NRL 2020: Chad Townsend apologises for Kalyn Ponga shoulder charge
Cronulla star Chad Townsend has spoken about that horrid shoulder charge on Kalyn Ponga that has left him suspended for the first time in his career and the remainder of the NRL season.
NRL
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Chad Townsend has declared Shaun Johnson is the man to keep Cronulla’s finals hopes alive — while admitting he was still in shock at being suspended for the first time in 25 years of playing the game.
The Sharks premiership-winning halfback will miss the next three weeks following his spectacular shoulder charge on Newcastle star Kalyn Ponga last weekend.
Townsend was controversially sent from the field after he collected Ponga’s chest with his shoulder at the moment the referee had called time-off in the game.
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The Knights went on to punish a 12-man Sharks side 38-10, although Ponga is in doubt for Newcastle’s clash with the Sydney Roosters on Saturday.
“I didn’t see the ref, I didn’t hear the ref blow time-off, I didn’t hear the whistle, all I saw was Kalyn tap the ball and move off the line,’’ Townsend said.
“He’s obviously stopped because he saw the ref and I haven’t and I was going too fast.
“It was one of those things that happened, he was able to get up and play on.
“I just got it wrong. It hurts to be missing the most important part of the year.
“My thinking was trying to do something good for the team and try and change the momentum and those quick taps, they obviously happen quickly and I was bracing for impact as well.
“I hadn’t been sent off, sin binned, put on report, nothing in my whole rugby league career of 25 years, going back to even when I was a junior.
“I know and people know, the type of person I am, I’m always someone who has played the game with the highest of regard and I’ve always respected the game.
“It was never my intention to do any harm.
“There’s not a spiteful bone in my body.
“It was one of those things that happened, I’m glad he was able to get up and play on.’’
Townsend said he and the Sharks legal team considered contesting the NRL match review committee’s grade three shoulder charge grading, but the 29-year-old said: “In the end, I didn’t want the circus — that’s not what I’m about.
“I just want to serve my time and let the boys get to work, we’ve got a big back end of the year.’’
Townsend isn’t wrong — with the eighth-placed Sharks needing to beat the Warriors on Sunday night at Kogarah to avoid three-straight losses and cement a finals berth.
Without Townsend until the first week of the finals, Cronulla will also be missing captain Wade Graham, who has been suspended for two matches after pleading guilty to a dangerous throw.
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The experienced duo’s absence has left Townsend anointing Johnson - who has missed the Sharks last two matches with a hamstring injury - as the club’s most influential player over the next month.
“I think it rests solely on the shoulders of Shaun,” Townsend said.
“He’s going to be back in our side this week and he’s probably had one of the best seasons of his career.
“The consistency, the confidence he‘s played with, if we’re going to have a good next three weeks, it’s going to be on the back of him.
“I’ve already reached out to him and had some conversations about how he’s feeling and he’s in a really good head space.
“He’s really confident in his game, he’s doing a lot of work on the mental side of the game and he’s working hard in the gym and he’s a lot stronger than what he was last year.
“He’s been a leader for us all year, but I feel like he’s really taken on the fact how much influence he can have on a game.
“And how much he can worry the defence with his pass, his kick or with his run - he’s got every bow in his repertoire.
“It’s going to be huge and I can’t wait to see him go.’’
Originally published as NRL 2020: Chad Townsend apologises for Kalyn Ponga shoulder charge