The RFL have released the following statement:
“Ian Watson, the Salford Red Devils head coach, has received a nominal fine for his comments after his team’s Betfred Super League defeat by Leeds Rhinos last month, although the sanction has been limited by his record of showing respect for match officials, and the contrition shown by Watson and the Salford club.
“There has been constructive dialogue between Watson and the Rugby Football League’s Match Officials department since the incident, with all parties looking forward to continuing a positive relationship.
“However a small fine has been imposed for his comments criticising the performance of the match officials, which were deemed to have breached the RFL’s Respect policy.”
Salford Red Devils statement:
Following the immediate post-match comments made by our head coach Ian Watson, we have been able to reflect and evaluate, including consultation with the RFL Match Officials department around some of our concerns.
We recognise that some of our opinions were made in the heat of the moment, and accept they breached the RFL’s Enjoy the Game policy, which we fully support.
We look forward to continuing a positive relationship with the RFL Match Officials Department throughout 2020 and beyond.
