Ganson Cleared to Take Final But Sculthorpe Still to Prove Fitness
Hull have welcomed the appointment of Steve Ganson to referee the Carnegie Challenge Cup final at Wembley on Saturday week, despite his close links with their opponents St Helens.
It is the first time that Ganson, a member of the St Helens referees society, has been eligible to take charge of a final involving his home town club, following a change in the regulations at the start of this season. The change was partly prompted by his own frustration – shared by the Rugby Football League’s referees co-ordinator, Stuart Cummings – that Saints’ regular appearances in big matches over the last decade had ruled out Ganson’s eligibility to officiate in those games, including all four major finals in 2006 and 2007.
Since the regulations changed, Cummings has appointed Ganson to two Super League matches involving St Helens, at Leeds in June and Harlequins last Sunday. On each occasion Saints won and Ganson was booed off by the home supporters.
“Steve deserves his chance,” said Hull’s chairperson, Kath Hetherington, yesterday. “He’s been one of the top referees for a number of years and he’s been unlucky not to have more big matches. I’m sure our spectators might have a go at him at some stage in the match but they’d have that attitude whoever the referee was.”
Cummings said Ganson, 38, “is our most experienced match official both internationally and domestically and has been referee of the year twice during his career. All appointments are based solely on form and, in the same way that a coach picks his best line-up for a final, I have to do the same and on current form Steve Ganson is the right man for the job.”
St Helens have an injury doubt for the final over the prop Maurie Fa’asavalu, who has missed the last three games with a hamstring injury and is unlikely to recover for next Sunday’s league game at Huddersfield. “He’s had a couple of setbacks, so he is a big doubt for Wembley,” said the Saints coach, Daniel Anderson, who also felt that Nick Fozzard’s recent return from a knee operation has come too late for him to earn selection for the final.
That could bring the club captain, Paul Sculthorpe, back into the equation if he proves his recovery from his latest hamstring problem at Huddersfield. Hull hope to have three of the senior players who missed last Sunday’s thrashing at Bradford – Paul King, Todd Byrne and Danny Tickle – back from injury in their last game before the final at home to Harlequins on Friday, when Gareth Raynor will also return from suspension. Garreth Carvell and the Australian scrum-half Adam Dykes are unlikely to be risked but the Hull coach, Richard Agar, is expected to name them in his Wembley squad.
Wigan’s full-back Richie Mathers escaped suspension at the RFL’s disciplinary hearing last night, despite being sent off for the second time this season in last Friday’s 32-22 victory over Wakefield. Mathers received a three-match ban after he was dismissed for a high tackle at Warrington in March but on this occasion the sending-off was deemed sufficient punishment, clearing him to play against his former club Leeds this Friday.
Tags: Cleared, Final, Fitness, Ganson, Prove, Sculthorpe, Still, Take
