Trial Game #1 Cronulla Sharks verse Manly Sea Eagles Saturday 7.30pm 23rd February 2019 @ SHARK PARK

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Jaws
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Just watched /listened to the NRL Stream of the game .
How good was Chad's commentary , even without poetry .
Rabbits shaking in his 80 year old boots :)
 

Wiz

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I get ya and agree. But whats the alternatives? Good #9s aren't easy to find. I'm not sure there are many in the NRL and even less on the market.

Whats the solution other than grow what we got? I think we've got two good ones they're just not there yet.

I know it’s hard.. to be honest, I can see Isaac Luke ripping it up if he came to our set-up. When fit he is easily one of the best and would suit our pack like Ennis did. We need a dominating 9, like a Hodgson or Luke. Our style bring the best out of those players. We use to bully teams into submission

But weve got cap issues and have two good youngsters we should keep, just think while the windows open we would be ALOT harder to stop
 
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https://www.nrl.com/news/2019/02/23...py-with-effort-again-talent-laden-sea-eagles/

Williams Also injured! Hopefully nothing to be concerned about.

Morris happy with effort against talent-laden Sea Eagles

Cronulla will send prop Ava Seumanufagai for scans after the Sharks strongman left the field early in the 28-22 win over Manly on Saturday night.

A second forward - Cooma product Jack Williams - is also suffering a leg injury, but the severity is yet to be determined.

"Hopefully they both have just corks. One of the main things about trials is that you want to come through them unscathed," coach John Morris said.

"I'm hoping Ava isn't a medial [ligament] so we've just got to get that scanned."

Overall, Morris was pleased with the hit-out despite the two clubs carrying different approaches into the match.

While Manly had virtually their full starting forward pack and only hooker Api Korosiau missing from their spine, Cronulla was a long way from the 17 expected to be named for the round one match against the Knights.

Newest Sharks recruit Shaun Johnson wasn't there and neither were a host of other representative players such as Matt Moylan, Paul Gallen, Andrew Fifita, Jayson Bukuya, Matt Prior or Aaron Woods. Josh Dugan is still recovering from off-season surgery.

"The side that Manly rolled out were virtually at full strength and we were a long way from it," Morris said. "But [the] conditions made it a pretty dim sort of affair."

Several heavy showers and strongly southerly winds buffeted the players and sections of the meagre crowd that turned up at Shark Park.

"I was a little disappointed with our first half," Morris said of the 18-12 score at the break.

"But they hung in well considering we only had 30 per cent of the ball. There's a lot we can improve on but there were some good signs there."

Morris was heartened to see Sione Katoa score one of the Sharks five tries after he failed to notch a four-pointer in the 20 games he played in his rookie season.

"I thought Kyle Flanagan had some nice touches and Blayke Brailey was slick out of dummy-half," he said.

That will put his brother and starting No.9 for the past two seasons, Jayden Brailey, under some pressure.

Flanagan, whose father and former Sharks coach Shane Flanagan watched in the stands, played five-eighth for the first half against Manly and then reverted to No.7 for the first 20 minutes of the second.

With Johnson expected to be Morris' starting No.6 for the opening of the new Telstra Premiership season, alongside regular No.7 Chad Townsend, it gives Morris great flexibility that Flanagan can cover both positions.

"I've made it pretty clear to Kyle that it's up to him with his performances and keep on putting his best foot forward at training, then he’ll be driving Chad and Shaun all the way."
 

Capital_Shark

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I know it’s hard.. to be honest, I can see Isaac Luke ripping it up if he came to our set-up. When fit he is easily one of the best and would suit our pack like Ennis did. We need a dominating 9, like a Hodgson or Luke. Our style bring the best out of those players. We use to bully teams into submission

But weve got cap issues and have two good youngsters we should keep, just think while the windows open we would be ALOT harder to stop

Mate if you can get Hodgson here I'm ok with losing a Brailey because he's peak and got at least 3yrs in him. Luke is 31 and had a fair bit of surgery in the off season - we'd need him to hit the ground running. Can't disagree that his type would thrive at Cronulla, he's not a **** around lad.
 

Bizzy029

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Morris was heartened to see Sione Katoa score one of the Sharks five tries after he failed to notch a four-pointer in the 20 games he played in his rookie season.
That quote by the NRL.com story is a fail.. Kotoa scored a great try last year, thankfully forward passes Dont count
 

Capital_Shark

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Not sure, but the Sharks Kotoa didn't even play 20 games did he? Injured in rd1 then barely seen again as Lee and Feki spent a majority of the time on the flanks.. With Holmes at FB..

**** no way he played 20.

Heard in the Warriors trial commentary Blake Ayshford only played 20 for us. Man it felt excruciatingly more than that.
 
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Katoa from Sharks played 9 games last year.

Katoa from the Panthers played 20 and scored zero tries.

The dumb **** searched the wrong player.
 

Sparkles

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The dumb **** searched the wrong player.

In the bright side, Sharks fans would have been heartened to see their most recent signing, Morris, score a hatrick on debut while guiding the side to a maiden victory as coach.
 

Capital_Shark

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There's no way he only played 20. Surely not.

Yep. 20 games and 4 points racked up for us. I can only remember him bombing them without a defender within spitting distance.

In the bright side, Sharks fans would have been heartened to see their most recent signing, Morris, score a hatrick on debut while guiding the side to a maiden victory as coach.

:lmao

That's funny. And then he made it worse by saying Morris was heartened. Since it wasn't true, it's doubtful Morris said anything at all.

hahaha yep just completely made up.
 

Thresher

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I didn't even realise he played 9 games. All I remember is some fat **** sitting on his face during his debut and causing him to eat through a straw for months.
 

Sparkles

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Just watched /listened to the NRL Stream of the game .
How good was Chad's commentary , even without poetry .
Rabbits shaking in his 80 year old boots :)

It's that Chad I hear via the NRL app steam?
 

bort

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Oh Margie you need to learn who the players are if you want to try and make up how the coach feels about them haha

Hope Williams is sweet, looking forward to seeing more of him
 
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