Those who appreciate symmetry in all of life’s aspects might have desired the Cronulla Sharks to wait until next season to win the NRL Grand Final, which would have made it a nice half-century sort of thing, but to others who care nothing for universal balance, 49 years was the exact right amount of time.
It was indeed a cracker, just as the AFL Grand Final the day previous had been and when the dust settled and with the issue decided, The Sharks were the saviours of New South Wales pride with a 14 – 12 win over the Melbourne Storm.
It was a nail biter throughout. The Sharks took an 8 – 0 lead into halftime following a textbook set play from the scrum that concluded with a score by Ben Barba.
The remained stuck on that number, however, and saw the Storm out in front 12 – 4 with 10 minutes left.
Enter the Sharks’ saviour in the guise of Andrew Fifita, who scored a try for the tie, followed by James Maloney’s addition of the extras to generate euphoria for Sydney and all of New South Wales.
The Clive Churchill meal for best on ground went to Sharks backrower Luke Lewis.
