The Gold Coast Titans have scored a valuable upset win on the road, knocking off the reigning premiers by four points.
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Final score
Cronulla Sharks 12
Gold Coast Titans 16
Defence has been the order of the day for the Cronulla Sharks and they will be out to keep that going when they host the injury-ravaged Gold Coast Titans, who could have Jarryd Hayne back. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 7:30pm (AEST).
The Sharks have hit their straps as defending premiers in the last fortnight, not conceding a try during a grinding win over the Melbourne Storm, or the following domination of the Penrith Panthers.
If you’re a Sharks fan, it’s the Panthers game you want to focus on as they stifled the the attack of their opponents, putting in their own best performance of the year with the ball in hand.
After indifferent form to start the year, and looking like a side who were going to be battling for a lower spot in the eight, they have suddenly catapulted into the top four with five wins from their seven games and look like the side they were last year.
Even without Michael Ennis, Jayden Brailey is starting to stand up as the replacement and in the last fortnight at least, their pack has looked as dominant as ever.
While there are still question marks over Cronulla, the last two weeks have been as positive as it gets, with James Maloney and Chad Townsend both doing a stellar job. A stable side with no changes will also help their preparation for this clash.
On the other end of the stick, there hasn’t been a side who have worked harder for less luck than the Titans this year. While some of their stars are starting to come back into the fold, they had up to $4 million worth of talent on the sidelines against the Raiders a few weeks ago.
Unfortunately, this is a result driven business and effort can only get you so far. The weight of injuries are starting to catch up with the Gold Coast, and they find themselves down the bottom of the ladder with just a single win to their name.
Last week, they held the lead into the dying seconds against the Broncos, but a charge down put paid to their hopes of a victory on what turned out to be the last play of the game.
Don’t be surprised if we get another close game here. The Sharks are defending like there is no tomorrow, but the key will be Ashley Taylor and Kane Elgey. The pair have been in strong form for the Gold Coast, and if they can both play a strong game, it will take the visitors a long way towards a victory.
Prediction
This is a gut feeling more than anything. The Sharks may not be quite as up for this one and it’s a danger game. The Titans are overdue for a win as well, with or without Hayne. Luck turns eventually.
Titans by 2.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of this match from 7:30pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
Renegade
Roar Guru
Great game of footy. I must say, I've got a soft spot for the Titans.... they always compete no matter who they play or the circumstances. So I wasn't overly confident knowing they had a full strength side tonight... they deserved the win and actually competed with the Sharks better than any other side has this year - cronulla might have been a little flatter than the last two weeks but they weren't off their game tonight. The Titans actually broke the line a few times too... so well deserved win and good game of footy. Sharkies will no doubt bounce back strongly and id say the Titans will start winning and find themselves in the 8 before the origin period ends.
Cugel
Roar Rookie
Bah, ruined my multi.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
We were giving Sarginson a bake at half time - quite rightly - but he lifted his game in the second half. Great team effort across the park by the Titans.
Mike
Guest
Credit to the Titans, such a tough team to play. Sharks should have won this, they just needed to produce one more try and it probably would have been enough. They needed to make an interchange for Brailey to increase their ruck speed around 50-60 minutes it probably would have been the difference. Then again, Bukuya went down so they were short on players. For Titan players, Hurrell, Hayne and Pulu played well and their team defence was solid.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Yep - hats off Scott - I think Tim picked the Titans as well - gutsy call. Didn't think anyone could beat the Sharks they way they played in the past two weeks. You both deserve two points for that pick.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Ceers Doogs, Yeah the Titans are a long way from being out of the run to the finals, and I wrote as much in my talking points last Monday. Sharks were a little flat, have to agree but their defence was still rushing the Titans, charging off the line and being aggressive, so it's not as if they were way off their game. Pulu is a great player for the Titans. He deserved his tries tonight - worked hard.
doogs
Guest
Don had a cracker. What a play to get back in the field. I thought he was having a laugh when he started running across but he knew what he wanted to do.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Cheers danwain! Ha, most were shooting me down for tipping the Titans during the week!
danwain
Guest
Great call Scott, decent prediction too mate!
doogs
Guest
Great call Scott. Titans have been decimated this season with injuries and it has been mentioned this week that with players coming back they can still make finals. Sharks were a little flat. I thought Fifita was good. Hard man to stop. Hayne just adds another dimension to any team. He does things that others only dream of. Congrats to Pulu and his two tries.
Scott Pryde
Expert
» Click here to read the full match report Thanks for joining me this evening on The Roar for our live coverage of the 2017 NRL Season as the Gold Coast Titans pulled off their second victory of the season over the Cronulla Sharks. Hopefully you enjoyed the call. That's it from me this round, but the round continues at 4pm (AEST) tomorrow as the Canterbury Bulldogs take on the Wests Tigers. Bye for now.
Joe
Roar Rookie
Brilliant win by the Titans! What a gutsy team. Just love the way they fight to the end. Finally get some troops back and now looking like a top eight team with that experience back. Great game.
Scott Pryde
Expert
It's impossible not to like the Titans. They just go and go and go. Never say die attitude.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Absolutely - fantastic game of footy.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thoughts on the game Roarers?
Kc
Guest
What a game
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Amazing effort by the Titans. Gee they have some ticker. All played well but Hayne was inspirational. Anthony Don - what an effort to get back out into play. Easily my second favourite team the Titans. They could go on a roll now with a few players back. There have been some wonderful games this weekend - the Raiders/Manly game goes into extra time, Broncs just manage to win with a late field goal and the Titans scoring the winning try with 3 minutes to go. Got to love rugby league. It seems anyone can win on the day if they have the right attitude. I've been a bit of a critic of Hayne as underachieving but jeez he was good tonight.
Scott Pryde
Expert
FULLTIME The Sharks come right off the scrum and Greenwood makes a good tackle on Holmes before they come over halfway through Graham. They spread right through Bird and he looks to offload to Capewell who drops it! That's it! The Titans win! What an upset! What effort from the Titans. They just fight and fight and fight, and with that, pick up their second win of the season. Cronulla Sharks 12 Gold Coast Titans 16
Scott Pryde
Expert
80' - Wallace with a run through the middle before Don and Taylor go through the middle. Proctor goes inside 10 of halfway and on the last play and Taylor smokes the grubber out of play past Feki. Sharks race into pack the scrum with 38 seconds to go. They have 70 metres to run. Sharks 12 Titans 16
Scott Pryde
Expert
79' - The short kick-off wins the Sharks back the ball here with the Titans knocking on and they go on a raid down the left hand side, with Leutele hit in a last ditch tackle. Prior comes back into the middle on the third before Fifita winds up and almost gets over. Maloney with a grubber and Don with an absolutely remarkable play to get it back into the field of play! Wow! Sharks 12 Titans 16