Justin Carney to miss half the season as Thunder accept penalties

Carney's penalty for re-entering the field of play after a scuffle broke out after he was on the interchange bench was halved to six games with his early guilty plea and previous good record.

Interchange forward Joe Silafau received the same penalty for the same offence midway through the second half.

It means both will be able to return just in time for the return clash against Tumut at Twickenham on July 2.

However NSW Rugby League have clarified that as Carney was charged in his capacity as a player, and was not charged with a code of conduct breach, he is still free to coach the club during his suspension.

READ MORE

The Thunder will be at risk of losing their two points from the clash after accepting the competition points penalty under the NSWRL Tough Love in League policy.

It has been suspended for 12 months as long as there are no further breaches.

Albury trainer Paul Shepherd also pleaded guilty to a code of conduct breach and will be unable to fulfil that role for 12 months.

However he is expected to front the Group Nine board in the coming weeks looking to clarify any other volunteer roles he could take in the meantime.

Carney injured his hamstring in the 14-12 win over Tumut at Greenfield Park, however was confident he would have been right to take his place in the side before the charges were laid down.

The former NRL player did not want to comment on the suspension.

Now that he's been forced to the sidelines, he is looking to see the same attitude they fronted the Blues with when they take on premiers Gundagai at Anzac Park on Saturday.

"There's a lot to build on but it's very positive," Carney said.

"It was the attitude.

"Hopefully we can have more of that and tidy up a few things.

"Other than that they did what we asked, it's a new side but I thought it was good."

With the suspensions, Carney was unsure of just how the team will line up to take on the Tigers, who will be looking to hit back after their 44-16 loss to Kangaroos to start the season.

However front rower Sam Collins is set to bring some more fire to the side after missing round one.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: