Sharks' Bird on a wire
July 5, 2004
DISTRAUGHT Cronulla five-eighth Greg Bird tonight described as "ridiculous" suggestions he was a liability to the club after again landing in hot water with the NRL judiciary.
Bird was charged with a grade two dangerous throw by the match review committee today - only two weeks after returning from a 10-match suspension for kneeing South Sydney's Shane Marteene.
He will be suspended for three weeks if he enters an early guilty plea and four weeks if he contests the charge at the judiciary and loses.
The charge followed a tackle on Newcastle winger George Carmont in yesterday's game at EnergyAustralia Stadium, won 34-26 by the Sharks.
Cronulla chief executive Steve Rogers tonight said Bird's ill-discipline could affect his contract negotiations with the club."It's obviously something that has to be taken into account," said Rogers, who must also decide whether to re-sign club favourite David Peachey.
"This will mean he misses more than half the season which makes it a tough call.
"He's certainly got some ability. You have to take that into account as well."
Bird pointed out his squeaky clean record with the judiciary before his 10-week ban and the latest incident, which he felt "didn't even warrant a penalty on the field".
"I hadn't been suspended at all and then I got hit with two suspensions in a matter of weeks," lamented Bird.
"To say that I'm a player who's going to be a liability in the future is ridiculous.
"They're two completely different offences."
Asked how contract talks were progressing with the Sharks, Bird said: "The club hasn't said a word to me.
"I think they were waiting for me to play a bit of footy.
"I've played two games (since the 10-week suspension) and I was pretty happy with how I went."
The Sharks will decide tomorrow whether to contest the dangerous throw charge.
"What it has done is make things more difficult for him and us going forward," Rogers said.
An emotional Bird said he was feeling the pressure of an uncertain future, with no approaches forthcoming from other NRL clubs.
"It's not easy to sleep at night when you're getting hit with suspensions of 10 and three weeks and you're off-contract and no one's said a word to you," he said.
