The Super League disciplinary system has had a complete reboot for 2025 and with 14 charges from Round One, here’s all you need to know.
Seeing which players have copped or avoided bans is somewhat of a Monday obsession for Super League fans with the Match Review Panel’s findings informing on all things disciplinary.
That disciplinary system has undergone massive changes for 2025 with charges no longer meaning bans but instead carrying penalty points.
Those penalty points add up throughout the season (whilst also being deduced which we’ll explain later) and once players meet certain thresholds, they will be handed punishments.
That new system is aimed at punishing repeat offenders and it helps explain why no Super League players were banned today despite a whopping 14 charges being levelled after the disciplinary review.
Charges carry grades as they used to with each grade carrying a different level of penalty points. Grade A equals 1 point, B is 3, C is 5, D is 12 and E, which is the highest grade, sees players head straight to a disciplinary tribunal.
Round One of Super League saw seven Grade A charges, four Grade B charges and three Grade C charges with Hull FC’s Jordan Lane, Wigan Warriors’ Adam Keighran and Wakefield Trinity’s Mason Lino the trio to be hit with Grade C charges and five penalty points.
Super League disciplinary system simplified following 14 Round One charges
Penalty points add up throughout the year with points wiped after 12 months meaning Lane, Keighran and Lino will see those 5 points disappear from their record this time next year. That system is aimed at punishing repeat offenders and holding players accountable.
Bans begin once players accrue six or more penalty points with two-match bans staring at 12, three-match bans staring at 18, four-match bans staring at 24, five-match bans starting at 30 and so on with 12+ match bans sitting at the 54-point threshold.
With players having already picked up five penalty points in Round One, you might think that some players will easily hit the 12+ match ban threshold midway through the season but there is a catch.
Once players reach three points on their overall record (which marks the first punishment of a fine), only half the charge stays on their record. For example, the trio who picked up 5 penalty points will resume their penalty points on 2.5 when they’re next charged because they have already been punished (by way of a fine).
It works along similar lines to how double jeopardy works in football whereby a player cannot be both sent off and concede a penalty, albeit very simplified.
Using Player X as an example, who has been hit with a Grade C charge and currently has 5 penalty points, they would start at just 2.5 points for whatever punishment they may receive next week. Should they receive another Grade C ban then that would take them to 7.5 points, which warrants a ban. Having then served that ban, he would then be on 5 points going forward as half would be removed.
Put simply, players are given half a charge’s penalty points back once they have been punished.
If a player who is currently on 3 points receives a Grade D charge (worth 12 points) then they would be handed a two-match ban for having reached the 15-point threshold, but they would resume with 9 points on their licence after serving that ban.
RFL punishment tariff details can be found here with this week’s Super League charges found here.
