Former NZ Warriors star Shaun Johnson admits his old club was probably right to move him over the off-season, resulting in his current contract with the Cronulla Sharks.
Johnson, 28, left the Auckland-based NRL club in tumultuous circumstances, after it indicated he could explore options elsewhere past his existing million-dollar contract.
The half reported demanded that contract be cancelled and he landed at the Sharks in search of a new start.
Johnson has told Inside The NRL he needed that career reboot.
"I probably did, to be fair… now looking back on it," he said. "When you're in the moment, you don't think you do, but obviously the Warriors saw me becoming a bit stale and maybe they were right.
"So I took that on board and came over here, and asked myself, "how do I take my game to the next level?'"
Johnson conceded making the 2011 Grand Final in his rookie year set up false expectations for the rest of his career.
"The next six years, when you don't make finals, that can take it out of you.
"Last year was a really good year - not just for me, but for the Warriors - and that gave me a lot of confidence.
"Coming over here and continuing that, and taking it to a new level, that's what I'm enjoying at the moment."
Cronulla and the Warriors share identical two-win/two-loss records so far this season, but Johnson missed last week's 24-12 loss to Parramatta Eels with a quad injury.
"It's OK," he told Inside The NRL. "If it was good, I probably wouldn't have missed a week, but hopefully that's all it's going to be.
"It's nothing new to me. It's just about managing it and getting me to the game.
"We've got a big one this weekend, so I would really like to be a part of it."
The Sharks take on the defending champion Sydney Roosters on Saturday.
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