Blackpool prop banned for five matches

Blackpool prop Andy Hobson has been handed a five match ban by the RFL disciplinary committee.

Hobson, 31, a former Super League player with Halifax and Widnes, was found guilty of two offences in the Panthers’ recent Championship 1 defeat against York.

He was banned for one match for a Grade B trip on York’s Luke Hardbottle in the first minute, with a further four match added after he was found guilty of a Grade D offence of using his forearm on Nathan Freer in the closing stages of the game.

He will miss the games against Workington, Hunslet, Swinton, South Wales and Doncaster.