CANBERRA RAIDERS 12 CRONULLA SHARKS 32
CALLUM WALKER, GIO Stadium, Saturday

NICHO HYNES inspired Cronulla to stun Minor Premiership winners Canberra and set up a semi-final date with Melbourne.

Hynes registered 16 points as the Sharks turned on the style to notch three unanswered second-half tries and bring an early end to what had been an impressive Canberra season.

The debate before kick-off had centred around Ethan Strange, with the Raiders halfback struck down by illness, leaving head coach Ricky Stuart with a playmaker conundrum.

Simi Sasagi was the man chosen to fill in for Strange, whilst Tom Hazelton was a late inclusion for the Sharks, replacing Oregon Kaufusi on the bench.

There was nothing to choose between the two sides in the opening quarter, with the fixture showing every hallmark of a finals clash.

However, it was the Raiders that looked the most likely to strike first – Savelio Tamale almost did just that on 12 minutes, but he was adjudged to have used a double movement after burrowing over from dummy-half.

Make no mistake, though, it was the hosts with the momentum, and a great Tom Starling pass gave Corey Horsburgh just enough space to force his way through four defenders. Jamal Fogarty converted for a 6-0 lead.

The Green Machine held onto that lead until the Sharks hit the hosts with two tries in two minutes to make it 12-6 at the break.

First, Hynes delivered a superb cut-out pass for Ronaldo Mulitalo to sweep round and score, before Hynes himself dotted down after KL Iro had made a stunning break. Two Hynes conversions and the visitors had turned things around in the blink of an eye.

But whatever Ricky Stuart said at half-time to his Canberra chargers worked and the hosts restored parity six minutes into the second half.

Having to take the pressure of being Strange’s replacement, Sasagi delivered with aplomb, weaving his way through lacklustre Cronulla defence only for play to be brought back for an obstruction.

Canberra weren’t to be denied moments later, however, and Tamale got his four-pointer by taking a Sebastian Kris offload to cross in the corner. Fogarty’s expertly converted from the touchline.

Incredibly, that was as good as it got for the Raiders, Billy Burns restoring the Sharks’ lead with a strong run seven minutes later.

And 18-12 became 20-12 with the hour in sight as Blayke Brailey was caught high sniping around the ruck and Hynes stepped up with his ever-reliable boot.

The Raiders now had to score twice to win, but it mattered little as the Sharks turned the screw, Iro taking advantage of a devastating Hynes bomb that caused confusion in the Canberra ranks to dive over.

A remarkable piece of skill then saw the visitors’ lead inflate to 20 points. A confused Teig Wilton took the ball on the last tackle, grubbered through and grounded – much to the shock of the Raiders’ defence and even his own teammates.

Hynes kept up his perfect kicking record and a mouthwatering clash with Melbourne now awaits Cronulla.

GAMESTAR: Nicho Hynes registered 16 points and was influential throughout.

GAMEBREAKER: KL Iro’s try just after the hour ensured Canberra had to score three times to win.

MATCHFACTS
RAIDERS
1 Kaeo Weekes
2 Savelio Tamale
3 Matt Timoko
4 Sebastian Kris
5 Jed Stuart
15 Simi Sasagi
7 Jamal Fogarty
8 Josh Papalii
9 Tom Starling
10 Joseph Tapine
11 Hudson Young
12 Zac Hosking
13 Corey Horsburgh
Subs (all used)
14 Owen Pattie
16 Morgan Smithies
17 Ata Mariota
18 Matty Nicholson

Tries: Horsburgh (23), Tamale (46)
Goals: Fogarty 2/2

SHARKS
1 Will Kennedy
2 Sione Katoa
3 Jesse Ramien
4 KL Iro
5 Ronaldo Mulitalo
6 Braydon Trindall
7 Nicho Hynes
8 Addin Fonua-Blake
9 Blayke Brailey
10 Toby Rudolf
11 Billy Burns
12 Teig Wilton
13 Jesse Colquhoun
Subs (all used)
14 Briton Nikora
15 Siosifa Talakai
17 Braden Hamlin-Uele
21 Tom Hazelton

Tries: Mulitalo (35), Hynes (38), Burns (53), Iro (63), Wilton (74)
Goals: Hynes 6/6

SCORING SEQUENCE: 6-0, 6-6, 6-12; 12-12, 12-18, 12-20, 12-26, 12-32

Rugby Leaguer & League Express Men of the Match
Raiders: Hudson Young; Sharks: Nicho Hynes

Penalty count: 8-6
Half-time: 6-12
Referee: Grant Atkins
Attendance: 24,322