The RFL will need to fully investigate the appalling conduct of the Fryston players at Featherstone yesterday. They should treat this as a once in a lifetime watershed moment and move to stop violence in RL for good. Yesterday at Featherstone there was a simmering undercurrent that Fryston were poised for a brawl. What eventually took place was ghastly. Probably what was even more grotesque was Fryston's on field team celebration after the hooter despite having lost and being knocked out of the cup. It was as if they were saying we planned to cause a brawl. and isolate one of their players. and beat him up. and we succeeded 100%. As "Him" often says, this feeling that violence is not far away holds back the grassroots growth of the game. It doesn't matter if kids first learn skills at a RU club. If they could try amateur league, many would love it and stay. Skills are needed and physical resilience and some toughness and that can be appealing. But for most the thought of Saturday night type pub brawl violence is not. At EVERY level of the game the RFL should introduce a long term zero tolerance policy NOW - anybody guilty of deliberate pre-meditated violence, mainly punching but also head butting, kicking etc should receive an automatic 12 month ban from the game. Only then will RL grow and be seen as a skilful, physically demanding but ultimately safe and enjoyable sport to play.

Having played against Fryston many times - it's hardly surprising to hear it kicked off yesterday. They're a team that have long relied on bullying tactics - you know what to expect when you head over to play them. Just like the old Redhill teams.
Absolutely agree, teams like this do put some people off playing he amateur game - not sure much can or will be done about it. Intimidation and violence has been a part of the amateur game for all my time involved in the game, it just moves from club to club. Most players just accept every now and then you'll play against a team of sh*thouses and go prepared for a battle, but that doesn't mean it's right.

They are Queens Mk2. They play some good stuff at times i hear but love this notorious image, sadly i aren't surprised at what went on at Featherstone.

There used to be a video of a cup game they played at Sharlston a few years ago on youtube which just about sums the open age team up.

You just beat me to it , Lee Hansen used to work for me , he finished playing at Leigh East , they played Queens in a cup comp , he came in for work on the Monday morning , I have never seen anything like it , he could hardly see , the scratches on his face looked like he'd done a few rounds with a lion

Bottom line the game doesn't need clubs like this , give them ( club ) a warning , just ban for life the players , if the club doesn't change , ban the club and anybody involved for life

Think its getting worse though, can't be sure players in the amateur game are just drinking water before a game either.

Then, there was Siddal, who played tough but fair. No need for this in our sport.

Assault is assault. I hope the Keighley player reports this cowardly attack to the Police.
Fryston disgust me. That part of West Yorkshire needs dragging into the 21st century. Knuckledraggers

That's because they play in the NCL which is far stricter than the regional leagues and won't stand for the violence and outright thuggery of teams like Fryston and Queens. If you behave like that you are gone and rightly so. I have played in both league systems and against both those teams and the experience is worlds apart.

If assaults have taken place, the police should be contacted and the players responsible should be charged with ABH or GBH. Obviously as well as playing bans for the players and a challenge cup ban for the club. This is holding back the game.

Can someone explain what exactly went on to us not in the know please?

Match Report - it mentions several incidents keighleycougars.com/cougars-scra ... cult-test/

Match Report - it mentions several incidents keighleycougars.com/cougars-scra ... cult-test/

This is very true - T5's are the 'in' pre-game supplement, seems to turn plastic hard men into Rambo. And as they've become more easily available and affordable, Steroid use is also rife in the amateur game (well more general gym society to be fair) - I know from my own club (NCL), I'm one of the few 'clean' players. Of our 1st choice 17, 12 of them are open about their steroid use, I'm sure there are probably a couple more who aren't so blasé about it - and in the wider squad and 2nd team, you can double the numbers.

But I reckon that's a whole different problem to the Fryston, Upton, Queens (though they're pretenders just trying to live up to the reputation nowadays) of the amateur game.

This video shows some of what went on, admittedly you can't tell too much from a 9 second video but it definitely doesn't look good for Frystons number 11 https://twitter.com/chloejadeakers1/sta ... 75937?s=09

This video shows some of what went on, admittedly you can't tell too much from a 9 second video but it definitely doesn't look good for Frystons number 11 https://twitter.com/chloejadeakers1/sta ... 75937?s=09

Yeah, mixture of the nickname and the sly knees to the head that gave it away I think.

His grasp of the English language on facebook is laughable though.