Footy fans slam Dally Ms and say Shaun Johnson was ROBBED – as they point to one huge mistake with voting for the NRL’s biggest award
- Fans furious over stunning Dally Ms result
- Johnson received zero points for round 25
- Calls for changes in the voting system
Kalyn Ponga has made a remarkable turnaround in 2023, overcoming a career-threatening concussion to win the Dally M Medal, but many footy fans are furious with the result.
Ponga’s win over Warriors ace Shaun Johnson was the biggest talking point during the NRL’s night of nights.
The Kiwi halfback was widely tipped to take home the award after steering the Warriors into the top four in their first year in New Zealand since 2019.
But full-back Ponga, part of a Newcastle side that reached the final with nine straight wins, beat Johnson in the post at Royal Randwick on Wednesday evening.
Many football fans and commentators were stunned by the shock result, with many calling for a change to the recently revamped voting system.
Many football fans thought Dally M favorite Shaun Johnson was robbed on Wednesday night as Kalyn Ponga (pictured) won the game’s biggest individual prize
The Warriors halfback controversially received zero points for his round 25 match, leaving fans stunned after he had a strong game
One eyebrow-raising moment came when Johnson was awarded zero points for his impressive display in Round 25 against Manly.
The number 7 led his team to victory with two try assists, two line-break assists and a field goal to secure victory for the Warriors.
‘All season I couldn’t shake the feeling that Shaun Johnson was going to be robbed in the Dally M race. They stole from him tonight,” one X user wrote.
“When Shaun Johnson got 0 points for a game where he made a field goal, I knew the writing was on the wall. The system itself is flawed enough, it doesn’t help if the people judging it are incompetent,” another replied.
‘Round 25 – Wahs beat Manly 29 -22 – SJ has 2 Try assists and 2 linebreak assists and kicks the field goal but scores Zero and Braith tries to make a funny ha ha, only he thought it was funny,’ said a third.
‘No. No. No. Shaun Johnson is the Dally M Medalist. The system must change. Period of time. Disagree if you want, but it’s a seasonal award and SJ was the best all year. Ponga has been sensational these past two months, but spare me,” a third replied.
Warriors star Jazz Tevaga emphasized on Instagram that his teammate had been robbed.
“Congratulations Kalyn, but everyone knows,” Tevaga wrote in a now-deleted post. “SJ (Johnson) got robbed. This is almost as bad as that forward pass.
“Congratulations to all our boys on their awards. Cracker szn (seasonal) brothers.’
Matt Bungard, host of the Boom Rookies podcast, said: ‘The Dally M system is broken. Last year it was broken and the year before doubling the points achieved the same result.
‘I like Kalyn Ponga and he has been excellent in recent weeks, but he has not been the best player all year. Just switch to MVP voting, it works.”
Ponga’s achievement is all the more remarkable when you consider he missed five weeks of the season to fly to Canada to receive specialist advice on his problems with repeated concussions.
“It’s a crazy feeling, I feel humbled and very happy,” Ponga said.
‘I have a lot of people to thank: my family, the staff and my teammates. “The way I played this year is impossible without your support, love and belief in me.
“I had a holiday at the beginning of the season and while I was there I decided I didn’t want to let people down anymore, and yeah, what a year.”