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CRONULLA fullback David Peachey will not only be spared further punishment for going AWOL this week but the club is keen to start talks about extending his contract.
Peachey fronted the media at Toyota Park yesterday after apologising to team-mates for failing to keep his end of the bargain and show up at training on Thursday after a week off for personal problems.
He has been replaced at fullback by Nathan Merritt for the Sharks' opening trial match of the season at Central Coast stadium in Gosford tonight but will face no further action following talks with coach Stuart Raper and president Barry Pierce yesterday.
"As far as I'm concerned the matter ends here," Pierce said. "The big thing about it is that this is the first thing (like this) that has happened to Peach in over 10 years.
"Knowing some of the issues, I'd like to talk to the board about it and it will be business as usual. He's apologised to everyone and I think you're going to see the old Peach."
Peachey, who turned 30 last month, is off contract at the end of the year and Pierce said he was keen to sit down with the former NSW fullback and hammer out a new deal before the game's anti-tampering laws expire on June 30.
"He just said he wants to put this behind him now and repay us on the padddock, so obviously if he's playing like we know he can I'll sit down with (chief executive) Steve Rogers and have a look at the situation," Pierce said.
The Sharks hit the panic button when Peachey failed to front up for training on Thursday after being given a week off to sort out marital problems.
The recipient of last year's Ken Stephens award for services to charity and the community had retreated to his home town of Dubbo, but his celebrity status there forced him to "head bush" with his father to a remote Aboriginal community near the Victoria-South Australia border.
It is understood Peachey relished returning to his country roots, including killing and eating a tiger snake along the way.
Such was the remoteness of his location, he was unable to offer an opinion on missing Roosters centre Justin Hodges, saying "he'd been on the other side of the world and didn't have a paper or TV".
"It's been tough with the personal issues and that's something I've got to deal with in-house," Peachey said.
"It's something that has affected me. Stuey said he picked it up a little bit, but that was one of the reasons I needed to clear my head and one of the reasons I did what I did. That's behind us now and we've just got to move forward."
Peachey said some of his team-mates were unsure how to approach him at training and he would offer an apology where he felt it was necessary.
Peachey said he had been through an extremely difficult period but never intended to turn his back on football.
"That didn't even cross my mind," Peachey said. "Stuey was telling me some of the things that people have been saying and that was one of the furthest things from my mind.
"I've been here a long time, I've got a lot to achieve with the club, I want to be one of the first (to win a premiership) and that's something we will aim for."
Peachey fronted the media at Toyota Park yesterday after apologising to team-mates for failing to keep his end of the bargain and show up at training on Thursday after a week off for personal problems.
He has been replaced at fullback by Nathan Merritt for the Sharks' opening trial match of the season at Central Coast stadium in Gosford tonight but will face no further action following talks with coach Stuart Raper and president Barry Pierce yesterday.
"As far as I'm concerned the matter ends here," Pierce said. "The big thing about it is that this is the first thing (like this) that has happened to Peach in over 10 years.
"Knowing some of the issues, I'd like to talk to the board about it and it will be business as usual. He's apologised to everyone and I think you're going to see the old Peach."
Peachey, who turned 30 last month, is off contract at the end of the year and Pierce said he was keen to sit down with the former NSW fullback and hammer out a new deal before the game's anti-tampering laws expire on June 30.
"He just said he wants to put this behind him now and repay us on the padddock, so obviously if he's playing like we know he can I'll sit down with (chief executive) Steve Rogers and have a look at the situation," Pierce said.
The Sharks hit the panic button when Peachey failed to front up for training on Thursday after being given a week off to sort out marital problems.
The recipient of last year's Ken Stephens award for services to charity and the community had retreated to his home town of Dubbo, but his celebrity status there forced him to "head bush" with his father to a remote Aboriginal community near the Victoria-South Australia border.
It is understood Peachey relished returning to his country roots, including killing and eating a tiger snake along the way.
Such was the remoteness of his location, he was unable to offer an opinion on missing Roosters centre Justin Hodges, saying "he'd been on the other side of the world and didn't have a paper or TV".
"It's been tough with the personal issues and that's something I've got to deal with in-house," Peachey said.
"It's something that has affected me. Stuey said he picked it up a little bit, but that was one of the reasons I needed to clear my head and one of the reasons I did what I did. That's behind us now and we've just got to move forward."
Peachey said some of his team-mates were unsure how to approach him at training and he would offer an apology where he felt it was necessary.
Peachey said he had been through an extremely difficult period but never intended to turn his back on football.
"That didn't even cross my mind," Peachey said. "Stuey was telling me some of the things that people have been saying and that was one of the furthest things from my mind.
"I've been here a long time, I've got a lot to achieve with the club, I want to be one of the first (to win a premiership) and that's something we will aim for."
