’I’m not a dirty player’: Kaufusi defends his battered reputation
MELBOURNE Storm forward Felise Kaufusi has broken his silence to defend his on-field reputation, insisting he doesn’t go out there to hurt opposition players in the wake of a two-game ban.
Kaufusi, who returns on Saturday night against Canterbury, copped a barrage from sections of the media after an incident with Parramatta’s Ryan Matterson in Round 2 landed him in hot water.
The Queensland Origin winner’s elbow appeared to glance Matterson in a tackle, with the Eel suffering concussion after his head hit the turf hard.
“It wasn’t my intention (to hurt him),” Kaufusi said.
“These things happen in footy. “First and foremost, looking back it did look bad and the most important thing was his wellbeing.
“He has had concussions before and it’s a big thing in our game at the moment, so that’s the suspension I got and I just have to cop that on the chin.”
Kaufusi labelled the contact on Matterson as accidental.
“I love playing hard and aggressive and that’s my style of footy, but there’s no ill intention in it,” he said.
“I’m sure no one that plays our game of footy goes out there to try to hurt someone.
“Yes, be aggressive but you shouldn’t be playing the game if you’re going out there to try to put someone on the sidelines.”
The 28-year-old forward said he was not affected by the negative coverage he received following the incident.
“It’s pretty lucky that down here in Melbourne we’re a bit sheltered from all the media, but my parents are in Queensland and they breathe footy everyday so they were checking in with me and making sure I was OK,” he said.
“But I was honestly sheltered from it, but at the same time I knew I would cop some flak.”