had "instigated and tried to go on with a fight involving Wests Tigers prop John Skandalis". He also sustained an elbow injury during the match which ruled him out until round six of the competition. Gallen was the only player in round one to contest his charge. In round 11 against the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, Gallen scored an impressive two tries in his sides 30 points to 28 victory. In June it was announced that Gallen had extended his contract for another three seasons. In the 2004 season, Gallen made a total of 19 appearances for the club and scoring five tries. 2005 In round 24, Cronulla-Sutherland scored their biggest ever victory, scoring a 68 points to 6 win over the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, with Gallen scoring a try. Cronulla finished in seventh place and therefore qualified to be involved in the finals series. They were drawn against the second placed side, which happened to be local rivals St. George-Illawarra. In the match Gallen managed to score a try for Cronulla, however it wasn't enough to save the Sharks from losing the match 28 points to 22. Gallen was presented the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks chairman's Award in 2005 by the club's President Barry Pierce after his impressive season where he led the NRL in both hit ups and off loads. At the 2005 Dally M Awards, he was also nominated for the position of "Best Lock". However, he lost out to Manly lock Ben Kennedy. In the 2005 NRL season, Gallen played a total of 25 games in first-grade for Cronulla-Sutherland and in the process scored six tries. Gallen ran 3,920 metres with the ball in 2005, more than any other player in the competition. 2006 Before the season started it was discovered that Gallen was suffering from a bulging disc in his lower back. After having surgery he wanted to return to action just a week after having the surgery done. He ended up making his comeback within nine weeks which amazed Cronulla's medical staff as it was predicted it would take much longer than that. Gallen won his first ever representative jersey when he was selected to play for City in the annual City vs Country match. In June, Cronulla coach Stuart Raper pleaded with the New South Wales selectors to give Gallen an opportunity to prove his worth at State of Origin level. Raper stated that "Gallen's been