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Star Cronulla recruit Shaun Johnson has refused to return fire at the Warriors and says he's excited to be in the hunt for an NRL premiership with the Sharks.
Unwanted by the Warriors and now the first Golden Boot winner to ever commit to Cronulla, Shaun Johnson insists he has nothing to prove when he debuts for the Sharks next NRL season.
Johnson signed a lucrative three-year deal with the Sharks last month after the Warriors deemed the superstar half not worth his million-dollar-a-season price tag.
"They can say what they want. I think both parties are happy with how it's ended and I've got nothing bad to say about the club," Johnson said on Thursday.
"I had eight years there where I got to live out a dream that I had ever since I was a kid.
"They're a club that want to do well. They're a club that are trying to win a premiership. If they don't see me as being worthy of whatever they offered to pay me in the first place, then that's up to them and that's fine.
"I'm here to play footy and I want to win a comp too and that's why I've come here. I believe this club can win another comp and I want to be a part of it."
Bagged by Warriors boss Cameron George for his inconsistency, Johnson helped pilot the erratic Kiwis to the 2011 grand final and New Zealand to Four Nations final glory before being crowned the 2014 world player of the year.
But the dynamic No.7 says he'd trade all his silverware or any individual accolade for an elusive NRL premiership.
"I think that would be the most important thing to any player playing in this game. I'm no different," Johnson said.
"I just went down and saw how hard the boys are working and that's why you do it.
"There's 15 teams out there with the exact same goal. They're not running around the field for any other reason than to hold that trophy up at the end of the year.
"It doesn't matter what they're paying me, I know I can add value. I've got no point to prove."
The face of the Warriors for almost a decade, Johnson is still coming to terms with how quickly his life has changed over the past fortnight and admits it will be surreal facing his former teammates for the first time in round 19 next year in Wellington.
"A lot of people expect me to give the answer that 'oh it'll be fine'," he said.
"But, no, it's going to be weird as. I've got some good mates there, some boys I've seen develop into full-blooded first graders that you're around every day for a long time.
"So it's going to be really weird but, at the same time, I know they're going to be feeling the same.
"They'll be getting stuck into me and I'll be giving as much back."
