Castleford winger James Clare will miss the start of the 2022 Betfred Super League season after being handed a three-match ban for punching.

Clare was charged by the Rugby Football League's match-review panel with a Grade D offence of punching during his side's pre-season friendly against York and referred to a disciplinary tribunal.

Clare was suspended and fined £500 after pleading guilty at an independent operational rules tribunal hearing on Tuesday night.

York's Liam Harris was also given a three-match ban, along with a £300 fine, after admitting the same offence.

York's former Salford and Wakefield forward Pauli Pauli was found not guilty of a Grade B dangerous contact offence during the same game.