www.therhinos.co.uk/news/23183.php#.U5BydSgpjKE Quote Leeds Rhinos and England full back Zak Hardaker has issued the following statement regarding the ongoing investigation by the Rugby Football League regarding comments he made during last Friday's First Utility Super League game at Warrington Wolves: "Because of the RFL's investigation, this is the first opportunity I have had to speak about the incident in last week's game at Warrington. First and foremost I would like to apologise for any offence my comments during that game have caused. In the heat of the game, I have used an offensive term and I can honestly say I was deeply saddened when I found out after the game how my comment had been perceived. As professional players we know that we have an obligation to conduct ourselves in the right manner for the good of the game at all times, that includes with our team mates, opponents, officials and of course supporters at the ground and those watching at home on television, and my comments fell below those standards. I would especially like to apologise to Michael Monaghan, who my comments were aimed at. During the investigation, I was made aware that the referee on the night, James Child, also heard my comment and was offended by it. I would like to unreservedly apologise to him for that and I can assure him that no offence was intended toward him. I have complied fully with the RFL's investigation, never looked to deny what I said and will accept their judgement. I made a mistake and hopefully, if any good can come from this situation, it is that everyone thinks about the words they say and how they can cause unintended offence to those around us. Clearly certain words have powerful meanings other than that intended at the time." Leeds Rhinos Head Coach Brian McDermott added, "This is a disappointing incident on all fronts. As a club we pride ourselves on representing our game in the best possible light. Zak has made a mistake. I am confident this was a genuine error of judgement and that he understands the offence his comment has caused. The standards set for the modern players are higher than any previous generation with the amount of coverage our game receives on television and online. As a club we must help our players to understand the level of scrutiny required to make sure an incident like this does not happen again."'"

www.therhinos.co.uk/news/23183.php#.U5BydSgpjKE Quote Leeds Rhinos and England full back Zak Hardaker has issued the following statement regarding the ongoing investigation by the Rugby Football League regarding comments he made during last Friday's First Utility Super League game at Warrington Wolves: "Because of the RFL's investigation, this is the first opportunity I have had to speak about the incident in last week's game at Warrington. First and foremost I would like to apologise for any offence my comments during that game have caused. In the heat of the game, I have used an offensive term and I can honestly say I was deeply saddened when I found out after the game how my comment had been perceived. As professional players we know that we have an obligation to conduct ourselves in the right manner for the good of the game at all times, that includes with our team mates, opponents, officials and of course supporters at the ground and those watching at home on television, and my comments fell below those standards. I would especially like to apologise to Michael Monaghan, who my comments were aimed at. During the investigation, I was made aware that the referee on the night, James Child, also heard my comment and was offended by it. I would like to unreservedly apologise to him for that and I can assure him that no offence was intended toward him. I have complied fully with the RFL's investigation, never looked to deny what I said and will accept their judgement. I made a mistake and hopefully, if any good can come from this situation, it is that everyone thinks about the words they say and how they can cause unintended offence to those around us. Clearly certain words have powerful meanings other than that intended at the time." Leeds Rhinos Head Coach Brian McDermott added, "This is a disappointing incident on all fronts. As a club we pride ourselves on representing our game in the best possible light. Zak has made a mistake. I am confident this was a genuine error of judgement and that he understands the offence his comment has caused. The standards set for the modern players are higher than any previous generation with the amount of coverage our game receives on television and online. As a club we must help our players to understand the level of scrutiny required to make sure an incident like this does not happen again."'"

...and if either of those statements were written by Hardaker or McDermott I'll be on the cover of next months Weight Watchers magazine as slimmer of the month.

Standard statement written by the Rhinos PR machine to appease those with some overzealous, missed-place sense of social morality.

This now proves that there was no homophobic intent in his comments as we all know Monaghan's sexual orientation... woof!!

Thank Christ for that. Can we move on now please.

Or to pre-empt a potential 5 to 8 match ban.

Of course it was written by the media department, I'd be very worried if it wasn't!

I don't think its an overzealous, miss-placed sense of social morality at all. He said something stupid in the public domain.

Of course he isn't homophobic, but he said a homophobic thing. He's a big daft lad.

He's apologised and is being dealt with accordingly. Everybody should now move on.

Spoil sport!

yeah...he's massive.

Seems the people of Twatter won't move on.

Some of them even suggesting that statement is Rhinos saying it's OK to abuse players rather than Referee's?!

Surely Hardaker is clarifying who the insult was aimed at and nothing else?!

He may not be believed of course. That will depend on whether James Child thought the abuse was directed his way. Michael Weyman at HKR tried to convince the disciplinary that he too was abusing a player rather than the ref but the disciplinary didn't believe him and banned him for abusing the ref. We only know from Zak's statement that James Child was offended by what he heard not whether he thought the abuse was targeted at him.

Wrong Monaghan Fat Boy

Btw I don't think your fatness alone will put people off kidnapping you judging by this post

Do you know what Weyman said at all? I haven't seen it anywhere what words he used, just that it was said to the referree, and proven.

I only ask as you appear content with his 2 match ban.

We know Harkaker didn't say what he said to the ref. Yet you want a 5-8 game ban.

And you say this isn't team related, rather than incident?

He called the ref an effing c**t (missing letters are 'un'). That's in the judgement on the RFL site. Weyman claimed he said it to an opposition player. Ref claimed he said it to him (ref). Ref was believed. There was no sound track to the incident.


I didn't say that. But that is what the sanction is for homophobic abuse of the referee. It's a Grade E to F which is 5 to 8 matches.

Wrong Monaghan brother, unless you know something we don't lol

You're wrong there SaintsFan. Weyman claimed he said it to his own player (Graeme Horne) after Horne called him stupid for giving the penalty away. Horne backed up Weymans claim at the hearing but the panel still chose to believe the ref. I wonder if it Monaghan would support Zac and say that the homophobic comment was aimed at him and if the panel would believe him.

Im not sure Hardaker is clarifying he said it Monaghan as opposed to the Ref. Simply that he was saying it MM and thats why he was apologising to him. Its a good apology and doesnt seek to mitigate or deny the hurt or power in the words he used or his mistake in using them. Good on him

My bad. I thought it was an opposition player (I did read the disciplinary page on the RFL site too!). We may find out who does and who doesn't back up Zak once the hearing has been completed. Not sure whether this one will be made public as the routine ones are though.

I disagree, on both points. I think there are two sentences that stop it from being a genuine apology, never mind a good one:


That is putting the onus upon the other person for perceiving it in a way that caused offence, rather than upon him for saying it in the first place.


So what did he intend to mean by using 'f****** fag' then?

i think he explained how he used it, as an expression of frustration rather than an explicit homophobic insult, the fact he chose to use a homophobic slur was a mistake which he admits. I dont think that then going on to say he was saddened that it had been perceived by some as an explicit homophobic insult saddened him puts the onus on the other person, in context it reads more that he is saddened his actions caused that hurt.

But it's a homophobic insult, regardless of how others perceived it, and I'm sure he has numerous other words he could have used to insult someone if he felt he had to but he chose that one. So he should have simply taken full responsibility for what he said without trying to justify it at all or lessen it by calling it 'a mistake'. He knew what he was doing. He knew what fag meant. Heck, it's even specified in the homophobia guide issued by the RFL as a homophobic insult.

A genuine apology would simply be to say sorry for causing offence and he was wrong to use the word.

Do you have comprehension problems? That's in the statement.

He says those things, he says sorry for causing offence, that he was wrong to use that word, and that he accepts his responsibility for it and the hurt it caused.

Considering most of the justification, mitigation and defence of Hardaker on here has been "its not that big a deal", "he didnt say it to a gay person so its ok", "he didnt mean it in a homophobic way, so its ok" i think it is better that he has explicitly accepted responsibility and understood the power of his words are a big deal even though it wasnt aimed at a gay person and the criticism is still real and valid and deserved even though he didnt mean it in a homophobic way.

I think it is you who has the comprehension problems. The word sorry is indeed in the statement but what I said was that sorry was ALL that was needed, and that he was wrong - NOT that he 'made a mistake' (which is opting out of responsibility since a mistake is generally made in ignorance; an insult is NOT made in ignorance).

So, a simple 'Sorry, I was wrong to call Monaghan (or the ref, whichever) an effing fag and I am sorry for the offence my behaviour caused Monaghan and anyone else at the match or watching on TV' would have been a genuine apology. That isn't what was said though. The club put forward mitigating circumstances, spoke about how his words were perceived, talked about a 'mistake'.

I'm bored of this "argument" if I'm honest.
We are ALL going just round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round..............and round in circles.

The apology is completely fine for me, it addresses the possible offence that could be caused and acknowledges that he was wrong to use it.

Having said that, there's no place in our family game for that sort of language as far as I'm concerned. Although heterosexual myself, I am close to people who are homosexual and I can understand and have seen the offence that such statements can cause and the hurting that goes with it. I'd expect a ban (1-2 weeks) and I think that would be fair, there's plenty of other ways to insult somebody without resorting to homophobic slurs (whether intended to be homophobic or not).

No doubt if he'd have simply said "sorry" you'd have called it contextless and empty.