Sheffield Eagles boss Mark Aston has been banned from coaching for 18 months.
The 57-year-old was suspended in July by the Championship side whilst the Rugby Football League (RFL) investigated a medical compliance matter. Physio Mick Heys was also suspended.
The pair have now been charged with breaching RFL head injury rules after Matt Marsh faced Wigan in the Challenge Cup in March despite not having medical clearance following a head injury he suffered 13 days prior against Swinton.
Aston has coached Sheffield Eagles since 2007, but he will now not be able to return to any coaching role until 30 April 2026. Heys has been suspended from holding any medical role in rugby for 18 months, though six months of that is suspended for a year.
The RFL’s statement on the matter read: “The alleged breaches concerned the appearance of Matty Marsh for the Eagles in their Betfred Challenge Cup tie at Wigan Warriors on March 22, 13 days after he had suffered a head injury during a Betfred Championship fixture against Swinton Lions, and without having received the necessary medical clearance to return.
“Sheffield Eagles were a party to the Tribunal and the RFL expects to reach an Agreed Decision with the Club pursuant to Operational Rules and pending the outcome of any appeal process which is likely to involve a considerable fine and a monitoring, improvement and educational plan.”
Sheffield released a statement on the punishment too, saying: “The Sheffield Eagles were notified of the outcome of the ORT held on Thursday 17th October, as outlined in the RFL statement released at 2pm today.
“Given the verdict, the club will make a formal statement once it has fully considered the verdict, and taken the necessary advice on how to proceed.”
Aston is not happy with the ban though and has vowed to ‘explore all my options’ in the hope of clearing his name. He added: “During my 25-year career, I have been proud to hold an unblemished record and player welfare has always been of the utmost importance throughout that time. I can only ever act on the information at my disposal.
“For now, I would like to thank the people closest to me who have been so supportive throughout a very difficult period, and I can confirm that I will contest the verdict of the charge and continue to fight in order to prove my innocence, clear my name and return to the profession I love the most.”
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