I WAS delighted that both Darren Fleary and Ben Roarty have been cleared to play after being placed on report over the Easter period.
They were, of course, placed on report for applying kick-pressure on opponents.
But following close looks at the incidents on the match video, the disciplinary committee ruled there were no cases to answer.
I'm obviously not going to argue about that, but I am growing increasingly concerned over the number of times my players are being placed on report, and are then subsequently found not guilty.
It's already happened to Darren Turner a couple of times and now it's happened to Darren Fleary for a second time.
None of them have been forced to appear as a result.
In the case of Darren Fleary, I'll obviously take a look at his kick-pressure technique.
But of more concern to me is the fact that on both occasions, my captain has also been sent to the sin-bin as well as being placed on report.
That's something I simply don't understand.
I always thought that if the officials were not sure an offence had been commited and of what severity it had been, they placed the incident on report.
So why on earth was Darren sin-binned as well!?
Players are given 10 minutes if the match officials saw the player commit an offence and felt he needed to take an enforced rest.
In other words, you can either be placed on report or sin-binned, but surely not both.
Yet it has now happened to Darren Fleary at Widnes and it happened to him again against Salford on Good Friday.
I may be wrong, but it's something I intend to take up with Stuart Cummings at the RFL, because to me it seems there's a flaw in the system.
It has, however, been difficult chasing up the RFL right now because they've had a lot on their plate this week.
Besides working on the back of a bank holiday weekend, they've also had to sort out a whole host of disciplinary matters, including the three St Helens players up in front of the panel last night.
And the RFL have, of course, had to look into the facts of why Saints coach Ian Millward fielded such a weakened side against Bradford Bulls on Easter Monday.
I'm obviously not aware of all the facts myself, but the RFL seemed satisfied enough with the evidence from St Helens, and we have to go along with that.
From what I can gather, I know there were a number of Ian's key men who were carrying knocks and I don't doubt his integrity in the matter.
This really is a punishing time of the year for players, and it's only right coaches look after the general welfare of their players.
I've done exactly that by keeping six of my top players on the sidelines for tomorrow night.
They are all carrying knocks and will benefit from a weekend off.
After all, there is the small matter of a semi-final the following week to consider.
That, as well as the Leeds game tomorrow night, is one where our defence will be fully tested.
But if the boys can build on the excellent defensive effort they produced in the win over Wakefield on Monday, we'll put ourselves in a strong position.
I was delighted with the mental toughness shown by the side.
Wakefield are a good attacking team with a lot of quality players, and they put us under a considerable amount of pressure.
But we kept our composure and ended up getting the right result.
It was also pleasing to play in some good conditions for a change.
I'm looking forward to seeing the boys playing in dry conditions on a fast, wide surface, because I feel I've got the players who will relish those conditions.
Up until Monday my trusty woolly hat was by my side, but not any more.
What a liberating experience!
