Mitch Dransfield reviews the round seven clash between the Sea Eagles and Sharks at Central Coast Stadium ….. Here’s how the game went.
MATCH TIMELINE
| Minute | Scoring Play | Score |
| 15th | Try – Braden Hamlin-Uele (Cronulla) | Cronulla 4-0 |
| 16th | Goal – Shaun Johnson (Cronulla) | Cronulla 6-0 |
| 20th | Try – Jorge Taufua (Manly) | Cronulla 6-4 |
| 21st | Goal Missed – Rueben Garrick (Manly) | Cronulla 6-4 |
| 26th | Penalty Conversion – Rueben Garrick (Manly) | 6-6 |
| 32nd | Try – Sione Katoa (Cronulla) | Cronulla 10-6 |
| 33rd | Goal – Shaun Johnson (Cronulla) | Cronulla 12-6 |
| 39th | Try – Jesse Ramien (Cronulla) | Cronulla 16-6 |
| 39th | Goal – Shaun Johnson (Cronulla) | Cronulla 18-6 |
| 42nd | Try – Josh Dugan (Cronulla) | Cronulla 22-6 |
| 42nd | Goal – Shaun Johnson (Cronulla) | Cronulla 24-6 |
| 50th | Try – Bryson Goodwin (Cronulla) | Cronulla 28-6 |
| 54th | Try – Sione Katoa (Cronulla) | Cronulla 32-6 |
| 55th | Goal – Shaun Johnson (Cronulla) | Cronulla 34-6 |
| 60th | Try – Addin Fonua-Blake (Manly) | Cronulla 34-10 |
| 60th | Goalย – Rueben Garrick (Manly) | Cronulla 34-12 |
| 65th | Try – Blayke Brailey (Cronulla) | Cronulla 38-12 |
| 65th | Goal – Shaun Johnson (Cronulla) | Cronulla 40-12 |
| 71st | Try – Addin Fonua-Blake (Manly) | Cronulla 40-16 |
| 72nd | Goalย – Rueben Garrick (Manly) | Cronulla 40-18 |
| 77th | Try – Tevita Funa (Manly) | Cronulla 40-22 |
MATCH SUMMARY
1st Half
A strong start from the Sharks had them look to match the Sea Eagles through the middle with a reshuffle to their side from the originally named side.
An early break in defence allowed Braden Hamlin-Uele to crash through and open the scoring early to lead 6-0.
A fightback just minutes later saw Lachlan Croker spread the ball to Brad Parker in the centres who drew and passed to Jorge Taufua to score in the corner for Manly making it 6-4 after 20 minutes.
Another resurgence by Manly had them get a penalty conversion to level it 6-6. Flood gates opened with multiple set restarts aiding the Sharks to allow them to score two tries through Sione Katoa and Jesse Ramien on Cronulla’s lethal right edge, the went into half time leading 18-6.
2nd Half
Cronulla came out after half-time with a dominant display against a flat Manly side. Three tries in twelve minutes with Josh Dugan, Bryson Goodwin and Sione Katoa even in the wet all sliding over for soft four pointers to lead 34-6 by the 55th minute.
Manly with changes from the bench saw them find new energy and resulted in Addin Fonua-Blake score after a break from Jake Trbojevic to make it 34-12. A contentious decision allowed Sharks to score off a Manly error on their line through Blayke Brailey to notch up 40 points with fifteen minutes left.
The rain intensified but the Sea Eagles pushed on to find points with Curtis Sironen to free his arm and offload to Fonua-Blake for his second at 40-18. A tough outing for the Sea Eagles who were able to gallantly find another try in Tevita Funa on the right wing with the Sharks winning 40-22 to continue on their run.
GAME HIGHLIGHT
A great win by the Sharks against the Manly who were a write-off emotionally and physically after last round. The highlight for Cronulla was had in their backline in the finisherย Sione Katoa who was electric in the try-scoring with two four-pointers after a hat-trick last week. His second try was a standout shimmying outside two defenders and launching into the corner which is starting to become a normal occurrence.
SQUADS
Sea Eagles: 1. Brendan Elliot 2. Jorge Taufua 3. Brad Parker 4. Tevita Funa 5. Reuben Garrick 6. Lachlan Croker 7. Daly Cherry-Evans 8. Addin Fonua-Blake 9. Danny Levi 16. Sean Keppie 11. Joel Thompson 12. Curtis Sironen 13. Jake Trbojevic 14. Cade Cust 10. Martin Taupau 15. Jack Gosiewskiย 17. Taniela Paseka
Sharks: 1. Matt Moylan 2. Sione Katoa 3. Josh Dugan 4. Jesse Ramien 5. Bryson Goodwin 6. Shaun Johnson 7. Chad Townsend 15. Braden Hamlin-Uele 9. Blayke Brailey 10. Aaron Woods 11. Briton Nikora 12. Wade Graham 13. Jack Williams 14. Toby Rudolf 8. Andrew Fifita 16. Siosifa Talakai 17. Royce Hunt
