Latest news with #Trindall
The Age
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Is Nicho Hynes struggling or just a convenient scapegoat?
The statistics support Gallen's view, suggesting Hynes has been at worst pretty good, without approaching the dominance he displayed in 2022 when he won the Dally M Medal as the game's best player. On face value, it could be argued that, in terms of handling the ball, running and kicking, Hynes' output has been gradually decreasing since that spectacular first season in the Shire, after arriving from Melbourne. But no player in the NRL has produced more line-break assists this year than Hynes (20), while his try-assists tally (13) is only two fewer than category leader Cameron Munster. Perhaps it is a case of less is more, but also what should be factored in are the halves partners Hynes has played alongside. In his first two seasons with the Sharks, his main sidekick was the enigmatic Matt Moylan, who was quite content to play second fiddle and allow Hynes to run the show. Since Moylan's departure at the end of the 2023 season, Braydon Trindall has established himself as Cronulla's five-eighth, despite the claims of St George-Illawarra-bound Daniel Atkinson. And while Trindall wears the No.6 jersey he inherited from Moylan, his combination with Hynes is more of a 50-50 split. During the past two seasons, Trindall has handled the ball on average 48 times a game, compared to Hynes' 58. But in terms of kicking, it's clear that Trindall has become Cronulla's first option. This season Trindall leads the NRL for 40-20s (three) and field goals (two), is third on the list for attacking kicks (103) and sixth overall for metres gained from kicks. His grubbers have also forced opponents to make nine goal line dropouts, compared to one from Hynes. Moreover, Trindall has delivered 12 try assists, only one fewer than Hynes. That's 25 in tandem, the same number as Munster and Jahrome Hughes have produced for Melbourne, and one fewer than pacesetters Isaiya Katoa and Kodi Nikorima have conjured up for the Dolphins. In other words, is it too simplistic to judge Hynes by his numbers? Has the 29-year-old simply evolved and taken a step back so that the Sharks can get maximum value from Trindall? Would we be looking at them differently if they swapped numbers on their jerseys? Sharks enforcer Addin Fonua-Blake argued this week that any blame for the loss in Brisbane should be collectively shared. 'I think it's not right that Nicho wears all the punishment and all the pressure is on his shoulders,' Fonua-Blake said. 'I'm on the field, too, and I let us down on the weekend. I'll wear that. I'm pretty sure that of the 17 blokes who took the field, 17 of us would put our hands up and say we weren't good enough. 'Nicho – unrightfully so – has been the easy scapegoat over a few years, but it's on all of us to put our hands up. 'Nicho is not the only one to keep making errors and missing tackles. We've just got to get around each other – and we have – and build for a tough Storm team this week.' Gallen was of a similar view, arguing that while Hynes had some moments against Brisbane 'that weren't great', the Sharks made 13 errors and conceded seven penalties, which invited the Broncos back into the contest. 'It's just the fundamental errors,' Gallen said. 'Silly penalties. That's the issue for them. 'The difference between their best game and their worst game is too far at the moment. They've just got to narrow that gap.' Loading Gallen had no doubt his former club, which has banked eight wins this season (only four teams have more), will be involved at the business end of the season. And when they get there, Hynes' experience, cool head and class will be invaluable. 'They're still where they need to be,' he said. 'On their day, they can beat anyone, and they've shown that.
Sydney Morning Herald
5 days ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Is Nicho Hynes struggling or just a convenient scapegoat?
The statistics support Gallen's view, suggesting Hynes has been at worst pretty good, without approaching the dominance he displayed in 2022 when he won the Dally M Medal as the game's best player. On face value, it could be argued that, in terms of handling the ball, running and kicking, Hynes' output has been gradually decreasing since that spectacular first season in the Shire, after arriving from Melbourne. But no player in the NRL has produced more line-break assists this year than Hynes (20), while his try-assists tally (13) is only two fewer than category leader Cameron Munster. Perhaps it is a case of less is more, but also what should be factored in are the halves partners Hynes has played alongside. In his first two seasons with the Sharks, his main sidekick was the enigmatic Matt Moylan, who was quite content to play second fiddle and allow Hynes to run the show. Since Moylan's departure at the end of the 2023 season, Braydon Trindall has established himself as Cronulla's five-eighth, despite the claims of St George-Illawarra-bound Daniel Atkinson. And while Trindall wears the No.6 jersey he inherited from Moylan, his combination with Hynes is more of a 50-50 split. During the past two seasons, Trindall has handled the ball on average 48 times a game, compared to Hynes' 58. But in terms of kicking, it's clear that Trindall has become Cronulla's first option. This season Trindall leads the NRL for 40-20s (three) and field goals (two), is third on the list for attacking kicks (103) and sixth overall for metres gained from kicks. His grubbers have also forced opponents to make nine goal line dropouts, compared to one from Hynes. Moreover, Trindall has delivered 12 try assists, only one fewer than Hynes. That's 25 in tandem, the same number as Munster and Jahrome Hughes have produced for Melbourne, and one fewer than pacesetters Isaiya Katoa and Kodi Nikorima have conjured up for the Dolphins. In other words, is it too simplistic to judge Hynes by his numbers? Has the 29-year-old simply evolved and taken a step back so that the Sharks can get maximum value from Trindall? Would we be looking at them differently if they swapped numbers on their jerseys? Sharks enforcer Addin Fonua-Blake argued this week that any blame for the loss in Brisbane should be collectively shared. 'I think it's not right that Nicho wears all the punishment and all the pressure is on his shoulders,' Fonua-Blake said. 'I'm on the field, too, and I let us down on the weekend. I'll wear that. I'm pretty sure that of the 17 blokes who took the field, 17 of us would put our hands up and say we weren't good enough. 'Nicho – unrightfully so – has been the easy scapegoat over a few years, but it's on all of us to put our hands up. 'Nicho is not the only one to keep making errors and missing tackles. We've just got to get around each other – and we have – and build for a tough Storm team this week.' Gallen was of a similar view, arguing that while Hynes had some moments against Brisbane 'that weren't great', the Sharks made 13 errors and conceded seven penalties, which invited the Broncos back into the contest. 'It's just the fundamental errors,' Gallen said. 'Silly penalties. That's the issue for them. 'The difference between their best game and their worst game is too far at the moment. They've just got to narrow that gap.' Loading Gallen had no doubt his former club, which has banked eight wins this season (only four teams have more), will be involved at the business end of the season. And when they get there, Hynes' experience, cool head and class will be invaluable. 'They're still where they need to be,' he said. 'On their day, they can beat anyone, and they've shown that.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Trindall puts Sharks' season on track in crucial win
Braydon Trindall has helped put Cronulla's NRL season back on track, unleashing 10 minutes of torment on St George Illawarra to inspire a 30-18 come-from-behind win. Off the back of two straight losses and after trailing at halftime, Cronulla went from 18-6 down to 22-18 up between the 47th and 57th minutes on Thursday night. The hosts then did enough to hold on for victory at Shark Park, making it 10 in a row against their arch-rivals and keeping the Sharks fifth on the ladder. Trindall's kicking was at the centre of it all, while the Cronulla five-eighth also scored a double in the victory. Blayke Brailey was among the Sharks' best with his running out of dummy-half, while Sione Katoa bagged a double in the win. The winger's last try to seal the match will also go down as one of the best of the year. With the Dragons down 24-18 with five minutes to play, five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia chipped ahead and went to toe the ball on again. But Katoa slid along the ground to catch the ball goalkeeper-style, before gathering his feet and sprinting 60 metres to score. Katoa races away! 🏁#NRLSharksDragons Telstra Moment of the Match — NRL (@NRL) June 12, 2025 The result makes it two losses in a row for the Dragons, with Shane Flanagan's men now 12th and at risk of sliding further south this weekend. For the Sharks, this was a desperately needed win. Beaten by an undermanned Sydney Roosters in Gosford and travelling Warriors in their past two matches, Cronulla travel to Brisbane and Melbourne in the next fortnight. "It's too big of a picture to look at it like that," Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said. "We're where we're at, we haven't performed for a couple of weeks. Even the result today was irrelevant. "It was the performance that was needed. "We needed to see what we want to be and do. We just needed to play like the Sharks, that was the most important thing out of tonight." Cronulla looked at their best with Brailey running out of dummy-half, and the hooker laid on the Sharks' first when he sent Trindall over early. But after that, the Sharks defence began to break. Dragons veteran Damien Cook turned back the clock for one try and King-Togia beat four defenders for another. And when Jack de Belin went over with Sharks centre Jesse Ramien in the sin-bin for a professional foul it was 18-6. Then after the break Cronulla's forwards started to get a roll on, the wind picked up and Trindall chose his moments to terrorise the Dragons. The five-eighth first put Briton Nikora over with a short ball, before staying alive to score from one of his own bombs after Clint Gutherson and Tyrell Sloan failed to defuse it. The go-ahead try then came when Nathan Lawson dropped Trindall's next bomb, and Katoa skipped to the outside of Dragons centre Moses Suli from the scrum to score. "They ran a little harder in the second half, got good field position and all their kicks were contestable," Flanagan said. "You have to make them kick long, and they were all contestable kicks. And we didn't handle the kicks. "There's 12 points, there's the game off two kicks." The only concern for Cronulla came in the form of a calf injury for Mawene Hiroti, just a week after fellow centre KL Iro was ruled out for two months with a pectoral tear.
The Advertiser
12-06-2025
- Sport
- The Advertiser
Trindall puts Sharks' season on track in crucial win
Braydon Trindall has helped put Cronulla's NRL season back on track, unleashing 10 minutes of torment on St George Illawarra to inspire a 30-18 come-from-behind win. Off the back of two straight losses and after trailing at halftime, Cronulla went from 18-6 down to 22-18 up between the 47th and 57th minutes on Thursday night. The hosts then did enough to hold on for victory at Shark Park, making it 10 in a row against their arch-rivals and keeping the Sharks fifth on the ladder. Trindall's kicking was at the centre of it all, while the Cronulla five-eighth also scored a double in the victory. Blayke Brailey was among the Sharks' best with his running out of dummy-half, while Sione Katoa bagged a double in the win. The winger's last try to seal the match will also go down as one of the best of the year. With the Dragons down 24-18 with five minutes to play, five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia chipped ahead and went to toe the ball on again. But Katoa slid along the ground to catch the ball goalkeeper-style, before gathering his feet and sprinting 60 metres to score. The result makes it two losses in a row for the Dragons, with Shane Flanagan's men now 12th and at risk of sliding further south this weekend. For the Sharks, this was a desperately needed win. Beaten by an undermanned Sydney Roosters in Gosford and travelling Warriors in their past two matches, Cronulla travel to Brisbane and Melbourne in the next fortnight. "It's too big of a picture to look at it like that," Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said. "We're where we're at, we haven't performed for a couple of weeks. Even the result today was irrelevant. "It was the performance that was needed. "We needed to see what we want to be and do. We just needed to play like the Sharks, that was the most important thing out of tonight." Cronulla looked at their best with Brailey running out of dummy-half, and the hooker laid on the Sharks' first when he sent Trindall over early. But after that, the Sharks defence began to break. Dragons veteran Damien Cook turned back the clock for one try and King-Togia beat four defenders for another. And when Jack de Belin went over with Sharks centre Jesse Ramien in the sin-bin for a professional foul it was 18-6. Then after the break Cronulla's forwards started to get a roll on, the wind picked up and Trindall chose his moments to terrorise the Dragons. The five-eighth first put Briton Nikora over with a short ball, before staying alive to score from one of his own bombs after Clint Gutherson and Tyrell Sloan failed to defuse it. The go-ahead try then came when Nathan Lawson dropped Trindall's next bomb, and Katoa skipped to the outside of Dragons centre Moses Suli from the scrum to score. "They ran a little harder in the second half, got good field position and all their kicks were contestable," Flanagan said. "You have to make them kick long, and they were all contestable kicks. And we didn't handle the kicks. "There's 12 points, there's the game off two kicks." The only concern for Cronulla came in the form of a calf injury for Mawene Hiroti, just a week after fellow centre KL Iro was ruled out for two months with a pectoral tear. Braydon Trindall has helped put Cronulla's NRL season back on track, unleashing 10 minutes of torment on St George Illawarra to inspire a 30-18 come-from-behind win. Off the back of two straight losses and after trailing at halftime, Cronulla went from 18-6 down to 22-18 up between the 47th and 57th minutes on Thursday night. The hosts then did enough to hold on for victory at Shark Park, making it 10 in a row against their arch-rivals and keeping the Sharks fifth on the ladder. Trindall's kicking was at the centre of it all, while the Cronulla five-eighth also scored a double in the victory. Blayke Brailey was among the Sharks' best with his running out of dummy-half, while Sione Katoa bagged a double in the win. The winger's last try to seal the match will also go down as one of the best of the year. With the Dragons down 24-18 with five minutes to play, five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia chipped ahead and went to toe the ball on again. But Katoa slid along the ground to catch the ball goalkeeper-style, before gathering his feet and sprinting 60 metres to score. The result makes it two losses in a row for the Dragons, with Shane Flanagan's men now 12th and at risk of sliding further south this weekend. For the Sharks, this was a desperately needed win. Beaten by an undermanned Sydney Roosters in Gosford and travelling Warriors in their past two matches, Cronulla travel to Brisbane and Melbourne in the next fortnight. "It's too big of a picture to look at it like that," Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said. "We're where we're at, we haven't performed for a couple of weeks. Even the result today was irrelevant. "It was the performance that was needed. "We needed to see what we want to be and do. We just needed to play like the Sharks, that was the most important thing out of tonight." Cronulla looked at their best with Brailey running out of dummy-half, and the hooker laid on the Sharks' first when he sent Trindall over early. But after that, the Sharks defence began to break. Dragons veteran Damien Cook turned back the clock for one try and King-Togia beat four defenders for another. And when Jack de Belin went over with Sharks centre Jesse Ramien in the sin-bin for a professional foul it was 18-6. Then after the break Cronulla's forwards started to get a roll on, the wind picked up and Trindall chose his moments to terrorise the Dragons. The five-eighth first put Briton Nikora over with a short ball, before staying alive to score from one of his own bombs after Clint Gutherson and Tyrell Sloan failed to defuse it. The go-ahead try then came when Nathan Lawson dropped Trindall's next bomb, and Katoa skipped to the outside of Dragons centre Moses Suli from the scrum to score. "They ran a little harder in the second half, got good field position and all their kicks were contestable," Flanagan said. "You have to make them kick long, and they were all contestable kicks. And we didn't handle the kicks. "There's 12 points, there's the game off two kicks." The only concern for Cronulla came in the form of a calf injury for Mawene Hiroti, just a week after fellow centre KL Iro was ruled out for two months with a pectoral tear. Braydon Trindall has helped put Cronulla's NRL season back on track, unleashing 10 minutes of torment on St George Illawarra to inspire a 30-18 come-from-behind win. Off the back of two straight losses and after trailing at halftime, Cronulla went from 18-6 down to 22-18 up between the 47th and 57th minutes on Thursday night. The hosts then did enough to hold on for victory at Shark Park, making it 10 in a row against their arch-rivals and keeping the Sharks fifth on the ladder. Trindall's kicking was at the centre of it all, while the Cronulla five-eighth also scored a double in the victory. Blayke Brailey was among the Sharks' best with his running out of dummy-half, while Sione Katoa bagged a double in the win. The winger's last try to seal the match will also go down as one of the best of the year. With the Dragons down 24-18 with five minutes to play, five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia chipped ahead and went to toe the ball on again. But Katoa slid along the ground to catch the ball goalkeeper-style, before gathering his feet and sprinting 60 metres to score. The result makes it two losses in a row for the Dragons, with Shane Flanagan's men now 12th and at risk of sliding further south this weekend. For the Sharks, this was a desperately needed win. Beaten by an undermanned Sydney Roosters in Gosford and travelling Warriors in their past two matches, Cronulla travel to Brisbane and Melbourne in the next fortnight. "It's too big of a picture to look at it like that," Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said. "We're where we're at, we haven't performed for a couple of weeks. Even the result today was irrelevant. "It was the performance that was needed. "We needed to see what we want to be and do. We just needed to play like the Sharks, that was the most important thing out of tonight." Cronulla looked at their best with Brailey running out of dummy-half, and the hooker laid on the Sharks' first when he sent Trindall over early. But after that, the Sharks defence began to break. Dragons veteran Damien Cook turned back the clock for one try and King-Togia beat four defenders for another. And when Jack de Belin went over with Sharks centre Jesse Ramien in the sin-bin for a professional foul it was 18-6. Then after the break Cronulla's forwards started to get a roll on, the wind picked up and Trindall chose his moments to terrorise the Dragons. The five-eighth first put Briton Nikora over with a short ball, before staying alive to score from one of his own bombs after Clint Gutherson and Tyrell Sloan failed to defuse it. The go-ahead try then came when Nathan Lawson dropped Trindall's next bomb, and Katoa skipped to the outside of Dragons centre Moses Suli from the scrum to score. "They ran a little harder in the second half, got good field position and all their kicks were contestable," Flanagan said. "You have to make them kick long, and they were all contestable kicks. And we didn't handle the kicks. "There's 12 points, there's the game off two kicks." The only concern for Cronulla came in the form of a calf injury for Mawene Hiroti, just a week after fellow centre KL Iro was ruled out for two months with a pectoral tear.
7NEWS
12-06-2025
- Sport
- 7NEWS
Sharks' season back on track after 10 minutes of torment secures win over St George Illawarra
Braydon Trindall has helped put Cronulla's NRL season back on track, unleashing 10 minutes of torment on St George Illawarra's back three to help the Sharks come from behind and win 30-18. Off the back of two straight losses and after trailing at halftime, Cronulla went from 18-6 down to 22-18 up between the 47th and 57th minutes on Thursday night. The hosts then did enough to hold on for victory at Shark Park, making it 10 in a row against their arch-rivals and keeping the Sharks fifth on the ladder. Trindall scored a double and kicked superbly in the win, while Blayke Brailey was back to his running ways out of dummy-half early in the game. Their Sharks teammate Sione Katoa produced one of the tries of the year with a brilliant effort that proved the match clincher. With the Dragons down 24-18 with five minutes to play, five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia chipped ahead and went to toe the ball on again. But Katoa slid along the ground to catch the ball goalkeeper-style, before gathering his feet and sprinting 60 metres to score. The result makes it two losses in a row for the Dragons, with Shane Flanagan's men now 12th and at risk of sliding further south this weekend. For Cronulla, this was a desperately needed win. Beaten by an undermanned Sydney Roosters and the Warriors in the Shire in their past two matches, Cronulla travel to Brisbane and Melbourne in the next fortnight. Things started well with Brailey running out of dummy-half, and the hooker bust through the middle to send Trindall over for his first. But after that, it was all the Dragons before the break. Damien Cook turned back the clock for one try and King-Togia beat four defenders for another. And when Jack de Belin went over with Sharks centre Jesse Ramien in the sin-bin for a professional foul it was 18-6. Then it was left for Trindall to revive the Sharks in the second half. The five-eighth put Briton Nikora over with a short ball, before staying alive to score from one of his own bombs after Clint Gutherson and Tyrell Sloan failed to defuse it. The go-ahead try then came when Nathan Lawson dropped Trindall's next bomb, and Sione Katoa skipped to the outside of Dragons centre Moses Suli from the scrum to score. The only concern for Cronulla came in the form of a knee injury for Mawene Hiroti, just a week after fellow centre KL Iro was ruled out for two months with a pectoral tear.
