Warrington Wolves coach proposes rule change to ‘close loophole’ to end ‘comical’ gamesmanship

Warrington Wolves boss Sam Burgess has weighed back in on the play-acting saga which is currently plaguing Super League, describing the situation as ‘comical’ and delivering his verdict of an NRL-style ‘easy fix’.

Burgess saw his side pick up a 16-2 victory on home soil against St Helens on Saturday afternoon, but rather than being remembered for the largely entertaining affair it was, the clash has been clouded by two yellow cards shown within the first 11 minutes.

Hosts Warrington first saw back-rower Lachlan Fitzgibbon sent to the sin-bin having made contact with the head of Saints winger Tee Ritson in a tackle.

The incident was flagged to the video referee as Ritson remained down, requiring treatment, and after a lengthy delay, Fitzgibbon saw yellow.

Five minutes later, the contest went to 12 v 12 as Saints prop Matty Lees was sent for 10 by referee Chris Kendall following a late hit on Wire half-back Josh Drinkwater.

Again, Drinkwater remained down and sought treatment, with a yellow card shown Lees’ way thereafter.

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‘It’s almost comical… If you have to stop the game for five-and-a-half minutes, do we not have concussion protocol?’

Burgess has been among the most eager to voice his concerns about the play-acting saga, described by some as gamesmanship.

Post-match at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, Burgess again aired his frustrations with the ongoing saga, and offered up a solution of his own.

The Wolves boss said: “It’s almost comical. We had a card, they (Saints) had a card, and I don’t know what we’re doing.

Fitzgibbon makes the tackle on Ritson but the Video referee takes a look and its a Yellow card.

Warrington down to 12 early in this one.#SkySportsRL pic.twitter.com/0c4zQ0Dz5Y

— Sky Sports Rugby League (@SkySportsRL) September 7, 2024

“We stopped the game for about five-and-a-half minutes for the first card, but then the player is given the thumbs up and is okay to play on.

“If you have to stop the game for five-and-a-half minutes, do we not have concussion protocol?

“That’ll stop players staying down. In the NRL, if you’re down for a certain period of time, you’ve got to go off.

“If you stay down for a certain period of time, it’s classed as category one and you’re done. There’ll be less wingers and outside-backs staying down if they know they’re category one.”

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Warrington Wolves coach Sam Burgess proposes rule change to ‘close loophole’ to end ‘comical’ gamesmanship

Warrington’s victory against Saints was the fourth game of the weekend in Super League, but most definitely not the first to stir up the play-acting pot.

On Friday night, as Wigan beat Hull KR at The Brick Community Stadium, Robins forward Jai Whitbread was sin-binned for a high shot on counterpart Tyler Dupree but only after the Warriors man remained down to seek treatment.

Not calling any individual out, Burgess was simply frustrated with the whole situation, just as many supporters paying their money to watch the game are at the moment.

He continued: “I don’t want to go down this rabbit hole because the game’s a tough game, there’s no doubting that.

And it’s 12 against 12 as Matty Lees hits Drinkwater after the ball had gone and its a yellow for the Saints man.#SkySportsRL pic.twitter.com/bEGa9GHSXq

— Sky Sports Rugby League (@SkySportsRL) September 7, 2024

“Everyone who’s on the field has an element of toughness about them, but they’re also playing within rules we’re all seeing and players are understanding the loopholes.

“I just think we’ve got to close the loophole from the game’s point of view to say that if you stay down for a certain period of time, then you must leave the field as category one and you can’t return, it’s pretty simple.

“We had this issue in the NRL when I was a player and it stopped them staying down pretty quickly.

“If you’re category one, you’re gone, see you later, you’re out for 11 days. You watch how quickly they stop staying down because everyone wants to play the following week.

“It’s a quick fix.”

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‘The game has never been safer’

Burgess added: “The game has never been safer for recovery protocols, concussion protocols, player safety, player awareness, players looking after each other, the governing bodies looking after the players, it’s never been safer.

“The amount of time off they need, the sports science surrounding everything, the game has never been safer.

“It’s not an issue of risk. If someone’s knocked out, that’s fine, but if not then they can probably get up and play on. If you can’t get up and play the ball, it must be a bad head knock.

“I’ve probably said too much, but I can’t help but be honest about the game that I care about so much. I feel like it’ll change it pretty quickly if we can take those steps.”

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