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Kalyn Ponga sent a scare through the Queensland State of Origin camp after the Knights captain was sent for a head injury assessment (HIA) during the first half of Newcastle’s clash with Cronulla.
The Sharks went on to win the game 26-6 at Coffs Harbour after a clinical second half from the side.
Ponga left the field three minutes into the match after attempting to tackle Ronaldo Mulitalo.
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The Knights five-eighth stayed down for a while after his head made contact with Mulitalo’s shoulder.
The Knights’ trainer soon called for him to be assessed. Fortunately, Ponga was able to run off the park unassisted.
Kennedy gets it started
Ponga returned to the park 15 minutes later with his concussion ruled a category two.
“That is huge news for the Knights and Queensland,” Corey Parker said in commentary for Fox League.
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Speaking post-game, Ponga said he was fine to continue on in the match after passing the assessment.
“It was just a heavy contact, I felt fine, to be honest,” he told Fox League.
“I went through the HIA and everything, [and] honestly, I felt pretty good after it.
“I’ve had enough [concussions] now to know which ones are bad and when I’m not okay.”
Knights coach Adam O’Brien also described his initial reaction when Ponga stayed down.
“Honest answer, initially I thought, oh no,” O’Brien told the media.
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“Because it was KP (Ponga), but then when I saw the tackle I felt OK. I watched the replay and I thought he would be OK.
“I think with this one there is an incident. They wanted to have a look at him off the field. I don’t have a problem with that.
“In the past, we have probably taken him off for less, but I was OK with the one today. I can understand why they went and looked at him, but I was fairly confident that he would be back out there.”
Ponga is fighting with Reece Walsh for the Queensland fullback jersey and despite scoring a try, didn’t put his greatest performance in as the Knights struggled in attack.
Bizarrely, late in the game, the Knights captain failed to play the ball when he thought a set was finished, capping off a disappointing afternoon for the side.
The Sharks were first to score after six minutes when fullback William Kennedy strolled over before Ponga levelled proceedings with his own try after 20 minutes.
Mulitalo scored next to give the Sharks a 12-6 lead at half time.
Cronulla then put on a clinic after the break with Connor Tracey and Royce Hunt scoring to seal a 26-6 victory.
The win sends the Sharks to the top of the NRL table – alongside the Panthers – with a bye next weekend while the Knights play Manly on Sunday, May 28.
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