YORK City Knights player-coach Paul March has admitted he has learned from his mistakes – not least where referees are concerned.

And, aside from his coaching duties, the 29-year-old former Super League regular has vowed to cut down on disciplinary discrepancies and be a more potent playing force in Championship One.

March and his brother, David, will begin the campaign next month on the sidelines as their three-match suspensions, picked up in controversial fashion at the end of last season, are carried over into this term.

He hopes, however, that both of them will get a free run on the pitch thereafter, and avoid a repeat of the three red cards and four yellow cards that blighted their 2008 campaigns.

“This is a new year and we’re going to get on with our business,” said March, who had some infamous disagreements with officialdom last season, including in the last game of the regular season against Rochdale, when he was sent off for alleged foul and abusive language to referee Dave Merrick – after the official had sent off David for an alleged headbutt.

Added March: “I’ve let that go. We can’t control what they (referees) do – we will concentrate on ourselves.

“I will keep my gob shut and make sure my players do as well.”

He also admitted that run-in with Merrick severely dented the Knights’ play-off chances last season – as both the March brothers and prop Andy Bailey ended up being suspended for the doomed play-off against the Hornets after that fateful encounter between the teams.

He said: “It hindered us as regards going further than we did as we had some players suspended. But apart from that, I think we only had three disciplinaries throughout the season so it (bad discipline) wasn’t a major problem.”

March, however, said he wanted something in return from referees – consistency.

He explained: “As a coach you just want consistency from them. One week you might be penalised out of a game, and the next week the other team might be penalised out of a game when nothing much is different.

“It’s about them finding consistency and us not reacting to what they’re doing.”

The March brothers will be starting their second seasons at Huntington Stadium since joining from Wakefield, and Paul has admitted that first year was a learning curve both on and off the pitch.

“I’ve learned a lot as a coach and on the playing side. The standard (of Championship One) was a massive shock to me. Players come and go from Super League into different divisions, and it was tougher than I expected.”

He added: “There were some cheap shots here and there, but I’ve learned from that as well and will protect myself – and hopefully referees will help out in that regard as well.”