Sharks fullback Will Kennedy will miss the club's next game against the Cowboys after accepting a one-match ban for colliding with a referee.

In the 13th minute of Cronulla's 58-6 win over Wests Tigers on Friday, Kennedy sent match official Adam Gee to the turf after running into his back at speed while attempting to provide an option for teammate Kayal Iro who had broken through the defensive line.

Gee sprung immediately back to his feet and to his duties with Kennedy offering a shrug as he looked back towards the area of collision as play continued.

The Sharks star was charged with grade two contrary conduct for the incident, with a one-match ban offered with a guilty plea and the possibility of two weeks on the sidelines if unsuccessfully fought at the tribunal.

On Monday the club "reluctantly" accepted the one-game penalty.

Former Sharks greats had voiced their dismay at the suspension offered for what appeared to be an accidental impact.

"Outrageous is the word for me," Bundjalung man and former Cronulla skipper Wade Graham said on Triple M over the weekend.

"It's a fast paced game. The fullback (Kennedy) is there supporting an open line break. You can say he's got to watch Adam Gee, but he's not expecting Adam Gee to stop in his tracks, sort of step into his way.

"Of all things, he got a grade two? Grade one, I could say, okay, fair enough, to make a point (for) no contact with the referees at all. But grade two for an accident and now he's going to miss a game. I just think it's crazy."

Sharks premiership captain Paul Gallen said it was "absolutely insane" Kennedy was charged for "incidental contact".

"Can you believe he has been charged for that last night? It's absolutely insane. Some of the decisions in all areas of the game at the moment are just so questionable. But that one for me, I can't believe it," Gallen said on 2GB Radio.

"He's running eight or nine metres a second. Things just happen, okay? It's incidental contact. What player in the game goes out there on the field and thinks, okay, I'm gonna make contact with the referee?"

Via NRL.com, Cronulla said in a statement on Monday "After considering the options and receiving advice over the weekend and earlier today, the Sharks and Kennedy reluctantly accepted the suspension," the team said in a statement.

Kennedy will now miss the club's round 21 match against North Queensland after the bye this coming weekend.