Cronulla

Sharks snatch win over Eels after siren

The dramatic finish was a fitting climax to a see-sawing battle between the Sharks and Eels, in which Hynes and rival halfback Mitchell Moses were both outstanding for their teams.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison was among the Cronulla fans who jumped to their feet when Matt Moylan put Teig Wilton over in the 80th minute to give Hynes the opportunity to claim the first win under new coach Craig Fitzgibbon.     

'Goosebumps': Cousins fulfil shared All Stars dream

After establishing themselves at the Sharks in recent seasons, Kennedy and Trindall had continued to talk about their ambition but neither was expecting to be selected for Saturday night’s clash with the Maori All Stars at CommBank Stadium.

“I used to go to the game every year when it was on the Gold Coast,” Trindall said. “Seeing guys like Greg Inglis, Wendell Sailor, Matt Bowen and Johnathan Thurston play, I just dreamed of getting a chance one day, but there are so many talented Indigenous players I didn’t really get my hopes up.”

Dragons remain unbeaten

The Sharks' 40-20 loss to their local rivals was only one concern, with Andrew Fifita and Paul Gallen sweating on knee scans on Saturday ahead of potentially lengthy stints on the sidelines.

There is particular concern over Fifita, who had his left knee in a brace amd was on crutches, sparking fears he may have damaged his anterior cruciate ligament putting his season in doubt.

Wade Graham (hamstring) and Luke Lewis (knee) will join the pair for scans after minor injuries, cutting through their star-studded forward pack and leaving them with an empty bench by fulltime.

NRL stand firm over fines

 

The governing body confirmed the Sharks would be slugged $30,000 and the Sea Eagles $20,000 after Cronulla coach Shane Flanagan and Manly's Trent Barrett both lashed the whistleblowers after their week-one finals exits.

Both clubs appealed their penalties after they were handed down a fortnight ago, however NRL head of football Brian Canavan said neither would be granted reductions in their fines.

"Given the seriousness of the breaches - and the need for the integrity of the game to be maintained - it was decided that the penalties should stand," Canavan said.

Holmes bringing extra bite to Sharks attack

While Sharks five-eighth Maloney will dictate much of Cronulla's attack in their clash with Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night Boyd has also been carefully monitoring the development of Holmes into one of the NRL's most dangerous attacking fullbacks.

Kangaroos team-mates in last year's Four Nations tour of England and Queensland centre and wing partners in the second game of this year's Origin series, Boyd and Holmes will face off on Friday night as their respective teams seek to secure their place in the top four for at least another week.

Manly lose Sironen for at least 8 weeks

Sironen will meet with surgeons on Tuesday, where he is likely to be told he will need surgery after getting caught awkwardly attempting a tackle in Sunday's win over Cronulla.

His absence will take some serious air out of a flying Sea Eagles side that have surged into the top four for the first time since 2014.

The former Wests Tigers forward is considered one of the most improved players in the competition this year following his move to the northern beaches over the summer.

Cronulla doping scandal finally over

The players were given the opportunity to accept a one year suspension, backdated to six months, on the provision that they plead guilty.

The Australian reports John Williams, Ben Pomeroy and Colin best were the last three to agree to the deal.

Stuart Flanagan and Paul Aiton previously acknowledged they had used peptides, but disputed the punishment - they later accepted the same deal that was orignally accepted by 11 other Cronulla players.

 

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