Featherstone Rovers has responded to the RFL’s decision to impose sanctions on the club following supporter behaviour against Halifax Panthers on October 2.
The club was fined for failing to use Best Endeavours in terms of supporter behaviour, with the club to spend the sum of the fine on high-profile support of the RFL’s Tackle it and Enjoy the Game campaigns related to discrimination and supporter behaviour.
A suspended fine of £3,000 imposed following a previous case of supporter misconduct in the 2021 season has been activated, and the club have been fined an additional £5,000 with that punishment suspended until the end of the 2023 season.
The club since released this statement:
“As we have previously communicated, we recognise that there is a small element of our fanbase that spoil things for the majority. We will increase our investment in education, security and technology for the forthcoming season to ensure that we stamp out this behaviour once and for all.”
Commenting on the sanction from the RFL, the club’s CEO Martin Vickers commented “This is a frustrating matter for us to be dealing with, we are working hard both on and off the field to make improvements to this club, to drive an increase in investment and to draw new fans to our game.
“There is a small minority that undermine that work and we will work hard to eradicate it.
“There were individuals that encroached on the field of play at the end of the game as well as others that engaged in other aspects of misconduct, I am keen to identify those involved, those with information are encouraged to contact the club to provide information, they can do so by contacting me directly at martin.vickers@featherstonerovers.co.uk.”
