Warrington fined £5000 for ‘shot clock breach’

Warrington have been fined £5000 in relation an incident involving the shot clock in their round three fixture against Wakefield in February.

In the first half, centre Toby King went down injured after the shot clock had started for a scrum and was subsequently removed from the field under instruction from the referee, in line with the Shot Clock Injury Regulations.

King then returned to the field while Wakefield were in possession, however, Warrington had not used an interchange to allow him to return to the field and are, therefore, adjudged to have gained an advantage.

In a statement, the RFL said: “This is the first time a club have been penalised in this way since the Shot Clock was introduced to the Betfred Super League and other competitions in the 2019 season.

“Warrington complied fully with the case, submitted relevant information from the club and physio promptly, make no excuse for the breach and recognise the error the player has made.

“However they gained an advantage through King’s unpermitted return to the field, and have been found guilty by the RFL’s Operational Rules Tribunal of breaching the Match Day Operations Manual and of Improper Conduct.

“This is an agreed decision.”