Jolliffe and Kamikamica cop bans in RL WC

| October 25, 2022

Two NRL players have been banned for a match in the Rugby League World Cup but a third has escaped suspension. 

Gold Coast Titans’ Ireland front-rower Jaimin Jolliffe will miss Friday’s World Cup Group C match against New Zealand at Headingley.

Melbourne Storm’s Fiji forward Tui Kamikamica will miss his team’s final Group B game against Scotland in Newcastle on Saturday.

But Rabbitohs’ England prop Tom Burgess avoided any further punishment for his sin-binning in the final minute of his team’s 42-18 win over France on Saturday.

Jolliffe was given a one-match penalty notice for a high tackle during Ireland’s 32-14 defeat by Lebanon.

Ireland will also be without fellow prop Liam Byrne, of Wigan, who was given a one-match penalty notice for a late tackle on the Cedars’ captain Mitchell Moses

Kamikamica was given a one-match penalty notice for dangerous contact during their 60-4 win over Italy.

The players have until 11am on Tuesday to accept the notices or face a disciplinary hearing later in the day.

The panel ruled South Sydney’s Burgess knocked his opponent over with an open-handed push to the face and the incident did not warrant any further action.

The panel also failed to uphold a complaint from Ireland second-rower James Bentley that his testicles were squeezed in a tackle by Lebanon forward Kayne Kalache, of NSW Cup outfit Newtown Jets.

It was ruled that, although footage of the incident was inconclusive, Kalache appeared to push off his opponent in order to regain his feet and that contact was accidental.