The Super League general manager Blake Solly says that there are no plans to launch an investigation over the circumstances surrounding the retirement of Lance Hohaia.
Hohaia announced on Wednesday that he was calling time on his rugby league career due to “recurrent post-match concussion-type symptoms”, and that he was seeking expert medial advice to assess potential effects to his long-term health.
The 32-year-old former St Helens stand-off, who was in the final season of a four-year deal he signed in early 2012, was knocked unconscious by two punches from the Wigan prop Ben Flower in last year’s Grand Final but has since gone on to play eight times for the Super League champions in 2015 before announcing his retirement.
Solly says that as far as those in charge of the game are concerned, the issue was put to bed when Flower was handed a record six-month ban for the incident last October.
“As far as we’re concerned at the Rugby Football League, the matter has already been dealt with,” he said. “There was a disciplinary panel last October which appropriately dealt with matters when we suspended Ben. We won’t be going any further into it. That’s as far as the RFL’s involvement into it stretches.”
Super League clubs will sit down in June to discuss whether to bring a marquee-player ruling into the division for 2016, a move which the Guardian understands is on course to be voted through with a majority verdict. Only seven of the 12 clubs in Super League need to approve the ruling for it be introduced, which would give every team the facility to pay one player an unlimited salary outside of the current salary cap regulations.
Solly feels that if the clubs do push the proposal through it would enable Super League to be able to compete better with other competitions such as rugby union’s Premiership, as well as the NRL in Australia.
He said: “I can’t predict which way it’s going to go, but when it comes to the table it’ll be the most developed proposal we’ve ever seen. The benefit of the rule coming in is that it gives clubs a chance and an opportunity to compete for the very best talent.
“Whether that talent is signed by clubs will be up to them, but at least they’re not hamstrung by any salary cap regulations and it gives them an opportunity to compete.”
Solly also believes that in the first year of the game’s major restructure, Super League has been a success. Eight teams are separated by only four points in the table after the first 12 weeks, and he says that the congested and competitive nature of the league in 2015 is down to a number of adjustments made in advance of the current season.
“The competition is so strong and healthy,” he said. “Clubs are working hard to drag in new fans, crowds are up and television audiences are strong. We’ve got good stories across the game, and Leigh beating Salford in the Challenge Cup made everyone sit up and realise how exciting the latter part of the season will be.”
He continued: “We’re at an optimum level of teams now; the reduction from 14 last year has had a big help in the strength of the competition. Add to that the increases in central distribution and television monies for the clubs, and you have a much healthier Super League.
“With the fear of promotion and relegation back, teams are unable to take their foot of the gas. This structure is so cut-throat that teams have to be at their best every week – which makes for great entertainment.”
