Cronulla coach Ricky Stuart has praised the courage of halfback Scott Porter after the playmaker turned out for his side’s NRL clash against Melbourne less than 24 hours after the death of his sister.

Porter’s sister Lisa, 38, died of a heart attack on Friday night, the tragedy coming just nine months after the death of his mother.

Stuart said football was the furthest thing from his mind when he went to see Porter on Saturday morning, yet left the conversation convinced the 24-year-old was ready to play against the Storm later that night, a game the Sharks went on to lose 14-10.

“I didn’t expect him to play, I went and sat down with him this morning at his (place) and with his father … I already had someone else pencilled in for the position last night when I found out the news,” Stuart said.

“But this morning when I saw the look in his eye, saw that he had a number of hours sleep and he was very committed to the cause – that he wanted to play because he thought that both his mother and sister would want that, I wasn’t going to stand in the way of that decision.

“It was always going to be Scotty’s decision.

“What that boy’s gone through over the last nine months, I hope that no-one has to go through.”

Storm skipper Cameron Smith also praised Porter’s effort in playing, saying every Melbourne player made sure they passed on their condolences after the match.

“We were a little bit unsure as to whether he was going to play – we were probably leaning towards the side of him not playing,” Smith said.

“But it was a great effort by him to turn up and it obviously shows how much this club means to him and his passion for his jersey and his teammates.

“It was a tremendous effort to turn up tonight.”

© AAP 2012

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