Gateshead half-back banned for biting

Gateshead half-back Sam Walsh has been handed a five-match ban, after being found guilty of biting Whitehaven’s Craig Calvert.

The incident happened during Thunder’s Northern Rail Cup game against the Cumbrians back in February, and Walsh will now sit out their next five Championship 1 games, and pay a £50 fine.

Walsh is no stranger to controversy, having been banned for two years back in 2010 for breaching the RFL’s anti-doping regulations.

He was found to have provided a sample containing banned anabolic steroids, but was handed a second chance in the game by Gateshead when his suspension finished at the end of January.