Cronulla defend shocking call that ruined their season as Sharks failed to beat Roosters despite sin-binning and shock injuries to the Chooks
Cronulla defends shock call-up that ruined their season as Sharks failed to beat Roosters despite sin-binning and shock injuries to the Chooks
- Critics say a penalty was a terrible decision
- Captain and coach said this decision was the right one
- Cronulla bombed three tries with Roosters bringing a man down
Cronulla has defended a decision to take a penalty against a 12-man Sydney Roosters side while James Tedesco was in the sin bin.
With the Sharks leading 10-6 and Tedesco still in the box with 90 seconds left, Cronulla opted to take just two points from a penalty in front of goal in Saturday’s elimination final.
It gave Cronulla a 12-6 lead but allowed the Roosters to regroup with Tedesco back on the field when play resumed.
The Roosters then leveled the score through a try-off from a rebounded rubber kick later in the second half, before Sam Walker fired them to a 13-12 victory.
The decision to take the penalty shot was criticized by commentator Greg Alexander, among others, who believed the Sharks had let the Roosters off the ropes with only twelve men remaining.
Nicho Hynes scored the controversial goal that took the Sharks to a 12-6 lead – with critics slamming the Sharks for not trying to score a try when the Roosters were down to 12 men
Captain Wade Graham (pictured as he was chaired after playing his final NRL match on Saturday night) defended the decision to shoot on goal
But outgoing captain Wade Graham insisted the move appeared to be the right one.
“Finals games, it comes down to the margins,” Graham said.
‘If we don’t score that goal, we will lose 12-10 anyway.
‘A six-point lead is good. We should have been good enough to defend six.”
Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon also backed the call.
“We were debating it in the box, but Tedesco only had about 50 seconds left or something like that,” Fitzgibbon said.
‘So if things get messy there and you don’t get any points, he goes straight back to work to get them out of trouble there.
Blayke Brailey spilled the ball over the line, spoiling a try that would have sent Cronulla into a 16-6 lead with 20 minutes to go
“Wade’s right: a converted effort forward in what looked like a real slugfest should have been enough.”
However, Fitzgibbon could not deal with the suggestion that his team were not taking advantage well enough with Tedesco off the field.
After scoring through Ronaldo Mulitalo early in the period, one attempt went begging when Blayke Brailey dropped the ball over the line.
Another chance was missed when Jesse Ramien’s final tackle put a ball down ten yards out, before a third break was called in the build-up to the penalty goal.
Nicho Hynes congratulates Roosters superstar James Tedesco after the Chooks recorded a stunning one-point win to end Cronulla’s season
‘We asked a few questions. They scrambled pretty well,” Fitzgibbon said.
“Again, you’ll try to pin that on us instead of giving them a shawl for their day. But that’s what happened.’
The loss marked Cronulla’s eighth in nine finals games since their premiership in 2016, at a time when questions have been asked about the Sharks’ ability to beat top teams.
But after a week in which Cronulla lost Braden Hamlin-Uele to a knee injury and Toby Rudolf (toe) and Connor Tracey (knee) were unable to train, Fitzgibbon insisted his side had taken a step forward.
“From where we were at the midway point of the season, I’m proud of where we’ve ended up so far,” Fitzgibbon said.
“Of course I’m disappointed about tonight, but I think we’re starting to grow as a football team.
“Things that everyone likes to criticize us about, I think we’re starting to address.”