Sharks steal Golden Point thriller in the Shire

v BYE

The Sharks have secured their 11th straight victory in dramatic circumstances, with a James Maloney field goal getting Cronulla home over the Warriors, 19-18 in front of their home fans at Southern Cross Group Stadium.

For two sides renowned for their attacking prowess this one opened in quite dour fashion, with both sides lacking execution in the opening stages. However, the game would somewhat come alive thanks to a David Fusitua special in the 22nd minute. Fusitua exploded through the line and put Blake Ayshford over against his former club. However, Cronulla would almost bounce back straight away, with a slight knock on denying Ben Barba a scintillating runaway try.

Jonathan Wright would also get a try against his former team mates in the 27th minute, although a suspect pass off the ground and possible forward pass would be revealed in the replay.

It looked as if Wright had a double only 4 minutes later, but he was ruled as not grounding the ball in what was a very close decision for the Bunker. And it was compounded as a duo of penalties would pave the way for Mick Ennis to jig his way over for a strange four-pointer for the hosts, snapping a cheeky "selfie" with the football and the adoring Sharks faithful.

The Sharks almost went back to back, if not for an incorrect pass from Maloney, but it was more than made up for by Ricky Leutele who planted the ball over with pure strength to tie things up. And the Sharks walked into the sheds confident of going on with the job, with James Maloney nailing a conversion from the sideline to give his side a 12-10 lead at the break.

The Warriors opened the second half positively, with a Jonathan Wright error denying the away side the opening try. However, the big talking point to come out of the game would occur early in second forty when Jason Bukuya was awarded a controversial penalty try. Seeing that the penalty try had been missing in action for much of the 2016 season, the ruling is sure to be the topic of many discussions for weeks to come. Whether it will remain consistent in the future is another question.

In the 52nd minute, Chad Townsend looked to have extended Cronulla's lead, only to be denied by a massive try saver by David Fusitua. The Warriors, however, would bounce back in the form of Thomas Leuluai off an excellent team effort. With the game in the balance, back to back penalties would see Isaac Luke lock it up at 18-18 with 5 left. It would be a frantic end to the 80 minutes, with neither side able to grab the two points in regular time.

Chad Townsend split them early on with Barba in support, but Barba would drop it and a chance of winning it off their first set with the ball. Incredibly, neither side would attempt the one-pointer in the first 5 minutes, with the Warriors and Shaun Johnson going agonisingly close to scoring in the final moments of the first half. In the end, with one of the shonkiest attempts you will see, James Maloney gifted Cronulla their 11th straight and seal a 19-18 victory in a thriller.

Next week the Warriors will attempt to put the misery behind them when they host the Titans at Mt Smart Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Cronulla face the desperate Eels on Saturday night at Shark Park aiming for 12 straight.