The Cronulla Sharks are hosting the Wests Tigers at Southern Cross Group Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
TEAM FORM GUIDE
CRONULLA SHARKS
Last Friday night, the Cronulla Sharks ended a six-game winning streak after losing to the South Sydney Rabbitohs at ANZ Stadium. The Sharks had lost one of their best in Valentine Holmes to Origin duties, while the Rabbitohs were missing four key players. The Rabbitohs were the better side throughout the match, outmuscling and frustrating the Sharks.
WESTS TIGERS
The Wests Tigers faced the Roosters at Allianz Stadium last Sunday afternoon where they were defeated by just two points, with the Roosters going on to win 16 points to 14. This loss saw them drop out of the top eight on the ladder for the first time this season, and will no doubt be desperate to bounce back against Cronulla.
SQUAD NEWS
CRONULLA SHARKS
Cronulla welcomes back Valentine Holmes after playing for the Queensland Maroons last Wednesday night in the first State of Origin match for the year. Josh Dugan remains sidelined due to an injury. Sosaia Feki has been dropped from the side and Edrick Lee and Sione Katoa have been named to play on the wings.
WESTS TIGERS
David Nofoaluma was injured last weekend against the Roosters with a suspected calf injury. Malakai Watene-Zelezniak comes in as his replacement. The Wests Tigers side is otherwise unchanged.
PREVIEW
It has been almost 12 months to the date since the Cronulla Sharks and the Wests Tigers last clashed at Southern Cross Group Stadium, and Sunday afternoon’s match is a big one for both sides.
The Wests Tigers dropped out of the top eight for the first time this season following their two-point loss to the Roosters last weekend, while the Sharks dropped from fifth to seventh place following their eight-point loss to the Rabbitohs. Both the Sharks and the Tigers will be looking to bounce back and obtain a position higher up into the top eight to begin cementing their finals spot for September.
The last time these two sides met was in round 15 last season where the Sharks defeated the Tigers by two points in front of a home crowd at Southern Cross Group Stadium. Cronulla has won their last four games against the Tigers and will be looking to continue the momentum come Sunday afternoon.
Wests Tigers went down in an extremely close match against the Roosters last weekend and will be looking to bounce back against the Sharks and back into the top eight.
Cronulla Sharks lost momentum last weekend and ran out of steam which gave the Rabbitohs plenty of chances to frustrate and outsmart them, leading to an eight-point victory at ANZ Stadium.
Both sides have a lot to play for on Sunday afternoon, which will make it an entertaining match in Cronulla.
KEY STAT
In their last ten matches against the Tigers, the Sharks have won six, including the last four in a row.
SQUADS
Cronulla Sharks: 1 Valentine Holmes, 2 Sione Katoa, 3 Jesse Ramien, 4 Ricky Leutele, 5 Edrick Lee, 6 Matt Moylan, 7 Chad Townsend, 8 Andrew Fifita, 9 Jayden Brailey, 10 Matt Prior, 11 Luke Lewis, 12 Wade Graham (c), 13 Paul Gallen (c) Interchange: 14 Joseph Paulo, 15 James Segeyaro, 16 Jack Williams, 17 Jayson Bukuya
THE IMPORTANT DETAILS
Date: Sunday, June 10 2018
Venue: Southern Cross Group Stadium
Kick-off: 2pm
WHO WILL WIN?
Both sides have a lot to play for on Sunday afternoon and will be trying their hardest to get the two competition points to push them up in the top eight on the NRL ladder.
Cronulla by 4
