Leeds Rhinos forward Brett Ferres has apologised to Wigan’s Oliver Gildart following the tackle which left the centre facing up to three months out injured – but he did express his disappointment at being given a six-match ban: a punishment he is considering appealing.
Ferres was involved in an apparent crusher tackle which saw the RFL’s disciplinary panel hand out a lengthy ban which will keep Ferres out of action for six games.
The incident left Gildart with a back injury that could rule him out for two to three months, and Ferres, speaking to Leeds’ official website, has apologised to Gildart.
He said: “I do think the incident could have been avoided with a different approach to the tackle and an understanding of how the player was positioned. But we have a split second to make a decision in a very intense tough sport.
“The game is hard enough and no player wants to go out there and intentionally hurt any other player. I am deeply sorry to Oliver that this tackle has resulted in him being injured, I never meant to cause that. I’m also sorry to my team mates and coaches, the club and the fans.
However, Ferres has revealed that he is not ruling out an appeal to try and get the ban reduced.
He added: “All that in consideration however, I am disappointed with the severity of the ban, and feel there were valid points that were not perhaps taken into account in the hearing and I am considering appealing the length of the ban.”
