Hannay: Townsend benching 'not a hook'

Interim coach Josh Hannay insists departing halfback Chad Townsend wasn't 'hooked' during the Sharks' 48-0 loss to the Panthers on Friday night.

Townsend was an early casualty 10 minutes into the second half of the contest with the Cowboys-bound playmaker replaced by Matt Moylan, who was returning from a quad injury.

However, Hannay defended Townsend's 50-minute stint and indicated the interchange move wasn't a reflection of the side's overall performance.  

The Sharks had just conceded their fifth try of the evening when Townsend walked to the bench.

"I don't like the word hook," Hannay said.

"It wasn't anything to do with Chad's performance. It was just a plan there to get Matt on for either one of those guys [Townsend or Johnson].

"If we were going a lot better and on the front foot and our game was on I wouldn't have put Matt out there.

"But at that point of the game, it was an opportunity to get Matt on in his preferred side of the field and get some minutes under his belt.

"I wouldn't be speculating moving forward to what that means, it was just how we went about using him.

"Our halves combination is probably the furthest thing from my mind at the moment."

What is on Hannay's mind is the fact the Sharks haven't won a game since former head coach John Morris departed last month.

On Friday night, they were blown away by a Panthers outfit who barely got out of third gear to drop their fifth game in a row.

A 56 percent completion rate in the first half proved a costly start as the Panthers ran in four tries to set up a 24-0 lead at the break.

"They're down, there is no shying away from that," Hannay said.

"What I will say about the group is, and I've said this on numerous occasions, they've got great camaraderie and that's important through times like these.

"They're very much united and very much determined to turn this thing around.

"It is about us as a football staff and as a playing group about continuing to come to the facility and working hard to turn it around."

The task doesn't get any easier for Hannay's side with the Sharks set to face a Rabbitohs side reeling from their 50-0 thrashing to Melbourne on Thursday night.

"It's a tough period, I've been through it as a player and a coach and only hard work gets you through it," Hannay said.

"This is hurting them, no one is sitting there as if it's water off a duck's back. They are hurting because they care for the club and for each other."

To add to the woes, Sharks centre Jesse Ramien will have scans on a facial injury after copping a stray elbow from Penrith's Viliame Kikau with fears he may have a fracture.

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