St Helens’ Sione Mata’utia given RED CARD in controversial incident

St Helens’ Sione Mata’utia has been given a red card in a controversial incident.

Mata’utia hit Huddersfield Giants’ Danny Levi with a big tackle, but the Huddersfield hooker stayed down after the initial contact

The Saints man appeared to pick the Giants’ playmaker up off the floor with referee Chris Kendall sending Mata’utia straight off with Levi still on the deck.

There has been a zero tolerance for those kind of incidents, with Halifax Panthers’ Titus Gwaze getting an eight-match ban for doing just that against the Barrow Raiders.

And, it’s likely that the Disciplinary Match Review Panel will crack down hard on Mata’utia, particularly with his previous poor disciplinary record.

This is how both teams lined up:

St Helens

3 Will Hopoate
27 Jon Bennison
23 Konrad Hurrell
11 Sione Mata’utia
5 Regan Grace
1 Jack Welsby
7 Jonny Lomax
8 Alex Walmsley
9 James Roby
10 Matty Lees
16 Curtis Sironen
12 Joe Batchelor
13 Morgan Knowles
Substitutes
14 Joey Lussick
15 LMS
17 Agnatius Paasi
19 Jake Wingfield

Huddersfield Giants

1 Will Pryce
2 Jermaine McGillvary
21 Leroy Cudjoe
37 Toby King
25 Innes Senior
5 Ashton Golding
23 Olly Russell
7 Theo Fages
17 Owen Trout
9 Danny Levi
15 Joe Greenwood
11 Josh Jones
12 Chris McQueen
13 Luke Yates
Substitutes
5 Ashton Golding
20 Oliver Wilson
27 Jack Ashworth
29 Sam Hewitt