NSW Blues general manager Frank Ponissi has hit back at claims Mitchell Moses' calf injury was the result of poor load management during Origin camp, labelling the suggestion unfair and inaccurate. He has been defending the integrity of the Blues' medical and coaching staff.
The Parramatta playmaker is expected to miss up to six weeks after injuring his calf at Blues training in the lead-up to Game II.
According to Newscorp, some at the Eels were left frustrated, believing the injury may have been avoidable had Moses' training loads been better handled in camp.
The implication has clearly struck a nerve, with Ponissi going public to push back against what he sees as misinformed criticism.
"We're annoyed at suggestions Mitch did the injury because of a workload issue," Ponissi told SMH. He went on, outlining the precise timeline of Moses' preparations with the squad.
โMitch was one of the players who played on the Monday before coming into camp. He did nothing Tuesday, had a walk-through in his sneakers on Wednesday, then suffered a calf injury only 20 minutes into Thursday's training session. It couldn't have been a load issue because we had barely started training that day."
The timing of the injury was particularly cruel, given that Moses had appeared to finish Origin I with some calf tightness. He had been placed under a modified program prior to arriving in camp.
Ponissi maintains that the Blues staff acted appropriately and responsibly throughout.
"Parramatta might be frustrated, but it was never a training load issue, and I support our performance staff and coaches," he said.
NSW has already had to contend with several injury concerns this series.
Brian To'o carried a hamstring strain into Game II, yet still scored a hat-trick and was named player's player in a commanding win.
Nathan Cleary and Payne Haas had groin issues managed earlier in the series and were both full of praise for the Blues' medical team.
Ponissi pointed to these examples as evidence that the broader system was sound and that Moses' case was simply unfortunate.
