YORK City Knights will complain to the Rugby Football League about the tackle which saw Scott Woods end up in hospital.

The scrum-half, son of Knights head coach Dave Woods, was stretchered off the field in a neck brace early in the first half of York’s 18-16 victory at South Wales Scorpions after being pole-axed by prop Gil Dudson.

Hit late after launching a high ball, he was later released from hospital but Woods senior was still incensed and confirmed the Knights would be taking the issue up with league chiefs.

“He got taken to hospital for precautionary X-rays,” he said. “It was a late elbow to the face and it was just a really bad shot and it is unbelievable the officials didn’t see it.

“It is not needed in the game. He was all right when he left (for hospital). He had some pins and needles around his neck area, his jaw was a little bit sore and the doctor thought it would be best to go there.

“We will definitely be complaining to the RFL. We have made a complaint to the fourth official – he saw it and he said he didn’t believe that it wasn’t put on report.

“We will definitely be making a complaint about it because you just don’t need that sort of thing in your game.

“Good, tough, physical footy – not a problem, but when you are taking blokes off the ball like that when it’s late, and when it’s a blatant elbow, it is just not on.”

When asked about the tackle, Scorpions head coach Anthony Seibold said: “I sat behind the goal posts so, to be honest, I didn’t get a view of it. There are video recorders here and if the RFL see fit to have a look at it (they will).

“I will have a look at it myself. We have been hit high and late a couple of times this year and, certainly, if it was high and late then he will be judged appropriately.”

Looking ahead to the play-offs following a victory which was ground out by a determined side but was pock-marked with errors and ill-discipline, Woods added: “We still need to change a lot. We are still dumb. We just do some dumb things. We make the game so hard by some of the silly things we do and we don’t need to do that.

“If we are smart about the way we play the game it is a lot easier for us. But footballers are footballers aren’t they? Some of them are dumb.

“We just need to get away from those silly mistakes we keep making and we will make it hard for any team we play against.”

The Knights remain in third place after Rochdale lost 44-14 at Oldham, and the Hornets need to win their final game at home to Blackpool to displace Woods’ men.