Joynt reopens weak team row

St Helens' most successful captain, Chris Joynt, has criticised his coach over last Easter's infamous weakened team at Bradford.

St Helens' most successful captain, Chris Joynt, has criticised his coach over last Easter's infamous weakened team at Bradford.

Saints lost two players through long suspensions when Sean Long and Martin Gleeson were found guilty by the Rugby League of using their inside knowledge to bet against their team.

Their coach, Ian Millward, has always claimed that he fielded the strongest team possible, but he has now been contradicted by Joynt, who retired at the end of last season and launched his autobiography, The Quiet Man, yesterday.

"The decision to field a weak side came back to haunt us," writes Joynt, who captained that team last Easter Monday.

"I'm all for squad rotation, but at the end of the day you have to put your best team on the park. You can get away with resting one or two players, but don't take the mickey and say they are all injured."

Joynt, who is to donate the proceeds of his book to youth rugby league development in St Helens, calls the actions of Long and Gleeson in betting on the Bulls that day "stupid." The affair forced a change in the League's rules, under which coaches now have to name their squad in advance.

Ironically, Saints could be at full strength for the first time this season for Saturday's match at home to Wakefield, with Keith Mason included in their 20-man squad after recovering from the leg injury that has kept him out of contention so far.