Round 6
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 26 d. Canberra Raiders 0

2007 NRL Telstra Premiership Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

Location: Aus_NZ > National > First Grade Competition: NRL Telstra Premiership

Pomeroy crosses for hat-trick as Sharks hold Raiders to zero
Sun April 22, 2007
Source: www.sharks.com.au

In another outstanding defensive performance the Sharks have held their opponents to nil in recording their third win of the 2007 season.

The Sharks dominated proceedings almost from the opening whistle, scoring four tries, three of those to centre Ben Pomeroy, in a 26-0 victory over the Canberra Raiders.
Assistant coach Shane Flanagan, who was in charge of the Sharks preparations this week in the absence of Kangaroos coach Ricky Stuart, was pleased to finally front a post-match press conference as a winner.

"When we were at the Roosters and Ricky was in origin camp, I was none-for-three," Flanagan said. "So I'm pretty happy to be one-and-three after this week.

"Our defence was great tonight. Canberra probably would have liked to throw more at us in attack, but you only have to defend what's in front of you and we did that pretty well," he said.

While the 26 point victory was a convincing one, the Sharks could, and probably should, have won by an even greater margin. Even before they had registered their first points two chances were squandered, the first when Fraser Anderson failed to capitalise when Canberra threw a loose pass near their own goal line, before a second try went begging when Ben Pomeroy had the ball knocked from his grasp only metres from the try line.

However it still didn't take long after that for the Sharks to open their account, when they again exploited a weakness down the left hand side of the Raiders defence. The ball was sent Pomeroy's way again and this time he wouldn't be denied as he stepped past the fullback in a 25-metre burst to record the first points of the night. Covell converted and after 15 minutes of play the Sharks led 6-0.

The Sharks next scoring play was all about Pomeroy again, with the Sharks centre making a 50-metre run after taking an intercept, putting the Sharks into an attacking position deep in Canberra territory. Three plays later Kimmorley cross kicked with Covell jumping over his opposite Colin Best before batting the ball back inside for Pomeroy to cross for his second try of the night.

Not long after it was third time lucky for Pomeroy, but this time his try came as a result of a bit of good fortune. Pushing through close to the Raiders line Greg Bird flicked back a one-handed off-load which bounced off a Canberra defender, with Pomeroy in the right place at the right time, picking up the loose ball and diving over wide out. Covell's kick from near touch was again picture-perfect and the Sharks had jumped out to an 18-0 advantage.

After defending three sets of six on their own line in the minutes leading into half time, the Sharks managed to hold firm and took their three-converted try lead to the half time break.

The second stanza started with the Sharks building on the lead, this time through hooker Isaac De Gois. Running from dummy half, De Gois showed good strength to brush past three tacklers and slam the ball down adjacent to the posts. Covell kicked the extra points and it was the 24-0 to the Sharks.

A Covell penalty goal in the 55th minute made it 26-0 and despite having the better of the field position for the remainder of the match, the Sharks weren't able to add to their tally.

While Pomeroy rightly received plenty of accolades for his performance, also playing strongly for the Sharks were the usual suspects in Lance Thompson, Greg Bird and Paul Gallen, while Ben Ross had possibly his best game since returning from an off-season knee reconstruction.

Brett Kimmorley was again inspirational at halfback, while Adam Dykes did some good things in his first game in almost a month.

On the injury front, the Sharks are likely to be without Phil Leuluai for a couple of weeks after the big front rower dislocated a shoulder. Medical staff thought the dislocation to not be too serious, with Leulaui hopeful of being back on the field in around a month.

Paul Gallen also left the field in the opening minutes of the second half with an injury to the ankle which has troubled him earlier in the season, however it was believed to be just a bump rather than any type of ligament damage.

In the lower grades, the Sharks enjoyed similar success, with both the Jersey Flegg and Premier League teams victorious.

In the Premier League, a field goal three minutes from full time from Josh Hannay saw the Sharks scrape home 5-4 in dour struggle. Hannay provided all the points for the Sharks, also crossing for a first half four pointer, while Misi Taulapapa, Sitaleki Timani and Henry Perenara were strong for the winners.

In the Jersey Flegg, the Sharks finally found some form after a series of frustrating losses, keeping the Canberra side scoreless in their 22-0 victory. Reece Robinson went over for three tries for the Sharks.

It was an impressive afternoon and evening in all three grades, especially on the defensive side of the ledger, with the Sharks conceding just four points in three matches.

Next week the Sharks travel to Newcastle for a game against the Knights. That match will be played at Energy Australia Stadium on Monday night.

Report source: www.sharks.com.au

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