2021 NRL Round 16, Broncos 26 Sharks 18 – Report

Brendan Wood reviews the Brisbane Broncos hard-fought 26-18 win over the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks. Here’s how the game went.

SCOREBOARD

Player of the Year Points

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3 pts – Payne Haas (Brisbane Broncos)
2 pts – Tesi Niu (Brisbane Broncos)
1 pt – Kotoni Staggs (Brisbane Broncos)

MATCH REPORT

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1st Half

There was early controversy when Kotoni Staggs got knocked over chasing a kick. Despite the appeals for a review from the home side, the referee deemed the contact didn’t warrant a penalty.

Just a few minutes later, the Broncos were hard done by again. The referees appeared to miss a blatant forward pass as Jesse Ramien raced away to score. Luckily for the Broncos, the bunker saved them when they reviewed the play and found Sione Katoa had lost control of the ball in the process.

Following the overturned try, the Sharks put the Broncos under pressure, forcing them to defend multiple repeat sets on their own line. Eventually, the Broncos cracked when Blayke Brailey grubbered into the in-goal for Aiden Tolman to score a rare try.

The Sharks went close to adding another try, however the final pass to Ronaldo Mulitalo was pulled up for being forward. In the resulting set, the Broncos rolled down the field and found their first points. Herbie Farnworth regathered a kick from Tyson Gamble and offloaded to Alex Glenn, who couldn’t be stopped close to the line.

Inside the final 10 minutes of the half, the Broncos hit the lead. TC Robati flicked a pass to Kotoni Staggs, who drew the fullback across and passed inside for Tesi Niu to score.

In the final play before halftime, the Sharks found some space down the sideline and Ronaldo Mulitalo threw a no-look pass inside to Connor Tracey, who scored just as the siren sounded. Shaun Johnson converted the try to level the scores at the break.

HALF-TIME: Brisbane Broncos 12 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 12

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2nd Half

The Broncos started the second half with plenty of intensity. Payne Haas showed his ball playing ability when he passed to Ethan Bullemor, who crashed over from close range to put the home side in front.

The home side went close to scoring again just minutes later, however Jake Turpin lost the ball over the line. Off the 20-metre restart, William Kennedy made 30 metres before finally being tackled.

With momentum going their way, the Sharks found their third try when Braydon Trindell put Connor Tracey through a gap to level the scores at 18 all.

Despite leaking the try, the Broncos found a quick response. After shutting down a long run from the Sharks, they turned defence into attack when Tesi Niu made a break. He was dragged down by Ronaldo Mulitalo, but he kept his momentum in the tackle and reached out to score.

Not long after his try, Niu was involved in another Broncos four-pointer. He used quick hands to get the ball to Jesse Arthurs who muscled his way into the in-goal to score, extending the lead to eight.

Inside the final 10 minutes, the Broncos kept the Sharks in their own end and made it difficult for the visitors to make metres. The Sharks made some long range breaks to try and salvage something in the late stages. However, the Broncos maintained their composure to deny the Sharks and hold on to record their fourth win of the season.

FULL-TIME: Brisbane Broncos 26 Cronulla-Sutherland 18

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Injuries

to be advised

Match Review Committee

Jack Williams (Sharks) – Grade 1 Contrary Conduct – Early Guilty Plea $1,350 fine, Guilty at Judiciary $1,800 fine.

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