Willie Peters gives verdict after Hull KR star escapes ban with ‘character’ praised

Hull KR head coach Willie Peters has given his verdict on prop Sauaso Sue escaping a ban at last night’s disciplinary tribunal, speaking of the club’s relief as well as the forward’s character.

Sue had been accused of spitting at Warrington Wolves’ Josh Thewlis with Thewlis confirming to referee Liam Moore that he wished to make a formal accusation after the incident around the 60th minute of Saturday’s Challenge Cup Final.

That saw Sue handed a Grade E charge by the Match Review Panel, automatically sending the forward to an Operational Rules Tribunal where Hull KR contested the decision.

Sue could have been handed a huge ban if found guilty but he was cleared with the RFL explaining that there was no intent to spit at a Warrington player.

Looking ahead to Friday’s game against Catalans Dragons, for which Sue is in the 21-man squad, Willie Peters spoke during his mid-week press conference about the relief of getting a verdict of no further action.

Hull KR boss “relieved” after Sauaso Sue not guilty verdict

“Obviously relieved because you never know what the outcome was going to be,” Peters explained when asked for his initial feelings, as he added: “We’re really happy with what happened and the outcome.”

Hull KR owner Neil Hudgell, who is a solicitor, was among those to put forward Sue’s defence and when asked about it, Peters held back on commenting but did attest to his player’s character.

He explained: “I’ll leave that to the guys that did it, Neil Hudgell and people smarter than me. All I was worried about was Jesse. I know his character, I know what he’s about. I know he’s a family man.

“He’s a leader amongst our team. He’s really well respected and never had anything like that before and I’m just glad that people saw it that way.”

Peters also explained that he wasn’t surprised the incident had gone to tribunal given the on-field actions at Wembley.

He said: “I wasn’t surprised because if a player says that he got spat on, then it’s always going to go to the tribunal. It is what it is.

“The player felt that’s what happened and of course he’s going to say to the referee that this is what happened. They’ve asked, do you want to take it further? He said yes. It’s just part of the process.”

Sue will be available to play for Hull KR on Friday night but fellow prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves will miss out with the Kiwi set for four weeks on the sidelines with a calf injury.