With the withdrawal of Nicho Hynes confirmed, the Sharks head to Newcastle minus their key playmaker but with a ready-made replacement for the crucial clash with Knights.
In a game where the winner potentially secures a top six finish and a home semi-final, the experienced Matt Moylan slots into the Sharks side in place of Hynes for the Sunday afternoon showdown at a sold-out McDonald Jones Stadium.
While not ideal after the Hynes-Braydon Trindall combination has produced three successive wins, coach Craig Fitzgibbon has every faith in Moylan’s ability to get the job done tomorrow afternoon.
“Cohesion, particularly in the spine, is really important, we changed going back probably six week or so ago and it takes a bit of time to get used to,” Fitzgibbon explained.
“But it helps they (Trindall-Moylan) have played together before, they were together at the start of the season, Moyza is really comfortable with how we play and knows his role really well, so were thankful a player of his quality can step in and do a job for us there.”
As for Hynes, a quad injury will see him miss this week’s game, with indications that the issue isn’t a serious one and he is likely to be available for his team’s last round game against Canberra.
“At this stage of the season it’s a risky ball game to throw him out there, with a bit more time we might have been able to do that, but its not worth pushing at this stage of the season,” Fitzgibbon said of the Hynes injury.
The unavailability of Hynes comes as the Knights also announced their number seven in Jackson Hastings is also out of a match between the fifth placed Sharks and a Knight’s side one spot behind.
While the result will have a major impact on finishing positions, so to the final round match's, with the Knights to finish their season with a trip to Kogarah to face the Dragons, the Sharks hosting the Raiders at home on Sunday.
Due to the congestion on the NRL ladder, both the Sharks, currently fifth on 32 points, and the Knights seventh and one point behind them, can still make the top four, and while highly unlikely, they could also fall out of the eight with two losses if other results went against them.
The Sharks +130 differential makes it hard for them to miss the finals regardless of the last two match results, while a win or draw by either side in this match will guarantee a place in the Finals and a likely finish inside the top six.
As the numbers would indicate, the game is shaping to be an exciting attacking contest, with the Sharks ranked first for points scored (589), the Knights are fourth (562), while as far as try scoring goes, just one four pointer separates the two, with Newcastle having crossed for 102 tries to be second amongst all NRL teams. The Sharks are third with 101.
The Sharks are averaging 26.8 points per game this season, equalling their highest tally from back in 2002.
In the head-to-head statistics for games played between the two clubs, Newcastle holds a slight advantage with 31 wins, as compared to 27 from the Sharks, with one match drawn.
Amongst those 27 wins the Sharks inflicted the Knights heaviest ever home defeat, an 11 try, 62-0 thumping back in 2016.
In more recent times, the Sharks have won 11 of the past 15 games against the Knights, including the last three games by margins of at least 18 points. At McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle the Knights have won three of the past four.
The teams faced each other earlier in the season in a match played in Coffs Harbour, with the Sharks holding the Knights to their lowest points total of the season in a 26–6 win.
And while the Sharks come into the contest on the back of three victories, the Knights are also in outstanding form, having won seven straight, their longest streak since winning a club record 11 in a row in 2001-02.
Included in their seven wins are victories in the past four at home, with their record eight of 11 overall at McDonald Jones in 2023.
Away from PointsBet Stadium, the Sharks have been successful in eight of 13 matches this year,
In player statistics, Ronaldo Mulitalo with 19 tries in 2023 trails only Valentine Holmes (22 in 2018) for most tries in a season for the Sharks.
In other team news, with the withdrawal of Hynes, the Sharks have retained Jesse Colquhoun, Kayal Iro and Mawene Hiroti in their 19-man squad, with coach Fitzgibbon yet to determine whether to play four forwards on his interchange bench or to opt for the utility value of Hiroti or Iro and their ability to cover a number of backline positions.
The Sharks v Newcastle game is scheduled for a 4.05pm kick off at McDonald Jones Stadium, with the two 19-man squads listed below.
Match: Knights v Sharks
Round 26 -
home Team
Knights
away Team
Sharks
Team Lists
Backs
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Fullback for Knights is number 1 Kalyn PongaFullback for Sharks is number 1 Connor Tracey
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Winger for Knights is number 2 Dominic YoungWinger for Sharks is number 2 Sione Katoa
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Centre for Knights is number 3 Dane GagaiCentre for Sharks is number 3 Jesse Ramien
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Centre for Knights is number 4 Bradman BestCentre for Sharks is number 4 Siosifa Talakai
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Winger for Knights is number 5 Greg MarzhewWinger for Sharks is number 5 Ronaldo Mulitalo
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Five-Eighth for Knights is number 6 Tyson GambleFive-Eighth for Sharks is number 17 Matt Moylan
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Halfback for Knights is number 20 Adam CluneHalfback for Sharks is number 6 Braydon Trindall
Forwards
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Prop for Knights is number 8 Jacob SaifitiProp for Sharks is number 8 Toby Rudolf
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Hooker for Knights is number 9 Phoenix CrosslandHooker for Sharks is number 9 Blayke Brailey
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Prop for Knights is number 10 Leo ThompsonProp for Sharks is number 10 Braden Hamlin-Uele
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2nd Row for Knights is number 11 Tyson Frizell2nd Row for Sharks is number 11 Briton Nikora
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2nd Row for Knights is number 18 Dylan Lucas2nd Row for Sharks is number 12 Wade Graham
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Lock for Knights is number 13 Adam ElliottLock for Sharks is number 13 Cameron McInnes
Interchange
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Interchange for Knights is number 15 Daniel SaifitiInterchange for Sharks is number 14 Jack Williams
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Interchange for Knights is number 16 Jack HetheringtonInterchange for Sharks is number 15 Royce Hunt
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Interchange for Knights is number 17 Mat CrokerInterchange for Sharks is number 16 Thomas Hazelton
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Interchange for Knights is number 22 Fa'amanu BrownInterchange for Sharks is number 18 Jesse Colquhoun
Reserves
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Replacement for Knights is number 21 Brodie JonesReplacement for Sharks is number 19 Mawene Hiroti
Match Officials
- Referee: Ashley Klein
- Touch Judge: Belinda Sharpe
- Senior Review Official: Grant Atkins
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