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Wounded Broncos crash to Sharks
by Dan Koch
Sunday June 06, 2004
A dominant second half display has helped the Cronulla Sharks overcome
Brisbane 30-22 in front of 26 691 at Suncorp Stadium.
Trailing 16-8 at the half-time break the visitors held off an early attacking raid by the Broncos before answering with a four-pointer of their own through centre Ryan McGoldrick who sprinted over after a lovely interchange of passes with outside man David Simmons.
Brisbane continued to blow their chances with the ball, turning over possession time and again when a try appeared to be a mere formality. First Brent Tate and then Michael De Vere spilled the ball with the tryline beckoning and the Sharks made them pay.
A 40-20 by halfback Brett Kimmorley put the Sharks in perfect position and a short ball from David Peachey allowed Sam Isemonger to steam over to put Cronulla in front for the first time in the match.
A 76th minute try to winger Nathan Merritt sealed the win for Stuart Raper’s men, with a late four-pointer to Petero Civinoceva giving the scoreboard greater respectability for the home side.
The news only got worse for the Broncos, with Test pair Brent Tate (Shoulder) and Shaun Berrigan (hamstring) both taken from the field with what appeared to be serious injuries, while fill-in hooker Ben Ikin did not take any further part in the match after being knocked unconscious in the 21st minute.
The win sees Cronulla jump into the top eight for the first time this season, while next weekend’s bye should ensure Brisbane remain in the competition’s all-important top four.
The ensuing disaster would not have been predicted by any onlooker early on as Brisbane started magnificently, with big props Civoniceva and Shane Webcke dominating their rivals allowing the likes of Casey McGuire and the returning Darren Lockyer to push the Sharks out wide.
The early pressure paid off for Wayne Bennett’s men with Craig Frawley pouncing on a dropped ball by Peachey to open Brisbane’s account after six minutes.
The Broncos extended their lead five minutes later when a barnstorming Tonie Carroll sliced through the Sharks thanks to a beautiful ball from McGuire, with De Vere’s second conversion giving the home side a 12-0 advantage.
The Sharks hit back in the 20th minute when Frawley was unable to grab a Kimmorley cross-field bomb, with Peachey capitalizing to score out wide.
The visitors edged closer still when Simmons finished off some lovely work by the outside backs. However, Kimmorley’s inability to convert either try looked as though it may come back to haunt the Sharks when De Vere slotted two late penalty goals to give Brisbane a comfortable 16-8 lead at the break.
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