’re concussed, they might just need some time. It’s just something that needs to be cleared up and then everyone’s clear and understands what it is.”
On whether a green card would be a deterrent, the Hull KR man added: “I’ll leave it to the guys above me. At the moment there are so many different opinions on it all. For me, as I say, I think it’s a decision that needs to be made above it.
“It’s something that I’m sure will get cleaned up later on.”
