Wentworthville Magpies Vs Cronulla Sharks
Ringrose Park, Sunday, June 12
Kick-off: 3.00pm
Referee: Chris Sutton
Broadcast: NSWRL Match of the Round to be aired on Fox Sports 2 HD and Fox Sports 2, Wednesday, June 15, 4.30pm
Broadcast: 2CCRfm 90.5FM (Link available via
www.nswrl.com.au’s Weekend Game-Cast)
Summary: The table topping Sharks head over to Ringrose Park to face a Wentworthville side that needs to start posting consecutive wins following a sequence of win/loss/win/loss in recent weeks. Like several of the other top sides in the NSW Cup, the Sharks have been affected by injury and losses caused by origin commitments of late yet they have managed to come out of it relatively unscathed thus far courtesy of a good win against the Dogs and also having had the bye recently. Wentworthville will be ruing the one that got away last week after leading the Jets for the majority of the match and were presented with numerous opportunities to have finished the Jets off in the second half only to squander their lead and ultimately head home empty handed. Much has been made of the big names that are pulling on the Wenty jumper at present but as most would know it doesn’t always guarantee instant results. The Sharks get back the likes of Johnny Mannah and Nathan Stapleton who both played NRL last week and also have the services of Troy Thompson, Jake Hawkins and Robbie Rochow courtesy of their partnership with the Storm.
Game Breaker: Stewart Mills – A player who made his NRL debut amidst much fan fare, Mills has recently pledged his immediate future to Sharks after re-signing with the club for a further two years. A shire local that is a strong ball runner with deceptive speed and footwork, Mills clash here with Chris Hicks will be a key clash.
Prediction: This Wentworthville side appears strong on paper and should be all the better for last week’s hit out, but with that said the Sharks are coming first for a reason and they must be favoured in what should be a close encounter either way.
