Unhappy Ian Watson slams six again rule

As Huddersfield Giants lost ground in the fight with Leeds Rhinos, Warrington Wolves, Hull FC, Hull KR and Salford Red Devils for a spot in the play-offs with a defeat to St Helens, Ian Watson wasn’t happy after the game.

He was undoubtedly happy with his side’s effort as they battled hard with 12 men for the vast majority of the game.

Matty English was sin binned early in the game and as he returned to the field Joe Greenwood was sent off for leading with the elbow in an incident that Watson felt was started by the Saints.

But Watson was also unhappy with the six again rule slamming the rule itself as well the use of it by St Helens.

“I’d like a little bit of understanding. The rule I hate is that when St Helens kick it to your corner and then just three or four men just lie on top of you all the time to get a six again restart. They did it at least five times off kicks in the first half. They did it again off a seven tackle set. Yeah, we can’t buy a six again,” he said on BBC Radio Leeds.

“Yeah, it’s a bad rule. I said it at the coaches meeting at the start of the year, it needed out ruling and there should be a penalty for that because teams are getting advice trying to get that set start and getting a real control D line.

“That’s not part of the game, the rule is a terrible, terrible rule and needs kicking out because there’s too many teams that are just trying to slow everything down all the time.

“We’re trying to have a quick entertaining game, aren’t we, isn’t that what kind of the mentality of what the six agains were for. Not to keep slowing it down, you give seven tackle sets away and then the players are lying in the rook so your dummy halves are having to handle the ball.

“The way they play is really good and I can’t knock them because they are a champion team in what they do. I like them when they just play the game and when they’re not doing all that stuff. St Helens are a good team when they’re not doing that stuff. That stuff just kind of puts a slant I think on what they do achieve mate.”