Leeds Rhinos issue statement on Zak Hardaker

The RFL have employed the services of a lip reader to aid their investigation when reviewing television footage.

Leeds Rhinos Chief Executive, Gary Hetherington said, “We are concerned there appears to be a witch-hunt by the RFL towards Zak Hardaker and we are calling for an external investigation into the issues surrounding the investigation. We know the Match Commissioner was asked by the media at the post match press conference if the Referee had reported any incident or comment and they were told ‘No’. We want to know why the Referee’s report quite mysteriously now contains a reference to a possible comment. It seems incongruent with the RFL’s stance and the vigour that they are now pursuing this incident with that the referee would not have reported this to his superior on the night, as is the protocol in these circumstances, or taken action during the game.