Cronulla Sharks v North Queensland Cowboys player ratings, Nicho Hynes, Braydon Trindall, Tom Dearden Reuben Cotter #adessonews

The Sharks produced their best opening 40 minutes in a final to finally break their September drought and beat the Cowboys 26-18.

Cronulla halfback Nicho Hynes was under huge pressure coming into the game and staring down the barrel of a 0-4 finals record at the club, but he did his job.

However, it was his halves partner Braydon Trindall who lit up Allianz Stadium with the best performance of his career.

The Cowboys worked hard, with co-captins Reuben Cotter and Tom Dearden in the thick of the action, but they couldn’t overcome a horror start that saw them trail 24-0.

Here are the player ratings from both sides.

SHARKS

1. William Kennedy – 7

Let the first bomb bounce and it almost cost his side. Made a try-saving ankle tap on Scott Drinkwater in the second half and finished with 146 run metres from 19 carries that produced one linebreak.

2. Sione Katoa – 7.5

A great bat back set up his side’s third try. Dropped a bomb in the second half that allowed the Cowboys to score and get back in the game but ran for a game-high 187 metres from 20 carries that produced five tackle busts.

22. Jesse Ramien – 6.5

Coughed up a play-the-ball in the first 10 minutes but threw a sensational flick pass out the back door for Braydon Trindall to score later in the half. Ran for 121 metres from 19 carries and came up with some decent shots in defence but also missed six tackles.

4. Kayal Iro – 7

Strong defence early forced a knock on but on the ensuing set he gave it back with an unnecessary offload in one of three errors. Set up a try on the stroke of halftime and finished with 142 metres from 21 carries and made 20 tackles. Solid shift from a young fella.

5. Ronaldo Mulitalo – 7.5

Great chase and bat back which led to the Sharks’ second try. Bombed a try when he couldn’t find his inside man in the 25th minute. Scored on the stroke of halftime and finished with 180 metres from 18 carries that produced six tackle busts.

6. Braydon Trindall – 9

Produced the best 40 minutes of his career in the first half. Threw a nice flick out the back to keep the ball alive on the fifth and it put Cameron McInnes over for the second try. Hit Ronaldo with a beautiful cut-out pass that should have led to a try but the winger cooked it. Trindall put a bomb up that he followed to score a sensational try in the corner. He simply kicked the Cowboys to death in the first half.

7. Nicho Hynes – 7

Got crunched out of dummyhalf early but definitely came to play this week. Made a try-saving tackle early on Val Holmes and trapped Kyle Feldt in the in-goal which led to the Sharks’ fourth try on the stroke of halftime. Set up one try and made 23 tackles but missed five.

8. Toby Rudolf – 8.5

Huge shift from the front-rower who worked his backside off all night. Ran for 142 metres from just 15 carries and made 25 tackles while missing just two.

9. Blayke Brailey – 7.5

Typical shift from the Sharks workhorse who made 41 tackles and stayed busy out of dummyhalf.

10. Oregon Kaufusi – 6

Got through his work but didn’t leave his mark on the contest.

11. Briton Nikora – 7

Worked hard and made 35 tackles while missing just three but also finished with three errors to his name. Ran for 89 metres from 12 carries that produced six tackle busts.

12. Teig Wilton – 7

Stayed busy with 30 tackles and 116 run metres from 14 carries but also made two errors.

13. Cameron McInnes – 8

Scored the second try of the match where he had plenty of work to do to get over the line. It came after chasing hard and staying alive on the fifth tackle. Finished with 114 metes from 16 carries and made 21 tackles while missing just one.

BENCH

3. Siosifa Talakai – 6.5

Got shifted to the bench late and only saw 16 minutes of action but made them count. Produced five tackle busts from his four carries and made 39 metres.

15. Jack Williams – 7

Ran for 80 metres from 10 carries and made 18 tackles without a miss.

16. Royce Hunt – 6.5

Tried to inject himself into the game but never really hit his stride. Only four runs for 36 metres but they did produce four tackle busts.

17. Thomas Hazelton – 6.5

Gave away a sloppy offside penalty shortly after coming on but finished with 96 metres from 12 carries and made 12 tackles without a miss in his 30 minutes.

COWBOYS

1. Scott Drinkwater – 6

Not his best night. Let one bounce that saw Kyle Feldt get caught in the in-goal and it led to a try. Made a try-saving tackle in the second half while the game was still in the balance but also threw a huge forward pass.

2. Kyle Feldt – 5.5

Got outleapt by Ronaldo Multialo which led to the Sharks’ second try. But responded well on the next set with a big hit on Kayal Iro. A poor defensive read almost let a try in the first half but he was bailed out by some desperate defence from Jake Clifford. Did his calf in the second half.

3. Valentine Holmes – 8

Great footwork early almost saw him score the opener and then he did it again after the break to cross for the first try of the second half. Made some important tackles and then bagged his second in the 69th minute. Almost single-handedly kept his side in the game. Finished with 140 metres from 16 carries but injured his leg in the dying minutes.

4. Viliami Vailea – 6

Coughed the ball up early but made up for on the ensuing set to force a turnover. Finished with 108 metres from 16 carries.

5. Murray Taulagi – 6

Beaten in the air which led to the Sharks’ third try. Ran for 127 from 16 carries.

6. Tom Dearden – 7

Dropped one after throwing a dummy and taking on the line on the Cowboys’ first real attacking chance in the 28th minute. Backed up a bomb well to set up a try in the second half to get this side back in the game. Also made some big defensive plays on his own line.

7. Jake Clifford – 6.5

Bounced back from an early loose carry early and stopped a try in the second half when he got a finger to the ball with some desperate defence. Great one-on-one steal to get his side back on the attack in the first half. Made 27 tackles.

8. Jordan McLean – 6

Got through his work without standing out. Made 23 tackles and missed four. Ran for 48 metres from seven carries.

9. Reece Robson – 7

Made a whopping 52 tackles but missed five and made two errors. Ran for 80 metres from five carries that produced three tackle busts and a linebreak.

10. Jason Taumalolo – 6

Couldn’t back up his huge performance last week. Made 20 tackles but missed six and only ran for 78 metres from 10 carries.

11. Heilum Luki – 7.5

Ran hard early and fixed his lines from last week that were getting his side into trouble. Made 45 tackles and missed just two, while also running for 87 metres from 12 carries.

12. Jeremiah Nanai – 6.5

Cleaned up his defence after missing eight tackles last week and made 28 without a miss. But couldn’t fire a shot in attack, running for just 18 metres from three carries.

13. Reuben Cotter – 7

Tackled Braydon Trindall which gave away a penalty try which opened the scoring. Put it behind him to score a try in the second half after backing up well. Made 41 tackles with four misses and ran for 94 metres from 11 carries.

BENCH

14. Sam McIntyre – 7.5

Big shift off the bench that produced 101 metres from 12 carries and 29 tackles.

15. Harrison Edwards – 6.5

Did his job with 17 tackles and just one miss while also taking three runs for 20 metres.

16. Kulikefu Finefeuiaki – 6

Got through his work, ran for 74 metres from seven carries and made 11 tackles.

17. Griffin Neame – 7

Saved a try in the second half to keep his side in the game and made 20 tackles while missing just two. Ran for 77 metres from 10 carries.