Cronulla have been stunned on home soil by the Dolphins, with a missed conversion from Nicho Hynes after the siren allowing the visitors to hold on for a 30-28 win.
Wayne Bennett‘s men got off to a red-hot start as the likes of Herbie Farnworth and Jake Averillo capitalising on some lazy defence, pushing them out to a 22-0 lead.
There were similar early concerns for the Sharks as their last game at PointsBet Stadium, which saw them blown off the park by the Panthers.
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“They are a little bit shell-shocked here the Sharks,” Phil Gould said on Nine.
“They look very sluggish. They look like someone has hit them with a baseball bat, they’ve got this stunned look on their face. Dolphins are just doing everything quicker.”
However, two quick tries to Royce Hunt and Briton Nikora before the break put the hosts back into the contest as fans were left in awe of an attack-heavy 40 minutes.
“It’s been crazy stuff, six tries in the first half,” Gould said.
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It was all Cronulla after half-time as they took the lead for the first time in the match, before a blistering long-range try from Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow blew the game apart.
After catching the ball on his own 10-metre line, the scintillating fullback beat a host of Sharks defenders, before brushing off Will Kennedy in a magical moment.
“This is why kids fall in love with footballers,” Gould said.
“This is just astonishing. Kennedy gets to him and Hamiso does exactly what Kennedy did to him at the other end of the field moments ago.”
The match still had plenty of wrinkles left in it after Hynes gave away a crucial escort penalty, allowing Jamayne Isaako to put the Dolphins six points clear.
The hosts had one last roll of the dice with less than a minute to go, as Nikora continued his impressive individual effort to set up Sione Katoa for a try in the corner.
But in devastating fashion, Hynes missed the sideline conversion that would have sent the game to golden-point and the Dolphins were left to celebrate a two-point win.
Given his struggles in the State of Origin series opener and pressure mounting on him to retain his spot in the halves, Hynes had a mixed night against the Dolphins and Cronulla’s defeat will likely weigh heavily on the mind of coach Michael Maguire.
NSW selectors are expected to name their side for game two on Sunday night.