isn't the guidance that you can be sent off if the trip is seen as premeditated or dangerous, and not merely a reaction type of trip, ie. sticking the leg out to try and stop a kick through?

Trying to stop a kick is mitigation enough, yes.

However trips don't have to be premeditated - a reaction to being stepped is also a sending off.

No, no.

Coming back the OP post, I also understand that current guidance remains on high tackles that they are either penalty's or a Red Card offence and that therefore yellows should not be given for a specific high tackle?

As such if still current advice, this means that a high tackle is not a sin-binning offence, but if a player commits a number of less serious high/grapple tackles that don't individually warrant a red card he can get a yellow and possibly a red. I seem to remember that Brent Webb got binned at Quins one year for three poor and high tackles in the first half?

I will check but what you are saying sounds right. I have never binned anyone for a solitary high tackle. When a player makes reckless or deliberate dangerous high contact they should be dismissed. Careless high tackles should be addressed with a penalty and a word of advice to the tackler. As you say, we do see people being sent to the sin-bin for high challenges but these tend to be the result of not one but several indiscretions by the same player or team.

As I understand it, the RFL did float the idea around of an automatic yellow for grapple tackles earlier in the season, but this initiative seems to have now stopped.

IIRC it must still have been in place when Wigan visited Headingley earlier in the season, hence Jeff Lima's yellow for what was considered to be a "cannonball" tackle on Chris Clarkson?

That yellow was for dangerous contact. A comparable offence would be the chicken-wing.

goes to show how much you know mate!!! in 2003 stanley gene was red carded for tripping in the buddies cup final, tripping in the field of play is a red card, the reason wilkin didn't recive one was ganson never saw the incerdent and had only the touchjudges word for it, hence a one match ban was given.

Oh I remember the sin bin. That's the board where people argue in favour of pedophiles getting huge handouts because their case was put back a few days and they were caused distress.

Oh the other kind...now that is a distant memory. Referees don't pull out a yellow so much any more. Instead they do this bizarre cross armed hand gesture to signify they're going to chicken out of making a decision themselves so it can be successfully politicised by people behind closed doors instead.

Memory might be playing tricks but, didn't Wigans Steve Hampson get about a 10 match ban for a trip some years back ?

I'm sure it used to be that the sin bin was only used for technical offences, such as persistent offside, professional fouls and so on, whereas the red card was used for dangerous foul play.

Maybe a return to that would help clarify when the use of the sin bin is appropriate. "On report", in my opinion anyway, should only be used for mass incidents involving several players - in other words, the incident should be on report, rather than the player himself, meaning that anyone involved could potentially be cited.

Report should be used when somethings happened that the Ref hasn't seen and therefore can't accurately judge.
Sin bin should be used for players following a dust up and the technical offences you state.

There's been a few instances this season of the fullback holding down layers after a break and not getting penalised, never mind sin binned. This is when I'd like to see it back.

A damn site more than you

Tripping was an automatic--and that is the key word--sending off offence even if it was a reaction thing, i.e.getting caught wrong footed rather than malicious, but that was changed many many years ago.

FWIW I believe that the old rule should be brought back and ALL trips should merit a red card but that aint the rule now.

I don't get all these people saying the officials all missed the trip. How can it have been put on report and penalised if it wasn't seen?

In my playing career, I've seen a 2 broken legs from people "reacting" and sticking their leg out. I always assumed that was why they were treated so harshly.