Hull FC interim coach Simon Grix has gone on a tirade towards players feigning injuries, something he’s claimed happened in his side’s defeat to Hull KR yesterday but is also a problem across Super League.
Hull KR turned up at the MKM Stadium and handed FC a third derby defeat of the season, those six points accrued against their rivals being more than Hull FC have picked up all season incredibly.
Grix summed up the loss as “frustrating”, telling BBC Humberside that the squad seemed to abandon their gameplan. In that interview, he also explained that his side are “not good enough” to play off-script, something they did in the opening 20 minutes as Hull KR blitzed them and opened up an 18-0 lead.
Beyond that point, Hull FC were arguably the better side but the game was constantly disrupted with sin bins, something that Grix had his say on with young hooker Denive Balmforth being subject to particular criticism.
He told BBC Humberside: “Denive was the second one, that was pathetic. He’d just come on the field but he looked like someone who played 75 minutes, who would do that late, lunging shot.”
He’d then go on to assess the double sin bin of both Brad Fash and Elliot Minchella, something that has since drawn accusations from the KR captain of a ‘testicle grab’, however, Grix was more focused on something else he feels is plaguing Super League.
Hull FC Quiz: Can you name these former Super League players?
Hull FC boss slams “play-acting”
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Delving deeper into the four sin bins, each side earning two a piece, Grix explained that he was unsure exactly what happened in the Brad Fash and Elliot Minchella incident but he took aim at a number of Hull KR players whose actions he described as ’embarrassing’.
He noted: “Fash was the other one. I’m not 100% sure what happened but there’s a lot of running in and carrying on and all that in there I think.
“There are a couple of blokes there today that when they watch it back they should be a bit embarrassed about the time they spent on the ground when there’s nothing wrong with them.”
The Hull FC boss was quick to note that it’s not an isolated incident and that players staying down to earn penalties has been a growing and concerning trend in Super League, something that several fans were quick to point out after the Wigan and St Helens derby.
Grix clarified: “That’s not this game in isolation, that’s across the game at the moment and until we start doing something around the play-acting then it will just continue.
“In my opinion, it’s not a really good look. I just don’t think the laying on the ground, the inviting the referee to stop the game and bring the other officials into it through his microphone, I think it’s poor.
“If you’re hurt, you’re hurt. If you get your head taken off clean, that’s fine, but laying on the ground and trying to get penalties, the game’s hard enough.”
On Friday night in the Wigan Warriors and St Helens clash, Matty Lees was sent to the sin bin after Liam Moore was seemingly advised to look at the tackle after Kaide Ellis remained on the floor for around 30 seconds, refusing to play the ball as he nursed his nose.
