I don't agree with the chanting for one minute but to punish a club and everybody associated with it for a couple of idiots is wrong and I think the fine is way over the top.

This fine also sets a dangerous precedent for future fines and I can see a can of worms opened if this fine is not dropped on appeal.

You expecting a bite ?

But it also could set a dangerous precedent if the fine is dropped. I don't necessarily agree with the fine, but if it is now dropped, what would happen the next time? You can't not fine one club but then fine the next. The punishment would have to be consistant. Maybe there should have been a fine but certainly a lot lower than £40,000.

Interesting that the fine was not actually that chant were made, but in the panel's opinion, Cas did not do enough to stop it. The fact that 3 chants were heard and on 2 occasions the chants were drowned out by the PA system, what else could the club have done on the day?

It was months ago Thomas announced he was gay. Why he still has to go on TV at every possible opportunity to keep banging on about it I really don't know.

Whilst I can understand wanting to take action, the size of the fine is ridiculous. Is this the first time that particular chant has been heard at an RL ground? Course not. Perhaps what the RFL should have said is 'we will not tolerate this....except on those occasions where it is not picked up by the national media'.

This would never have happened at Harlequins.









There is never anyone there to chant anything, homophobic or otherwise.


Seriously, £40k is ridiculous and I hope the club are successful with their appeal.

Another nail in the cas coffin, merge them with Wakefield already.

£40,000 is ridiculous. It's also horrendous publicity for the sport. While it indicates we're strong on the issue, it also highlights the fact that there is an issue. Compare with Union which ignored what homophobic chanting there was.

And I think it vindicates the comments made by that presenter that everyone slagged off on here. She was right (Yorath?), league fans are inbred chavs.

I Cant wait untill the next game live on Sky when the referee's parentage or his alleged masterbating antics are called into question or chants of Gypo, You Fat bas^^^^ who ate all the pies and many many more, They will have to fine that club or else they wil be cut to pieces in court by the Cas barristers thats for sure (and thats without past chanting that can be proved to have gone off) The lunatics are in charge of the RFL im afraid

Whilst I cannot condone racist or homophobic personal insults of players I have to say that the whole situation was inflamed from the very beginning by Mr Thomas drawing huge amounts of media attention to himself and his personal situation.
Being "gay" in this day and age is not unusual and, in itself, draws less attention than it used to. One wonders why Mr Thomas choose to make this so public.
It has simply provided entertainment for the plebs of society.
Why the RFL deemed fit to make such a big fuss over a few comments at Cas is beyond me. Often one can hear hugely negative chanting over the Superleague match commentary. Nothing has been done about that and maybe it never should be.
Cas have been unfairly singled out here.
An example of a huge fuss made by one player. Not going to rise in the popularity stakes that one.

If he wants to discuss his sexuality to the media so what..maybe he see's it as an opportunity to address prejudices, hardly his fault idiots decided to chant homophobic abuse.

Maybe he should have stayed in a closet..


"Big fuss over a few comments"....God forbid!!

Here is the statement Gareth Thomas's agent has released www.distinctagency.com/news.asp

Here is the statement Gareth Thomas's agent has released www.distinctagency.com/news.asp

£20k plus £20k suspended pending good behaviour seems to be the standard for crowd misbehaviour. It's what we got last year after the incidents at the Catalans game, it's what we got this year (except we've now had to pay the £20k from last year, suspended if we could behave ourselves to the end of 2010).

Quote ="Barry_McKenzie"Here is the statement Gareth Thomas's agent has released www.distinctagency.com/news.asp'" =#8040FFJesus christ he really is pathetic, he says he wants to forget about it then mentions it at every chance he gets since bugger off back to Union you muppet.

Quote ="Barry_McKenzie"Here is the statement Gareth Thomas's agent has released www.distinctagency.com/news.asp'" =#8040FFJesus christ he really is pathetic, he says he wants to forget about it then mentions it at every chance he gets since bugger off back to Union you muppet.

I'd see that as fair, but maybe half up front and half suspended - maybe a deal whereby Cas promote awareness to lessen their fine.

To be honest, I think Cas got off lightly.

pray do tell as to why you think that

I'm obviously in s minority but I think they got off lightly too. If you read the reasons why they are charged it is because they haven't done enough to stop it and haven't done enough since. It also says they are not adhering to the RFL respect policy. Now without knowing more details than that they already had a suspended from the trouble at the Les Cats game so as with player punishments they fine got worse.

Either way, I hope it helps stop all the abuse given to players at all grounds. I've heard fans of my own team shout inane insults at players which are just generally offensive, whether they mean it or not.

Your last post is so lol there is a massive diffrence between chanting homophobic remarks and calling the ref a ****** do you not think?

This will seal it you men will be out of sl at the end of next season enjoy chanting all your rubbish in nl

Rather than get fined £40,000 I think Castleford should be made to play the remainder of their home fixtures in pink and be renamed the Castleford Bears

I would have responded in a reasoned way, but its blatently obvious that you are rather pathetic

I don't know what is more scary - the fact that a section of the Castleford fanbase consider homophobic chants acceptable, or the number of Castleford fans who seem quick to mitigate the seriousness of what took place.

=#8000FFBecause it wasn't serious? 15 yobs who will probably be banned by the next home game compared to the thousands of people chanting homophobic stuff at Leon Pryce when everyone thought he was going to jail? Seriously it's a non-issue the RFL have gone too far with because it's what they do when it involves a "smaller" team and because Gareth "lets forget about it" Thomas has done nothing but bleat on about it non stop? In fact, I'd say the problem is with GT himself for carrying it on like he has, when he should have accepted the Tigers apology.

Anything that causes harrassment alarm or distress to any other human being is serious whether its 15 people doing it or 15,000