The Cronulla Sharks have hung on in a nailbiter to beat the Penrith Panthers in the first NRL semi-final, with the finals series continuing to deliver high-quality games. Here are my talking points.
The Sharks now face the Storm, and they love it
If there is one team who actually likes travelling to Melbourne, it’s the Sharks.
When it comes to controlling the ruck and middle third of the field, as well as tempo of a footy game, few teams do it as well as the Storm, with Cameron Smith and their all-conquering forward pack leading the way.
One of the teams who can match them, and have proven they can match them just a month ago, are the Sharks.
They love getting into a scrap, something they have to fight their way out of and grind to a win. Going to Melbourne is going to provide exactly that opportunity for the Sharks, who will need to make the most of their opportunities and defend like their life depends on it.
The task is made a lot tougher by Wade Graham being out, and if Paul Gallen and Luke Lewis join him after shoulder and ankle injuries respectively, it’ll be curtains. If they can put up a strong forward pack and even stronger performance though, going blow for blow with the Storm, this could be a game for the ages.
James Maloney loses the battle to Matt Moylan
It was somewhat ironic that the first finals meeting between two clubs who entered the competition in the same year and have been rivals ever since had two players who effectively swapped clubs during the pre-season on either side last night.
Matt Moylan, while being patchy at times this year, including in last week’s loss to the Panthers, was brilliant last night.
Matthew Moylan of the Sharks catches the ball. (Photo by Brett Hemmings/Getty Images)
It may well have been the best game of his career. Certainly the best he has played this year, as he stood up the Panthers and their management who dumped him out the back door in favour of Maloney at the end of last year.
Moylan’s kicking game, management of the contest and everything in between earnt him what should be man of the match honours in a performance for the ages.
Maloney, on the other hand, had a shocker.
It was almost like he got caught up in the moment trying to do too much. Right from the moment he gave away a dumb penalty to make it 8-0 and struggled in defence early on, you knew it was going to be a long night for the New South Wales origin half.
How good is Valentine Holmes?
Apart from that one moment where Holmes refused to boot a ball into row Z leading to the Panthers’ first try, he had a blinder of a game, helping the Sharks into their commanding position at halftime and then doing nearly everything right during the second half for them to hang onto it.
Holmes came up with a try of his own, was involved in the lead-up play to others and had many strong runs from fullback, as well as being generally pretty safe in defence.
What was more impressive was some of the support play he popped up with at times.
I’ve been critical previously of Holmes’ ability to play fullback. Earlier in the season, he looked like he should have been moved back to the wing, but the last two months have seen a changing of the guard for the Sharks back.
The Panthers need more experience to be a force in 2019
The Panthers have an incredibly young team. Taking out James Maloney, they have few other players with enough experience in the biggest matches to be a genuine force at this time of year.
The rest of their spine last night was Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Nathan Cleary and Sione Katoa, with Cleary 20 and the other pair 23. Trent Merrin and James Tamou can bring plenty, but the rest of the side are grossly under experienced.
Nathan Cleary of the Panthers (Photo by Brett Hemmings/Getty Images)
Reagan Campbell-Gillard might be a player with Origin experience, but he is only 25. Waqa Blake made critical errors last night, but is only 23, while Isaah Yeo is the same age.
They don’t have the mix of experience and youth to win a premiership. They have the latter in abundance, and when Maloney goes off the boil like he did last night, it makes it impossible for Penrith to have a calming influence who can remind them of what they do well, what plays to go to in the crunch times and then to actually execute them.
The last five minutes of the game sum this point up.
They looked lost. Whereas, without so much pressure on, Penrith have just continued to try and pile up the points through tries during the season, they opted to chase a field goal last night.
It was to no avail, and their second last set with the ball was maybe the most confused, ugly set of six dished up all season.
If they are going to be a force in 2019, experience will be the key. It might be a little on the late side to add that to their roster now, but it’s something to keep in mind.
No Graham, almost plenty of worries
The loss of Wade Graham to an ACL injury seemed to be one of the big problems for Cronulla coming into their semi-final last night, but for the first 40 minutes at least, it didn’t seem to worry the Sharks a great deal.
The Sharks left edge was just as good as it has always been, with Kurt Capewell doing a splendid job and Matt Moylan shaking off the demons which got to him during the loss last week.
While Moylan was quiet last week, he proved himself as more than capable against his old club.
The big problems came during the second half, and while it wasn’t all the blame on Graham’s usual left edge, they badly missed his impact and influence. A third kicking option may have worked wonders at different times throughout the game, as would his passing and running.
Graham is a complete player, and his loss will be felt in Melbourne next week.
The Sharks got out with a win this time, but they need a complete 80-minute performance next week.
Wade Graham was important in the Sharks’ 2016 premiership win, and will be missed this time around (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)
If it’s possible for Jayden Brailey to play 80 minutes, he needs to
During the Sharks premiership run in 2016, the man who brought the club together and ensured they were able to gel in attack was Michael Ennis.
When he departed the club in 2017 and headed off into retirement and a gig with Fox Sports, it was clear the Sharks were going to experience some growing pains, so pivotal was the role of the cagey veteran playing the number nine role.
Brailey has come on in leaps and bounds since then and is one of the games brightest young prospects.
It’s rare you’d be pinning a 22-year-old as the key to a premiership, but Brailey playing big minutes isn’t far away from what the Sharks need to be successful, particularly against Melbourne.
He might get a lesson next week against Cameron Smith, but the Sharks looked like a shell of their former selves when James Segeyaro came onto the field last night and played the dummy half role.
Of course, other injuries to Paul Gallen and eventually, Luke Lewis, might have come into play, but the service out of dummy half and decision making just wasn’t at the same level.
If Brailey is fit enough and can handle increased minutes, now is the time for Shane Flanagan to throw them his way.
Roarers, what did you make of the game? Drop a comment below and let us know.
DP Schaefer
Roar Rookie
Doesn't need worry about position, looking or anything if his team mates talk. I've played the game, soccer too and team mates calling 'time', 'man coming/on', 'out', or similar help manage the danger. Dufty ran a ball out too early in their Semi and he needed someone talking as well. Don't these guys talk??
Albo
Roar Rookie
Yeah Baz ! Totally agree on the number 9. Katoa is an awful dummy half and Wayde Egan should have been given that role a few weeks ago. And as for Kikau, I am not sure what the answer is , he definitely plays much better in the 2nd half of matches. Whether he is coasting early or just more effective as players tire , I am not sure ? Similarly agree with RCG. I think a lot of the players performances are being mucked about via the interchange rule and not getting their roles right >
Albo
Roar Rookie
BA, we will never agree on the Maloney / Moylan deal. In the end, at least for this year I can see the Sharks going just one more game better than the Panthers into the finals series ! The difference mainly is to do with finishing 4th rather than 5th. I had gotten off the Storm a couple of weeks back after tipping them to go back to back most of the year. But after getting lucky against Souths last week, and now facing a likely battered Sharks at home, well, I want to change my mind and get on them again !
Albo
Roar Rookie
Geoff , we both know how it feels when your team fails to live up to the potential they obviously have. There are inherent flaws in the Panthers game that need to be addressed before they can be real premiership contenders. They have to get their spine right and develop a real on-field game manager. The hope was Maloney would be the one, but he is just too flawed to be the consistent game manager they need.
Hopefull
Guest
If the Panther’s won..that would be like saying you only have too be good half of the time... a whole season of half’s?? The big dance deserve’s better..
Penrith Punter
Roar Guru
Penrith improving in the second half up front definitely had to do with Lewis and Gal going off Renegade... but their main improvement was going from a 50% completion rate in the first half to 85% or so in the second. So in that sense, Penrith are a quality side when they get the fundamentals right. It's very frustrating for fans such as myself who know what they are capable of and yet they continue to make silly mistakes.
Wayne Turner
Guest
Holmes is one of the best wingers in the comp. He is one dimensional at fullback ie: In attack great. But,his fullback defense is very suspect,often drops a high kick,and that try he allowed Cleary to score was shocking fullback play.
BA Sports
Roar Guru
Bad luck Albo. I agree on Katoa. I was watching him closely throughout the game because I am a wrap on Egan (like you are I think). He makes a lot of poor decisions and his decision making is slow. Kikau is an odd creature. The Sharks first try; as bad as Maloney was rushing up past the ball, Kikau was way behind his inside man which made Maloney's move look even worse. I think Kikau's reads in defence and pace off the line get masked because it is easy (and often legit) to focus on Maloney. The Sharks second try annoyed me. Capewell clearly gets under the bomb, doesn't contest it and prevents Crichton from a play at it. It should never have been allowed. Moylan obviously had a good game but he actually made more errors and missed more tackles. Still even I can't say he was out played by Maloney. The Panthers still did the right thing. Without Maloney, they don't make the finals, without Moylan the Sharks still make the Finals. The game was entertaining but I walked away less than impressed by both sides. I can't see the Sharks beating the Storm with that sort of output.
Nick Symonds
Guest
The crowd of 19,211 was less than half the 45,000 seat capacity of Allianz Stadium for a semi final between two Sydney teams. Compare that to 90,152 for the semi final between the Demons and Hawks at the MCG on the same night. I'm glad the NSW government are spending $700 million to knock the old stadium down and build a new one with the same number of 45,000 seats. I'm sure the crowds will come back when they see the new gold plated cup holders.
Bernie Vinson
Roar Rookie
Of course from the 63 minute mark Penrith get 2 cheap penalties to Sharks none which help Panthers back into game and nice forward pass by Penrith in last minute when they are behind again. Klein has 4 metre offside line last week and still gets a game this week because maybe of the close finish. He 'll get the GF but I'm sure Sutton/Cummins will put on a good show tonight.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
Commiserations Albo. The Panthers were very close to pulling off what looked an unlikely win at half time. But then again they've been like that for most of the season. They've been able to come back against some of the weaker and flakier sides in the last 20 minutes and pull of miracle wins (and I'll throw my Raiders in with that group) but it was never going to happen against a tough professional outfit like the Sharks - and that's the way it turned out. I like watching the Panthers play - they are entertaining and have some great attacking weapons with players such as DWZ, Mansour, Peachey, Blake, Kikau and RCG etc - but they need to get out of that mindset that 15 minutes of ad lib touch footy is going to somehow rescue them each week. The Panthers have done well to get where they did given the loss of Edwards and Wallace as well as Cleary during the first half of the season.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
Good luck next week Renegade - you'll probably need it. But if any team can get up in the Storm's face and make them earn a win its the Sharks. If Gallen, Lewis and Dugan don't come up in time Flanagan will have to come up with a plan to shut down the Storm's scoring weapons. Your going to have to turn up the intensity to the max to have any chance and keep it up for 80 minutes. You've got Aaron Woods who can start rather than coming off the bench, Jesse Ramien is a great fill in for Dugan but I'm not sure how you can replace Lewis and Graham. I've been pretty impressed with Edrick Lee this season. Poor bugger virtually lost the Raiders the prelim final against the Storm a couple of years ago with a couple of dropped balls near the try line - and the Raiders let him go in the aftermath - but he's been pretty reliable for the Sharks from what I've seen of him this season.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
Ha - now that I'd love to see. Maybe with gorgeous George Burgess in hot dispute - golden locks flowing in the breeze - and Graham just falling over the line before he collapses with exhaustion. Will be interesting to see if the Dragons can push the Rabbitohs tonight. They must have got some confidence after demolishing the Broncos last week and the Rabbitohs may be unsettled after this sexting scandal. Funny how the incident happened in May and the story has only just been broken by the media.
damo
Guest
All credit to Gallen who was a clear winner in the psychological battle on behalf of the Sharks- Maloney fairly well not at the races & Moylan playing better than expected without Graham beside him (not to mention Gallen having a great game until injury intervened). I'm no fortune teller but I picked an upset Panthers win by 1 if the kept the Sharks below a 24 point lead before making their usual coneback & they nearly did it. All the back & forth about the loss of Graham & the actual positive stats without him looked spot on, they really looked like they could use him but managed to get the job done anyway. Hopefully Gallen & Lewis are right for next week because their absence could turn a classic into a routine win for the Storm. Dugan is obviously a good player but I wonder if the Sharks would have their time again in signing him now that they are losing Ramien?
Renegade
Roar Guru
I tend to agree Geoff... any further injury to add to Wade and Dugan... and the sharks face a mammoth uphill battle next week. If everyone from last night can back up, then they are still a chance and to be honest they are the only team that could beat Melbourne in Melbourne next week under the circumstances...will be heavy underdogs though.
Renegade
Roar Guru
Agree Scott, they did take their foot off thinking the job was done but they are a far better side than the Panthers was my point. It was clear last week when watching the four finals, the difference in quality between the top 4 clashes and bottom 4 was immense.... sharks should have put Penrith away and yes they took the foot off but the injuries had an impact too - scoreline was flattering for Penrith and a good wake up call for the sharks, they need to be much better next week.
Raj
Guest
Should the stadium money be spent on suburban grounds? Tiny crowd for an all Sydney final
souvalis
Roar Rookie
Townsend and Val seem to be on the same plane of improvement...beginning of the year Val was hooked from the back and before a ball was kicked Flanno went hard for Mitchell Pearce..both had reasons to be kicking rocks..then Origin came and went and the Sharks suddenly had two immensely different players who kept on getting better...Townsend went from consistently average to usually good and Val from a bungle a game to the most dangerous and the new lynch pin of the side..
Busty McCracken
Guest
Absolutely , I agree. He has a very long way to go but those efforts I mentioned show he has the right attitude and I'll always back someone that displays that trait. With time he could be special. He's still a kid after all.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Completely agree about the need for a quality hooker. I don't think the loss of Wallace has been talked about enough since he hung up the boots - it's certainly something I've forgotten about too much in these pages that's for sure. Interesting point about Kikau. Maybe he just needs an extra 5 minutes on either side of halftime? Make it a 25-30 minute break instead of 15. He is too valuable to have on the bench at the start of games for mine Baz. Agree about RCG. I wrote about him in my preview. Everyone talked so highly of him last week, but really, eight runs across the game isn't enough. He had some solid carries and was busy early on last night, but made some errors. I've always liked Townsend. Really solid player. What I most like about him generally is his patience in attack. He needs that and plenty of it next week.