Cronulla enforcer Royce Hunt has warned Corey Horsburgh he plans to seek retribution for their on-field scrap, claiming the Sharks will go after him next time while making his own “weak-gutted dog” reference about the Canberra firebrand.

A furious Hunt was sin-binned in the Sharks’ loss to Canberra on Sunday, after he landed a jersey punch to the head of Horsburgh during the second half.

Hunt, frustrated by the altercation, has accused Horsburgh of hiding behind Jack Wighton after holding his Cronulla rival in a scrum and pushing him to the ground.

Horsburgh hit back on social media by posting a meme that had been circulated of him holding a pint-sized Hunt in a Raiders jersey with the caption: “Really happy for my little boy watching Daddy score 2 tries”.

The Cronulla prop has already taken note of the Sharks’ final-round clash with Canberra later this year, and has made no secret of the fact he will keep it in the back of his mind.

“We’ll see if he fronts up,” Hunt said. “I have never seen a front-rower hide behind a halfback.

“You can’t just hold me in and push me over and not expect anything. I was a bit upset about that.

Royce Hunt is tackled by Corey Horsburgh. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)

“It is what it is, it’s rugby league. We get on with it and bash him next game.”

Hunt and Horsburgh spent time together in the system at Canberra, and were teammates at Mt Pritchard in NSW Cup in 2018.

But on Wednesday, Hunt labelled Horsburgh’s behaviour as a “low act”.

He also channelled Ricky Stuart in his response, quipping that Horsburgh was a “weak-gutted dog”, after Stuart made the reference about Penrith playmaker Jaeman Salmon last year.

Stuart was subsequently suspended as Raiders coach for one match and fined $25,000 over that comment.

Asked on Wednesday if he thought it was poor form from Horsburgh, Hunt replied: “Definitely. 

(Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)

“As Ricky Stuart would say, he’s a weak-gutted dog. We’ll get him next game.”

Hunt’s admitted his frustration that the jumper-punch proved crucial as Horsburgh scored immediately after the altercation and Canberra crossed again while he was off the field in the 24-20 win.

“I was a bit upset we lost,” Hunt said. “I got sent for 10 and put the boys under pressure. I was upset at myself for getting sent for 10 and letting him get under my skin.”

Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said after the match that both Horsburgh and Hunt were in the wrong.

“You can’t just hold onto someone from the back of a scrum and push them over,” Fitzgibbon said. “But you can’t do what Royce did. It should have been picked up by someone before Royce retaliated, Royce shouldn’t have retaliated like that. Especially not while we were defending our goal line.”

Souths to wear special Sattler logo

South Sydney will play with John Sattler in their hearts and his jersey on their backs when they take the field for the first time since the Rabbitohs great’s death.

A four-time premiership-winning captain at Souths, Sattler died aged 80 on Monday after being diagnosed with dementia in 2020.

Sattler’s death prompted tributes from around the country as rugby league figures shared memories of the forward’s trademark toughness. Sattler is perhaps best remembered for guiding the Rabbitohs to victory in the 1970 grand final while battling a broken jaw, suffered in the opening minutes of the game.