St Helens were hit by the Disciplinary Match Review Panel tonight with the news that Morgan Knowles would miss the Grand Final.
Knowles has been charged with a Grade B Dangerous Contact charge after allegedly catching Salford Red Devils playmaker Chris Atkin with a chicken wing.
The Disciplinary Match Review Panel minutes state: “Dangerous Contact – Defender uses any part of their body forcefully to twist, bend or otherwise apply pressure to the limb or limbs of an opposing player in a way that involves an unacceptable risk of injury to that player.”
As such, Knowles will miss the Grand Final and potentially England’s World Cup opener with Samoa.
However, Saints are not lying down and are set to appeal the forward’s ban.
In the past, such appeals have not gone too well with the likes of Rhyse Martin and Harry Newman having their bans extended for so-called ‘frivolous’ appeals.
However, Saints believe they have a case, with head coach Kristian Woolf revealing over the weekend that he would have been ‘flabbergasted’ if Knowles was indeed banned.
“I’d be absolutely flabbergasted if that was a ban. I can’t really see what was dangerous in that,” said Woolf following the game.
“We’ve put things in place for dangerous play and I support that.
“But I can’t see what’s dangerous in that tackle, so I would be extremely surprised (if Knowles is banned for the Grand Final.”
