CHRIS THORMAN has called for Rugby Football League chiefs to clarify the obstruction rule – but stopped short of slamming refereeing standards – after being left angered by a controversial call at Halifax that arguably turned last week’s game.

York City Knights ’ player-coach, with a deft little pass to Tom Bush, set up a try for youngster Gareth Poutney but saw it chalked off by referee Clint Sharrad for alleged obstruction in back play. Title-chasing Fax, rather than fall 18-16 down, went up the other end to make it 22-12 at half-time, and gain a mental and tangible advantage they were unlikely to let slip en route to a 44-12 win.

Officiating at Championship level has come under fire from elsewhere in recent weeks, notably from Sheffield boss Mark Aston and Featherstone coach Daryl Powell, who was yesterday given a suspended £250 fine for his comments towards the match referee in their Northern Rail Cup final loss to Halifax.

Thorman told this column that general standards were “as good as you can expect” – and he did not blame the referee for his side’s defeat – but reckoned one aspect needed sorting out.

“I was mightily annoyed. I thought we asked a lot of questions and if we’d got a couple of correct calls from the officials the game could have been different.

“It took its toll, with our inexperienced bench against a side like Halifax, but I thought for large periods we gave as good as we got.

“It (Poutney’s try) was a well-worked try. I feel there was nothing wrong with it.

“There’s a real question mark over what does and doesn’t constitute obstruction. Referees and the RFL need to go over that rule again. Some of the judgements from officials are questionable at best.

“I’m not going to bag the referees – I don’t think they’re that bad – but that obstruction rule needs sorting out. A lot of the time it’s at the referee’s discretion but they contradict each other.”

The try in question saw Thorman delay a pass expertly to send Tom Bush through on his shoulder. Bush gave Poutney the scoring pass, but a collision between John Davies, alongside Bush, and Fax’s Dane Manning saw the try ruled out. It was claimed Manning merely mis-read and over-ran the play.

“We executed it very well,” said Thorman. “I’ve not seen that play very often in the Championship, and if you execute it well, not many defences read it. You have to get the timing and the subtlety of the pass spot on. The referee probably hasn’t seen it before and thought, ‘Oh-oh, we can’t have that’.”

  • I’M not sure if anyone at Halifax was trying to rub salt into the Knights’ injury wounds last week, but it was interesting to note Alex Benson was named as “one to watch” in Fax’s match programme.

Benson, of course, left Huntington Stadium at the end of May, a departure which augmented the injury crisis.

The same article in the programme also had Michael Worrincy – brother of Fax winger Rob – down as a well-known player who had worn the York shirt in recent times. However, frustratingly for the Knights, he didn’t actually turn out for the club at all after reneging on an agreement to join at the start of the season.

  • MR Consistency, Adam Sullivan, kept The Press Player of the Year race alive by being named our man of the match at Halifax.

There were a few contenders but the fact prop star Sullivan was carrying a knee problem but still had such a good first stint swung it in his favour, and the three points garnered lifts him to within four of leader Jack Aldous.

Player-coach Chris Thorman, unlucky to miss out on the points in the previous week against Featherstone, gets two points this week for a similarly good show against Fax, again carrying the burden of most playmaking duties.

John Davies and Aldous also stood out in the first half but the remaining point goes to Kiwi Dario Esposito, arguably York’s most prominent performer in the second period, not least with three crunching hits between himself and Fax prop Tony Tonks.

The Press Player of the Year standings : Aldous 23pts, Sullivan 19, Ford 13, Davies 12, Thorman 9, King 9, Bush 8, Tansey 7, Clarke 7, Lee 6, Elliott 4, Sutton 4, Garside 4, Green 3, Hellewell 3, Turner 3, Freer 3, Houston 3, Johnson 3, Brining 3, Nicklas 2, Smith 1, Esposito 1.

  • THE Knights Foundation will be selling replica shirts at knock-down prices today in Parliament Street in York city centre, opposite Marks & Spencer, from 10am. This season’s home shirts will be on sale for £20, and the away shirt, along with all shirts from previous seasons, will be available for just £10.