Panthers five-eighth James Maloney has shrugged off criticism from former teammate Paul Gallen over his dwindling form in his final days at Cronulla, arguing off-field distractions didn't hurt his game.
In the lead up to Maloney's finals showdown against his old club, Gallen declared the NSW playmaker's head wasn't screwed on after the Sharks claimed a maiden premiership in 2016 and a player swap with Matt Moylan had to happen.
‘’The season Jimmy Maloney had in 2016 was dynamite, he was unbelievable for us. What he did in 2017 for us, in my opinion for the club it wasn’t good enough,'' Gallen told Channel Nine's 100% Footy.
‘’He just wasn’t there mentally from very early on in the season and it reflected in his performances.
‘’This is a business and you’ve got to make a business decision and he did. He wanted to move on, he wanted a long-term contract and more money.
‘’The Sharks weren’t willing to give him that so he had to go, he found that at Penrith, obviously there was issues with (Matt) Moylan there so it was the perfect swap.’’
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An openly public pay dispute clouded Maloney's final year in the Shire, eventually settled through a trade agreement with Penrith that saw a high-profile halves reshuffle between the two clubs.
Trying not to take offence to Gallen's comments, Maloney argued there were moments he wasn't at his best in 2016, although the year as a whole was a success in his eyes.
“There probably were some distractions, some things that went on. But who cares? I don’t think it distracted my footy too much,” Maloney told AAP.
“Your form varies throughout the year. I didn’t think I had a terrible season last year by any means. There were games I could’ve played better.
“But we ended up in a good situation. We played finals, we just didn’t get the job done.”
Settled in his new surroundings out west with the pay packet he deserves, Maloney has the opportunity to shut Gallen's mouth and send his ex-teammates bundling out of the finals with a win in their sudden death final on Friday.
He may have attacked his 2016 season, but the Cronulla captain laid praise on Maloney's resurgence in a new leadership role and he fears the proficient playmaker could get the better of him.
‘’Jimmy has been unbelievable for Penrith. Jimmy has done things at Penrith that I’m really happy that he’s done,’’ Gallen said.
’He’s gone to a club like Penrith that has a lot of young, impressionable kids and he seems to have gone up there and embraced that senior players role and helped these young guys through.
‘’He’s been great for Penrith and I can’t take anything away from him there.''
