With a gritty second half defensive effort the NYC Sharks have escaped with an 18-16 win over the Gold Coast Titans.
A win which makes it two from two over the Titans this season and what was also their second victory in succession, the Sharks fought back from an early deficit, got their noses in front and refused to buckle under plenty of pressure in the second half.
A much-needed win, the two points also see the under-20 Sharks continue their climb off the bottom of the Holden Cup ladder.
The match began with the Titans well and truly on top, two tries in the opening 15 minutes seeing them jump out to an early 10-0 advantage.
From that point however there was a momentum shift, with Titans taking their foot off the pedal and the Sharks lifted their intensity.
Quickly striking back Josh Addo-Carr crossed after running onto an inside pass from skipper Anthony Moraitis and when Ryan Cummins converted it was 10-6 Titans.
Shortly after the Sharks were in again, this time hooker Jayden Brailey slid over and when Cummins was again on target it was 12-10 to the Cronulla side.
The Sharks would add a third try before the break when prop Tepatasi Fuivava won a goal-line scramble for the ball and Cronulla led 18-10 at half time.
The second half then turned into somewhat of a dour affair, with defense winning out over the attack of both teams.
Eventually however the Gold Coast did manage to score with 15 minutes of the match remaining, making it 18-16 Sharks, setting up an exciting finale.
Sometimes their own worst enemies with errors inviting their opponents into their end of the field, the Sharks however repelled a series of Titans raids in registering their fourth win of the 2015 season.
SHARKS 18
Josh Addo-Carr, Jayden Brailey, Tepatasi Fuivava tries, Ryan Cummins 3 goals
beat
TITANS 16
