YORK City Knights have introduced new in-house Player of the Month and Clubman awards to reward performances in training and any additional work off the field.

The club, under James Ford, have already clamped down on off-field ill-discipline in a bid to underline a professional approach – but the head coach believes rewarding good attitudes is as important as punishing misdemeanours.

Ford said: "You have 'negative' ways of reinforcing standards to make sure players train a certain way and have certain lifestyles. But we also want to bring something 'positive' into it, for players who go above and beyond what is expected.

"There is now a monthly award for players who have been outstanding in training and on the pitch, plus a clubman award for whoever goes out of his way to be a good role model or to promote the club in a good way in the community."

New signing Richard Wilkinson and local ace Ed Smith have been the first winners in November.

Ford said: "It's about promoting the club on and off the field and being a good role model for York City Knights, for rugby league and for sport in general in the area.

"Since I got the job (of head coach), I've talked a lot about how players conducting themselves on and off the field is very important.

"If and when I move on, I want to leave a disciplined group of players who are keen to promote the club and the sport and to have a club with a good ethos. We've seen progress on that front.

"I know how hard it can be for part-time professionals to find time to do anything extra. Any time they give up to do community sessions or things like that is fantastic.

"For example, when Kriss Brining left training last Sunday, he attended a rugby league tournament in Scarborough. Things like that can only help the game grow and be good for York City Knights."

Brining, meanwhile, has recently graduated with a degree in sport science and injury management from York St John University.