Jackson Hastings verdict in as Hull KR man handed huge ban following Leeds Rhinos defeat

The disciplinary verdict is in following the conclusion of Round 16, and a total of four players have been banned.

The biggest decision of the week involves St Helens half-back Jackson Hastings, who was potentially in hot water after briefly touching an unconscious Will Gardiner in their win over Bradford.

Hastings was very clearly trying to check on the Bulls man, and had no intent to injure or harm him. However, we have seen cases this year where the RFL have suspended players for a similar thing, with Semi Valemei of Castleford banned for putting Noah Stephens into the recovery position.

The Match Review Panel have opted not to punish the half-back, with common sense prevailing in this situation.

One man who has been banned though, is Hull KR prop Tevita Pangai Jr, who will miss six matches for Gouging.

Catalans’ Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet will miss two matches following a Grade D Dangerous contact charge. He was involved in the tackle that caused injury to Warrington’s Arron Lindop – an incident that was put on report at the time.

Teammate Franck Maria has been banned for one match for a high tackle, whilst Nic Cotric has receieved a fine.

James Bentley has been hit with a Grade B head contact charge, whilst Leigh man Joe Ofahengaue has landed one penalty point for a late contact on passer.

Keenan Palasia, James Batchelor and Danny Levi were all hit with Grade A or B charges following the Leeds-Hull KR fixture.

Wigan Warriors and Hull FC both had players charged from their fixture on Saturday, though neither have received a suspension.

Castleford’s George Hirst has been punished for a late hit in their defeat to York Knights. In the same game, Knights man Sam Wood was sin-binned for a crusher tackle on Jason Qareqare. The one-time England international has copped a Grade D charge and a two-match suspension. Paul McShane was also charged.

Huddersfield pair Fenton Rogers and Kieran Rush have picked up Grade B and A charges respectively, but escape bans.

St Helens duo Alex Walmsley and Shane Wright have both copped charges, but again nothing to warrant a suspension, whilst Will Gardiner and Dan Russell have been charged for Bradford.

Super League Round 16 disciplinary

Player	Club	Opposition	Charge	Grade	Penalty Points	Total Points in previous 12 months	Sanction if applicable
Nic Cotric	Catalans Dragons	Warrington Wolves	Late contact on passer	A	1	4	Fine
Guillermo Auspiro-Bichet	Catalans Dragons	Warrington Wolves	Dangerous Contact	D	12	12.25	2 match suspension
Franck Maria	Catalans Dragons	Warrington Wolves	Head Contact	B	3	11.25	1 match suspension and a fine
James Bentley	Warrington Wolves	Catalans Dragons	Head Contact	B	3	3.75	Fine
Joe Ofahenguae	Leigh Leopards	Toulouse Olympique	Late contact on passer	A	1	3	Fine
Keenan Palasia	Leeds Rhinos	Hull KR	Late contact on passer	A	1	1.75	No further action
Tevita Pangai Jr	Hull KR	Leeds Rhinos	Gouging	F	36	38.75	6 match suspension and a fine
James Batchelor	Hull KR	Leeds Rhinos	Head Contact	B	3	3.75	Fine
James McDonnell	Leeds Rhinos	Hull KR	Late contact on passer	B	3	3.25	Fine
Danny Levi	Leeds Rhinos	Hull KR	Late contact on passer	A	1	1.25	No further action
Adam Keighran	Wigan Warriors	Hull FC	Late contact on passer	B	3	5.75	Fine
Harvie Hill	Hull FC	Wigan Warriors	Intentionally stands on	A	1	4.75	Fine
Sam Eseh	Wigan Warriors	Hull FC	Late contact on passer	B	3	3	Fine
Sam Wood	York Knights	Castleford Tigers	Dangerous Contact	D	12	13	2 match suspension
Paul McShane	York Knights	Castleford Tigers	Drops knees	B	3	4.5	Fine
George Hirst	Castleford Tigers	York Knights	Late contact on passer	A	1	5.5	Fine
Kieran Rush	Huddersfield Giants	Wakefield Trinity	Late contact on kicker	A	1	1	No further action
Fenton Rogers	Huddersfield Giants	Wakefield Trinity	Dangerous Contact	B	3	4	Fine
Shane Wright	St Helens	Bradford Bulls	Head Contact	C	5	5.75	Fine
Alex Walmsley	St Helens	Bradford Bulls	Dangerous Contact	C	5	5	Fine
Dan Russell	Bradford Bulls	St Helens	Dangerous Throw/Lift	A	1	1.5	No further action
Will Gardiner	Bradford Bulls	Hull FC	Head Contact	B	3	4.25	Fine