PointsBet Stadium: It is a shame they could not award three or four Paul Green Medals.
The late Green would have been somewhere above the Shire enjoying Cronulla put on a brilliant attacking show.
Nicho Hynes was excellent – again – while centre Siosifa Talakai showed some slick hands to put Ronaldo Mulitalo over for a double.
The Sharks thumped North Queensland 44-6 on Thursday night to move into second spot on the ladder.
Green, who played with the Sharks and coached the Cowboys to their only premiership in 2015, had a medal named in his honour. His family and close friends made their way to the Shire for the special night.
For the record, star Cronulla playmaker Hynes was the eventual winner.
Nicho Hynes with the family of the late Paul Green after Thursday night’s match.Credit: Getty
Green passed away last August, just a few days after he had attended a Sharks’ reunion. He was one of the last to leave the ground as he enjoyed a few beers and a chat with Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon and assistant Josh Hannay. He was only 49.
You have to wonder what ‘Greeny’ would have thought of the hip-drop tackle creeping into the game.
Cowboys backrower Jeremiah Nanai was binned and placed on report for coming down on the leg of Braden Hamlin-Uele. Referee Gerard Sutton told Nanai, “you’ve swung around and come down on his leg, it’s dangerous contact”.
The Cowboys also had big Coen Hess placed on report and binned for tripping Jesse Ramien.
Ronaldo Mulitalo dives over for a Cronulla try.Credit: Getty
Last year’s preliminary finalists were out of sorts all night. Tom Dearden and Valentine Holmes were two of the few players who had some nice touches.
Holmes wore a brutal shot from Hamlin-Uele while also dishing one out on Siona Katoa.
Things will not get easier for the Cowboys when they meet the Sydney Roosters next weekend.
They have had no luck with injuries, and the awful run continued right until the full-time whistle. Chad Townsend lasted just 50 minutes before he succumbed to a calf complaint, his replacement Tom Chester needed to be assisted from the field, while Kyle Feldt looked in discomfort with a leg injury.
Things sure are different for the Sharks who welcome back Dale Finucane next week from suspension.
Hynes is the man of the moment and was the one who injected himself into the game in the opening minutes when he ran the ball to the line and passed to Talakai to score the easiest of tries.
When Hess flattened Hynes after he had kicked, the Sharks star put his side ahead 8-0.
Hamlin-Uele charged at Holmes, got the quick play-the-ball away for Briton Nikora who kicked on the fourth tackle for Jesse Ramien to score. It was brilliant stuff.
The Sharks then muscled up in defence, pinned the Cowboys inside their own 20m before scoring the next set via Katoa.
The two second-half tries for Mulitalo were a joy to watch, and both featured Hynes and Talakai getting involved.
Talakai showed slick hands to shuffle the ball for Mulitalo on the first occasion, then tapped the ball on with his right hand without looking for the next four-pointer.
The locals loved it. The same could not be said for those tuning in from Townsville.
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