THE father of teenage whiz-kid Kalyn Ponga claims the Cowboys are neglecting his son’s welfare and is calling on the club to do the right thing and release him to Newcastle.
One of the hottest young properties in the game, Ponga is under contract to North Queensland next season but has signed a four-year deal with the Knights from 2018.
The family is holding out hope the Cowboys will relent and allow Ponga to link with the NRL cellar-dwellers a season early.
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Andre Ponga says his son is paying the price for turning his back on the club but claims the Cowboys only have themselves to blame.
“Things went pear-shaped when we didn’t accept an offer from the Cowboys to sign a two-year contract extension back in April,” he told The Sunday Telegraph.
“Kalyn didn’t have a manager at the time and we as a family weren’t going to make a decision on his long-term future until Kalyn had a manager in place.
Kalyn Ponga during Cowboys training.“Pretty much the relationship went sour with the club from that point on.”
A year out of high school and having just turned 18, Kalyn was at university part-time, studying to be a PE teacher.
But Ponga senior said there was no encouragement from Cowboys management for anything other than football.
“They didn’t allow him to do virtually anything outside of playing footy,” he said.
“He loves footy so applying himself to that comes easy. But education is hard for Kalyn and he has worked hard in the past but they just made it more difficult.
“As a family, we have always preached that footy is always the B option and education the A option.
“The Cowboys knew that was a priority for us when he signed in 2013.
“But since rejecting April’s offer, they don’t want to know about it and it’s left Kalyn disillusioned because they are not offering any encouragement to him.
“Unfortunately, a lot of the off-field stuff that was promised, that was going to help him develop as a person off the field, has not been adhered to at the Cowboys.”
Ponga senior claimed Kalyn seriously considered switching codes because of the off-field struggles.
Kalyn Ponga with a fan at Townsville Airport. Picture: Evan Morgan
There were opportunities at the Queensland Reds and Brisbane Lions and he thought long and hard about a move to the AFL before being “blown away” by the welfare set-up and opportunities at the Knights.
“Through all of this, it has been a priority for Kalyn to stay humble and keep to our values because as a family, that’s what is important to us,” Ponga senior said.
“The Knights actually gave us faith that there is good in the game. I can’t emphasise that more.
“They weren’t his first pick. Going down to Newcastle for that weekend, the club wasn’t even on his radar.
“But within an hour of being there, we had met the CEO, the coach, recruiter, general manager, club ambassador and welfare officer and were just blown away by how genuine they all are and how comfortable it all felt.
“He can see the growth possibilities of the club and the opportunities for himself personally on and off the field.
“We went over their system and it excited us and coming from what we have come from over the past seven or eight months, they should be very proud of their system.”
Despite suggestions a deal with the Knights was done several weeks ago, Kalyn only made his final decision to sign last weekend.
“We were fearful of his welfare. He was worried how he would be treated by the Cowboys with a year to go on his contract if he made it official he was going elsewhere,” Ponga senior said.
Kalyn Ponga in action against the Broncos. Pic Darren England.“In the end though, we just realised it was something Kalyn would have to deal with.”
As for an early release, the Ponga family is not holding out much hope. “He’s only 18 but his welfare hasn’t been a priority and we’ve had to accept that,” he said. If they don’t release him, we feel it will be out of spite.
“But deep down, we always knew they would dig their heels in because of how they have been towards him over the past seven months.
“He has been resilient and professional and we have supported him strongly. The family is prepared to do the same for him over the next 12 months if he is forced to stay on.
“But it excites the family that the Knights, being the No. 1 club for welfare in 2016 is a good balance that will help Kalyn evolve on and off the field.”
