EVERY Super League fan waits with baited breath on a Monday morning and afternoon, unsure of whether or not the Disciplinary Match Review Panel will punish players that play for the team they support.
For Castleford Tigers forward Liam Watts, he was given his fourth ban of the 2023 Super League season this week following the Tigers’ 22-0 loss to St Helens on Friday night.
The former Hull FC and Hull KR forward was slapped with a Grade C Dangerous Contact charge, with the minutes stating: “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.”
From the footage taken from Tigers TV, Watts appears to have used a hip-drop tackle technique to take down Saints halfback Lewis Dodd following a messy play-the-ball.
Here is the incident:
No comment https://t.co/uYuBd1IGoZ pic.twitter.com/ugJx7GXl4q
— Nathan Godfree (@ACN3_) July 3, 2023
The two-match ban means that Watts will sit out Castleford’s home game against the Leigh Leopards on Friday night as well as the away fixture to Hull FC the week after.
With the Tigers already down on troops – particularly in the forward pack – it is a blow for Andy Last’s side.
