Flagship Episode with Sam Shinazzi and Josh Bolling (19/3/25)

[00:00:19] Hey there, welcome to SharkCast Pod, a podcast dedicated to the greatest sporting club in the history of the world, the mighty Cronulla Sutherland Sharks. The show as always is brought to you by Dyson Logistics, the Royal Motor Yacht Club in Port Hacking and Jason Hawes at Cripps & Cripps

[00:00:44] Real Estate. I am Sam Shinazzi, OG2015. On the other end of the line is the great, great friend of the show, long time friend and long time contributor. He is a Sharks analyst, he knows this club, back to front, he is a massive NRL guy like all you guys and girls and he has his ear to the ground, finger on the pulse. Josh Bolling, how you going my man? Very good mate, first real catch up since Vegas, had a

[00:01:12] really good time over there with yourself and all the boys and good to get back home and get a win on the board and can't wait for this weekend. We're just glad you made it back in one piece, that's what we're all grateful for and the win on the weekend just was the icing on the cake. We will tell you that you can follow us on all of the social medias that are around at SharkCast Pod, give us a follow on YouTube, that would be a massive help and we have a website,

[00:01:41] sharkcast.com.au where you can kind of do everything you want from that website. So if you're not into social media much, that'd be the next best place to go, if not the best place anyway. Josh, we are here to talk about all things Cronus Sharks. The Sharkies win 36 points to TWORB in Townsville. In opening two rounds they've scored a lot of points, their second most points since 1990,

[00:02:06] which is fantastic and defensively not going too bad either. Pretty comprehensive win from my perspective, stats, they just went nuts. Our performance, they went pretty good I thought and I thought a thoroughly deserved win, especially given the fact that half the team had influenza, the other half had COVID, barely any training done. To travel again quite a distance in the extreme heat and wet conditions,

[00:02:34] I thought it was a pretty good effort. Yeah, I mean I think in hindsight with all the knowledge that we have now after the game, really impressive. There's probably like a 25 minute period there just before halftime and just after halftime that I was a little disappointed in. I thought we were a little flat to finish and start those halves. With the context of what was going on, it totally makes sense, plus the heat and the humidity up there, I think it was about 80%. Said a lot about the boys in the

[00:03:01] offseason that they've had, I think, about how fit they are and to not have any training this early in the season when it's going. I think it's really impressive. And besides that little 20 minute period, I thought we were really strong. We looked really slick in attack, I thought at times. Not the whole time. I think we probably left about three tries out there, but to come away not playing great, being sick, being hot and put on 32 points or 36 points, it's pretty comprehensive.

[00:03:29] Yeah, I completely agree. Who stood out for you as far as best on ground? I know it's hard to sometimes do this with such a great team effort and our team in particular last few years. It's just like a team all around effort, but who stood out for you? I had Kale Iro as my man of the match. I thought he was excellent. His carries were a lot stronger than I think the previous week. I found he was quite containable the week before,

[00:03:56] but the Cowboys could not handle him. I thought every time he ran the ball, he looked damaging, scored two great tries, defensively shut down a few plays like one-on-one, just like an all-round perfect center's performance. And his center partner in Jesse Ramian wasn't far behind. I thought both defenses will be really strong. And Kale is just, you know, you always get worried about that second year syndrome, whether that exists or not,

[00:04:21] you know, having established himself if he wasn't going to work as hard. And he's just disproven that immediately for me. I thought he was excellent. Yeah, I spoke to him yesterday at Shark Stadium, and you can hear that on the episode before this. And what it really cemented for me was he is just such a cool, calm guy to talk with. And then, you know, he talked about a few experiences overseas and that kind of thing. And

[00:04:47] just his general, his general manner. There is, I have zero concerns with this guy as a footballer. And it's not to say I have a lot of concerns with many of them. And I don't really sit around and think about that kind of thing. But when I interact with him and then I see him play, it's the same kind of thing. There's no on or off. Obviously he gets more aggressive, he gets more competitive, more athletic, but it's that same mentality where I'm going to take care

[00:05:13] of business. I'm not going to be overly flash about it. I think that there is a lot more to this guy to come on the field. I agree with you. I thought he was one of our best again. He's had two good weeks. He's going to be hard to contain. And I think our centers are pretty underrated and I don't really care about that, but you know, Rami is going pretty good as well. So to have both sides with that strike power, that's not something we've always had. That's not something that every team has either to have two

[00:05:40] good centers. That's pretty cool. I mean, between them, they had 18 tackle bus. I mean, Iro had 12 alone. Like I probably had about four from the first try score when he beat half the side, but it's the strength and the hit and stick that I love about them. When they, if they read defensive plays, when they, when they shoot out, they tend to get it right and they, they don't miss the mark. And they, once they hit, there's not like an offload or they don't get a pass away

[00:06:06] to like, to put the winger through. And the only thing I would like to see Iro put into his game is probably just a pass. I'd love to see him just get like a little tip on or, you know, when he makes that break to, to put his winger away or he's inside me. And I think that's probably the only thing I would not, it's not a criticism at all because he's, he can do it. But I think that's where I really like to see his game develop just another step to become elite. What did you make of the halves? Both halves were busy at different times of the game. What did you make of the halves?

[00:06:36] I think this is the thing I'm looking forward to the most in our halves is that one of them tends to step up if the other one is struggling or not as engaged in the game. Because I thought Tricky is probably his, probably his worst game in, you know, the last 10 games he's played. He's been pretty outstanding for the last, you know, two to three months he played. Anyway, he was, he was a bit off. You could see he was a little flustered. He might be, well, he might've been one of the ones that was sick. And I really loved that Nico stepped up and took more control. And I think that was

[00:07:04] probably Nico's best game, you know, pre-injury. I thought he was really strong. He had a bit more presence about him. Kicking game was a lot better. He found the grass a few times, kicking, you know, he loves to kick from that short side and he was hooking it back across and finding space. He ran the ball a few times and he was really close to punching his way through, set up, you know, just that footy knowledge, just getting out straight away and running straight. He went,

[00:07:32] you could see him without even thinking he started gliding right, just to know that Sam was probably going to be there. And I think it'll do him a world of confidence, give him the world of confidence to, to kick on because he got, I think got another nice try assist and whether it's him or Trindle, they're always the pass before the try assist or the last pass. And him and Trindle are starting to link up a lot. Like one of them is always almost like a second fullback. Hmm. And I'm really liking that adaption of our like attacking shape.

[00:07:57] I like what you said about how if one of them's a bit off, the other one knows to take the role. And yeah, then we know the media has been quite critical about Nico at certain times, not stepping up, but that's a great example where he did step up on the weekend. And I thought Nico was really good. You can tell if you look close enough when he's completely engaged and completely in the moment and it's working because he just has this energy about him. Yeah.

[00:08:24] He moves quicker and just his body, I guess his body reactions and movements are a little bit more noticeable and, and we saw that. So it was awesome. We're going to talk about Will Kennedy in the letter section because there's more mail about him as you can imagine. But I thought Will was, I thought he was my man of the match, but like, you know, Ronaldo was great. I thought, I thought he had another strong game and, you know, backing off the Penrith game and we've only got two

[00:08:52] games to go off. They're all starting the season well. It doesn't mean there's not great improvement to come. What did you, I thought even the Dan Atkinson, I'm not going to say experiment, but the Dan Atkinson move, I thought even that was a little bit more positive this week. And I briefly spoke to him yesterday off air about it. And I said to him, Hey, I noticed those hit ups were a bit more effective. They were quicker. You're getting more movement, uh, more meters.

[00:09:19] And he, he laughed when, yeah, it worked well. You know, he said, it's, it's fun to sort of play that role. And then I can't remember who it was. One of the other players razzed him and said, oh, you need to put on some weight. And he said, I'm not putting on any more weight. And then I said, well, if you put on more weight, you lose your speed. And he goes, exactly. I said, it's the right now for that role. It's almost like you're a little Cam McInnes. You've got the speed at the line. It's not like you're not a

[00:09:46] strong player. You're just not as big as the other guys. But I thought against the Cowboys, it worked. I don't know if it'll work every week and the Cowboys weren't great. We should point out, but I didn't mind that aspect. And I tell you who impressed me, a complete unbiased. I thought Tsukuhatsupua had a really solid outing. It was nothing spectacular. The stats are not amazing, but just with the naked eye test, I thought he really held his own, like just solid,

[00:10:15] solid prop football. And he's got another call up this week. Did you, did he stand out to you at all? Did you notice him? Well, I think the biggest compliment I can give to him is that the fact that he didn't stand out massively means he was fitting into as a first grader. Yeah. And I think that's probably the biggest compliment I can give him that he's, he's had 17 minutes, had a couple of, there was two runs in particular. I thought it was really strong where he got on the front foot and got a quick play of the ball. But I think, yeah, that's not the fact that he

[00:10:40] didn't stand out overall just means he just fit in seamlessly into a first grade forward and didn't miss a tackle, you know, six runs, 47 meters. Like you're taking that every day off the bench. It's a set 17 minutes. We should point out 17, especially, especially in 17 minutes, you know, if he plays another five to 10, you know, he's getting up around that probably 80 to 100 meter mark. And I think that's, he looks, I wouldn't say fitter, but he just looks a bit more,

[00:11:07] uh, there was a bit more emphasis in the runs, a little bit more like there was, he was targeting the right people for his runs, um, which I liked that shows that the footy IQ is there and I'm looking forward to him having getting another game. And the more he plays, the better he's going to get. I know that's an obvious thing to say, but the more he plays, the minutes will get, will get longer. And just on the Dan Atkinson thing, look in a perfect world, I probably would rather the four forwards, but we're already getting a forward. That's only

[00:11:36] getting 17 minutes anyway. Yeah. And the coverage of Dan Atkinson is just really important for me. I think now, um, with any injuries that go down, we can, we can fix that. If he's not there, we're kind of screwed. Um, and so like if, if a Kennedy goes down or a winger, like then we've got T Eagle Britt going to centers. Yeah. I think I'm happy. I would probably be happy with, you know, the, the 15 or so minutes that Dan's going to get, bring some leg speed if everything's

[00:12:02] going well. Like he might even not play minutes and I'm okay with that as well, because we don't, I don't think we need the four forwards at the moment, the way the guys are playing. Yeah. So Fanua Blake played 50, Oregon played 40, Cam played 63, which we love. And then next best was Siffa off the bench with 28. Well, out of the three big guys on the bench, you had Siffa with 28 minutes, Braden with 25 and Tuca with 17. So yeah, it's definitely working at the moment,

[00:12:31] but as we said, the Cowboys pack was pretty ordinary. So as soon as this week, it'll be tested a little bit more. So that might be a work in progress, but I think for me, Josh, I'm just super happy that we've had two really good performances a long way from home. And then in the second case, you know, with travel bug, literally, you know, got the win, big win, but also the performance, like they're opening 10, 15 minutes without standing, just going. And even the Cowboys were

[00:12:57] pretty good in that, in that opening 10, 15 minutes, just going back and forth. Like we didn't drop the ball. Our completion rate is as good as South after two rounds and two top teams. And to miss 18 tackles in a game, I love that. I think it's just, they're really good signs. If you can keep that, it won't be every week, but if you can keep it consistent, you're on your way to some happy times. So that's the best part is that those things are the things that are harder to fix during the season.

[00:13:27] If the attacking shape and the defensive structure that can all, you know, develop, it's the, it's the handling and the missed tackles. If that stuff's off early, it can leak into the season. The rest of the stuff is very like fixable and getting into the season. And like I said, I don't think it's going to mean that there won't be a time where we have 71% completion and 38 missed tackles. I think it's going to happen at some point, but if they can

[00:13:51] somehow make that more of the normal week to week activities, I think that they're on the way to something special, but you know, a long way to go. But the signs are just really good because you know, people probably had us getting flogged by Penrith in Las Vegas with all the hoopla about Vegas and you and I were there and there was a lot of hoopla. There was a lot of activities. There was a lot of commitments for the team and speaking to Hamlin, well, yes, you can go hear it

[00:14:16] on the last episode, but you know, even he said it was kind of a work trip. It wasn't like they had, fun. It's noted they had fun in LA. As soon as I hit Vegas, it was all business. And that meant a lot of media stuff, a lot of public relations things, plus training, plus game day, et cetera. And to almost beat the Panthers, you take it. It's not good enough because you want to win, but you take it and you come home and you're all sick and you go up to Townsville, which is,

[00:14:43] it's not a fun trip. The actual trip is not fun to come back with a, yeah, as I said, I thought it was a pretty good performance. It wasn't a 10 out of 10. It was probably closer to seven and a half, but under those circumstances, they're all good signs. It doesn't mean that you can take your foot off this week, but this week, at least if everything goes to plan, they've got a much more structured normal week. They're at home. That should make things a lot easier on them,

[00:15:10] which should hopefully mean another great performance. Well, we won't know until Saturday afternoon, but yeah, so far so good. And I didn't know what to expect Josh, because I was aware of the health thing. So I was aware of that pretty early on, obviously sworn to secrecy. I wasn't sure. Like, and then, and then the opening five, I was like, oh, they're on. Then my fear was they're getting too hard too early, but no, they're a pretty fit team. So, uh, great stuff. I thought it was pretty good coaching by the, by Fitzgibbon and, uh, he's not overly happy with what they'd like where

[00:15:40] they're at in the sense of there's a lot more to go, but I think he's happy with the effort, happy with the results at least last week. So a bit to work on, but yeah, good signs. And you know, if Trindle and Heinz can get together on the same page on the same day, and don't forget we bombed probably what two to three tries and then had one disallowed. So really you're hitting that 50 mark. And we should point out Nico's goal kicking was unbelievable. Oh, it was good to see him

[00:16:08] kicking again. You know, there was, I had fears that maybe there was something going on. Then we, I think we learned later that he just had a little niggle, um, throughout the Panthers camp or the Vegas camp. And, um, it was good to like, that gives you confidence that the body's right. I know he probably got a, got a bit of a knock on the knee that he was managing and then got another knock again. So fingers crossed, everything's all good there. I'm sure, you know, they all have knocks every week. So yeah, just manage that. The pain, it's a pain management I'm sure. And then

[00:16:35] he'll be ready to roll. Like you and I, because we're so invested in all this, like a lot of our listeners, we do tend to read a lot of things, both, you know, good, bad, positive, negative, accurate, not accurate. And I read a few things saying that our Trindle's a better goal kicker. And it's just like, Trindle's a really good goal kicker and he's a great guy to have around. And if he needs to do it, then let him do it. There's no way he's better than Nico Hines. Like, at the moment, like Nico is statistically, that's what I'm talking about. That's what I mean. Yeah.

[00:17:05] And, but well, yes, statistically, and also just, if you're looking at them kicking goals, the, you know, Trindle, he can miss one, you know, whereas Nico very rarely these days, I guess I'm just saying he's always my preferred number one. And I just sort of, I read a few things where people were like, no, no, it's gotta be the other guys. Like, no, Nico's your guy. If, if he's, if his legs are up for it. So it was, it was good to see him get those

[00:17:31] ones from the side, particularly like that were just absolute rippers. Josh, we might move on from the game. We have a lot more to talk about. Uh, I would like to tell you about our friends at the Royal Motor Yacht Club in Port Hacking, and they have a beautiful restaurant called The Galley. You should head down there. There's members discounts. It's just a fantastic menu. You and

[00:17:55] I have dined there. It's great. It's low key, but classy, classy food. You can book online, rmycph.com.au, or you can just rock on up, get on in there. If you're a member, you get lots of discounts, of course, as well. Uh, there is no free garlic bread at the moment, but you never know what the future is going to bring you. But yeah, we love those guys at the Royal Motor Yacht Club in Port Hacking. Give them a, a try. If you're not a regular, get out and they've got some great sports

[00:18:21] bars and we've watched footy there. We've had a great time. So it's friendly for everyone. It's, it's a welcoming place, beautiful scenery, accessible for all people. So the Royal Royal Motor Yacht Club in Port Hacking, long time supporters of this show, Josh. Now a bit of news to get through. You and I haven't discussed it, but Liam Eison, of course, unfortunately, ruptured his ACL playing for Newtown the other week. I believe he's already had knee reconstruction.

[00:18:50] He's going to miss this year, obviously, and try and bounce back bigger and better next year. He's signed on until the end of 2027. So we've got a bit of time on his, on his side. But that was disappointing to hear, wasn't it, Josh? Out of the blue, like just one of those ones you don't expect at all. And a big blow, I think, to the squad as well. Like you'd like to think he probably might've got another game or two this year. Just to see that development and, you know, growing in size and confidence, playing against men for another year. It's really disappointing. These

[00:19:20] things happen to a lot of guys, you know, there's a bloke in the bar just did a podcast with Connor Tracy speaking about how he did three in a row, you know? So it's, it's not the end of the world. Ken McInnes has done it and has been fine. You know, there's plenty of guys have done it and will, and, you know, happen in the future. And, you know, he's young, he's, he's got talent and he'll rehab the hell out of it and he'll come back bigger and stronger. I'm sure. We also saw Tom Hazleton finally re-sign with the Sharks, a new three-year deal. He'll be here

[00:19:49] till at least the end of 2028, which is awesome. He's played around 46, 47 matches for us and nearing the 50 mark and quietly going about having a pretty solid career in the NRL. You happy with the signing? Yep. Happy. I wasn't, you know, going to be absolutely devastated if he left, but I am, I would like, you know, Jack Williams. I would have liked him to stay. I'm happy that he's staying.

[00:20:14] He's still young coming into his prime, an absolute weapon close to the line and really strong defensively doesn't miss many tackles. So that's from a, for a bench prop perspective, like that's exactly what you want. So pretty happy. Yeah. And I think the contract situation now, you know, you might look to the fullback. I'm not sure who else is off at the moment off top of my head, but things have quietened down a little bit, but that's, it's never quiet for too long. So we'll follow that

[00:20:40] closely. Jersey flag had their first win of the year against the Knights at Henson Park. They won 38-22. They're now one-on-one and they play on Saturday at Shark Park or Shark Stadium, as we call it. This is a three game event on this week, Josh, in case you weren't aware.

[00:21:01] The flag is around 11am and the Jets are playing at 1240 and the main event is three o'clock. Jets had a one point win thanks to Nephi Peru with a great field goal. They defeated the Knights at Henson Park as well. And that was a lot of fun scenes right there. And that's great experience for Nephi and he's been rewarded with a spot in the top 21 this week, top 22. And that was also without

[00:21:29] Liam Eisen, obviously. And also Billy Burns did not play. So a good effort. This week we have Lisa Fiola and Tasha Gale playing on Saturday morning down at Cronel High School. And Harold Matts and SG Ball play manly on Sunday at Shark Stadium if you're keen on all that. But Saturday, if you're around, if you can get a ticket, it's pretty hot ticket. And South's always travel well. You will have a triple header if you're able to do it.

[00:21:58] As I said, it'll be Fleg, Cup and then NRL, which is exciting. We love those big days out, Josh. We might give another shout out to one of our sponsors, Joshy, because we love them so much. And I think you might have met this great man in Las Vegas. Jason Hawes joined us at the SharkCast gathering, which was awesome. And he is a local expert in the Sutherland Shire on real estate, all things real estate.

[00:22:26] He's been doing it for close to 25 years. And he is the best guy to talk to if you are looking for any kind of real estate advice in the Sutherland Shire. And even outside of that, he'll always help SharkCast listeners. So be in touch with him, 0410417450. 0410417450. He's a great fella, a great supporter of the show, big Sharks fan, huge Sharks fan. And that is Jason Hawes.

[00:22:55] He's your guy for real estate stuff. Josh, we're going to take a quick break. And then when we come back, we'll get through the mail and talk about the upcoming Souths game. This is SharkCast Poddy with Josh Bowling and myself, Sam Shinazzi. We love doing this. Don't go anywhere. Back in a minute. Hey, folks, we finally have some merchandise available. Rugbyleaguemerch.com is where you'll find SharkCast merchandise. Rugbyleaguemerch.com.

[00:23:22] Hats, T-shirts, stubby holders, coffee mugs, just for a start. A lot more coming in the season ahead. Rugbyleaguemerch.com. We've kept the prices down as much as we can. Check out the fine print for postage. But we do believe that Scott at Rugbyleaguemerch is doing a great job. Happy to align ourselves with him. And any questions, please drop us a line. Check out Rugbyleaguemerch.com for all your SharkCast merchandise needs.

[00:23:50] Whether it's for you or a family friend or anyone else in your tribe. So check it out. Rugbyleaguemerch.com. Plenty of time for the Melbourne Storm. But they'd dearly love to get it off this kick, which doesn't have much trajectory on it. And it's a terrific catch by Milutalo. And he got away. He burned Welsh. Then he got through. Now the pass to Talakai. Good!

[00:24:23] Passive scalp. And take the Melbourne Storm out in Melbourne here at Amy Park. Oh, this is some night for the Cronulla Shark. Welcome back to the show, SharkCastPod. You're here with Josh Bolling and myself, Sam Shinazzi. We're going to hear to read out some of the thoughts and opinions of our valued listeners and viewers.

[00:24:47] And we're going to start off with Hamman, who has let us know about what he thinks about the podcast. And he went to SharkCast.com.au, left a review, which is quite easy to do on that website. You can also do it on all of your podcast apps, etc. He gave us five out of five, Josh. He said, amazing podcast about an incredible club, brilliant content up up Cronulla. So we appreciate Hamman there. And if you'd like your review read out, please drop us a line.

[00:25:17] Ben said, I had a quick question about the stats for the Vegas game. Given the dimensions of the field, how are the meters calculated for the purpose of player stats? The field was 94.5 meters long. Would Fox, for example, give a length of the field try as 100 meters or 94.5 for the purpose of player stats? Keep up the great work. Great question, Ben. Thank you very much. I believe we adjusted to the field.

[00:25:42] So if you had a length of the field try, which I think maybe the Raiders might have gone close to, it would just be however far he ran. It wouldn't be adjusted to anything else. So if he ran for 94.5 meters or 94 meters, 95 meters, that's what he's going to get. So I hope that answers your question. Thanks for being in touch.

[00:26:06] Marky H, good friend of the show, said, without doubt, the signing of AFB is the best since James Maloney. The energy he takes onto the field makes the rest of the players lift, and it cannot be understated. He thought Will Kennedy had a great game, first class fullback. The team were methodical, never looked out of second or third gear. This is a good thing. Our defense was fantastic. The line was a wall, a real Fitz trait that I'm glad to see working. He says, can I fault anything?

[00:26:35] Yes, I can. I'm sorry, BHU. I've always backed you. But when Toby is fit, you're the one to lose out. I know how emotional you are about the Sharks, and it hurts, but you're just not the player you were showing to be. And that hurts me to say. That's from Mark. Josh, what did you think of Brayden Hamlin, all these first two stints?

[00:26:57] We spoke to him yesterday, as I said earlier on the show, and the first thing he addressed was the drop ball, which was quite awkward for me, but also very refreshing. I personally want to give him a bit more time. I don't know how much more time we have, but I want to give him a bit more time. What are your thoughts on the subject? It's going to come down to, when all are available, is he the best guy for that position?

[00:27:21] And if Hazo, when Hazo comes back, and then you've got Tuku and Toby and Ueli available, they're all fighting for those spots. And it's, I will need to see more from Ueli in order for him to keep that spot. But there's a part of me that kind of wants it to be Hazleton and Tuku that are on that bench.

[00:27:44] I think Ueli's performance was probably fine by that drop ball because it put us back on the back foot for that whole 10-minute stint that they had 12 men. And whether that's fair or not, probably it doesn't matter because it really changed the game. He's been okay. He hasn't been awful, but I just think maybe at the moment that there might be some guys better than him at the moment. I'm pretty undecided on it, but I don't know. What do you think about that?

[00:28:11] Well, when I said I don't know how much time we have, I think you nailed it where we've got guys coming back. So Colquhoun's pretty close. Toby's pretty close. We're talking a matter of weeks. So as you said, it'll be about who's best. It's not about who we like the most or who needs a bit more time to prove their worth. It's like, no, it's like whoever's best goes out there and plays. So he will need to lift. I guess my only thought on that is I know he can do so much better. I don't want to put a line through him yet.

[00:28:42] But then also how do you juggle that? That's a hard one. And maybe he does need a stint in the lower grades if that's the case. It's when everyone's fit. But I don't know about that either. So it's a terrific problem to have. On what you said about one drop ball defining his game, harsh but also relevant. So it's, again, it's a harsh world we're living in. I don't want to define him by the one drop ball.

[00:29:07] But the problem is when you have a team like ours that is such a great team from 1 to 17, there's going to be a weak link somewhere. And the weak link could be one drop ball. Hey, why'd you drop the ball? It's like, if that's how good your club is going, well, that's amazing. But also it does mean that, you know, a guy like Will Kennedy, who's, in my opinion, almost man of the match two weeks in a row, we're also getting mail going he's not good enough. So it's all because of how strong the club is going.

[00:29:37] Hamlin Willie is not what he was, as Mark pointed out. Can he get back to what he was, though, is the question. And how much time do we allow for that? So we'll see how that one pans out. It'll probably become obvious in the next month or so. Danny has been in touch. He said, I watched the game twice. Amazing game by the boys. Played in extreme heat and humidity. Obviously finding out they were unwell. Well, this can be a game that defines a season. It's only round two. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but it was a great win. Kudos to Kennedy.

[00:30:07] All offseason, he's been copying and hammering from Sharks fans and the media. He puts in every moment he's a part of. He's not the superstar we want, but he's a player that really lets you down, dependable and consistent. Nico Hines had a very underrated game. He was very involved. And it wasn't until the second beginning of the game, it became noticeable with contributions and what he does off the ball. I think we as Sharks fans expect a Cleary with a million dollar price tag.

[00:30:33] He also says, just think we've played two good games and something to build on. Now we play the 2-0 Bennett coach Rabbits. Big game early part of the season. His teams always lift when they play quality sides. Up, up, Cronulla. That's from Danny. Great stuff, Danny. And there's some Kennedy stuff there for us, of course. And Nico Hines. A lot of gratitude there for his game, which we talked about.

[00:31:01] Will Kennedy's not the superstar we want, but he's a player that really lets you down. Shane says, we'll get back to Will because I think there's some more stuff coming. Shane says, love your work. Not particularly pretty, but in round two, I'll take the two points. I'm not sure how many people have noticed, but with the way they carry the ball, Ronaldo and Stonetreet would actually be better on the opposite sides. I'm not saying they should swap, but I find it intriguing.

[00:31:28] So I guess, is he talking about the way they carry the ball maybe and the way they run it, the defense? It might be the hand that they're carrying the ball in, I think, potentially. Yeah. Okay, that's interesting. He also says, well done, Will Kennedy sitting third in the Tally M's. Okay, so there's more Will stuff here. The Will Kennedy stuff, and there's more to come. And I really don't want to get labored down in it, but I'm also happy to talk about it as much as people want to talk about it. Last week, obviously, we went pretty hard on the fact that we thought he was going pretty good.

[00:31:58] Some people thought back on that, which is fine, of course. But then it's in black and white. You look at the Dally M's. And I know the answer to that is, oh, but they get the Dally M's wrong or such and such votes on this. So they don't know. I get all that. It's not a perfect thing. But the fact that Will Kennedy is third on the Dally M's, which I think he's equal second maybe, it tells me something's happening. It tells me that the people going, he sucks, he's not the guy.

[00:32:26] Well, he may not be the guy, but you don't know another guy. And you can't suggest someone that's going to be there. All I'm hearing is Pappenhausen and whoever else. It's like, well, that's not reality. So that's why I'm fighting back on the fact that at the moment he's our guy and he's going okay. The moment he's not going okay, I'll agree with you all. I promise. That is interesting, Josh, when we, and I think you sent it to me as well, when the Dally M's came out. And it's only two weeks.

[00:32:50] Like, I'm not suggesting that he, it's not possible he could go on a stinky run and be the worst player in the team for the next 12 weeks. I'm not saying it's not possible. I think it's highly unlikely. I just don't get the way that we don't reward people with praise when it's due. I just don't understand. Matt, that's fine. I'll sleep the same. I'm going to sleep without worrying about that. But Will Kennedy, Josh, he's the equal second best player in the comp right now after two weeks. Yeah, and you can't, I mean, you can't fault him.

[00:33:20] I've never, I don't live and die by Will. Like, I really do like him. Yeah, either do I. Yeah. And as everyone, you know, if we could upgrade him, sure. But we've said it a million times with what money. Yeah. Like, for what we're getting out of Will for the price we pay, we're getting a good deal. And if you can find another fullback that will do just as good or a better job for, let's say he's on $400,000. Who are you going to find in the NRL competition now that would be on $400,000 at fullback?

[00:33:50] Maybe none. Every fullback in this league is very good. Well, you're looking at a Connor Tracy, which is funny in the sense of because that's what we were looking at anyway. Yes, exactly. We made our decision. So I'm happy to stand by that. And it's not a Will versus Connor thing. I'm just saying, like, he's probably on the same. And the Bulldogs are probably going, how good is this guy? He's on not much money and he's going pretty good.

[00:34:16] So not everyone can have a superstar fullback if you have superstars elsewhere in your team. And that's always been my argument is that we have decided to put our big dollars in halfback, front row, arguably hooker, second row. That's where our money is. And every team is different. Other teams have their money in their forwards. Other teams have their money in their hookers or their fullbacks. That's just the way we've gone about it. And I kind of like that.

[00:34:42] You know, like, that's what I love about the salary cap in the NRL is that everyone has different strengths and all teams play different styles and decide to put their money in. And like Manly have put all of their money in their number seven and number one, but they don't have the best front row. Like, so you know what I mean? Like, you can't be strong everywhere. And that's where Fitz and the club have decided to go.

[00:35:02] We've seen Newcastle put all of their money in fullback in six, you know, like, and that's going to hamper their salary cap to be able to have front rowers that can make the meters for those guys to make magic happen. Yeah. So it's all relative and it's all, and I think for what we're getting price wise, he's doing a pretty bloody good job. And I thought he was excellent on the weekend. Like, if it wasn't Ero, it was Will for my man of the match. He's safest houses under the high ball. You know, he creates enough. He's just quick enough. You know, his support play could probably be better.

[00:35:32] That's probably one area that I'd like to see Will improve on. I think he's doing a really good job. And he started the season better than he did last year. And he's saved two certain tries so far as well. So the defensive part of his game has improved dramatically as well, I'd say. The interesting thing is going to be he's off contract. Now, we don't know that anyone else is talking to him.

[00:35:54] But I'm guessing if you keep playing well and you're like in the top five for Dallie Ems, someone might go, hey, we wouldn't mind you. And then it becomes interesting, Josh, because we lose, as you say, maybe it's 400. We're not 100% sure as we go to air. Say we lose 400,000 from the cap to replace on a fullback. As you said, as far as we're aware, there's no one really out there to buy. Our backup is out for a year and a bit at least.

[00:36:24] And it's going to take some time to get back on that knee. Then we have Cade Dykes, who is not playing at the moment still, and it's unsure about how that's going to work out. And then you have Mawini Hiroti, who we love and adore, but he's not exactly, I'm going to assume, in the Will Kennedy style, win you a premiership at fullback. He'll do a job for you. It'll become interesting if someone else wants Will Kennedy based on his good form and we lose him and then we have no one else.

[00:36:54] That's going to be interesting. I'm not suggesting that's going to happen. I don't think that will happen. I think Will will resign, but it's the NRL. You don't know what's going to happen. Well, I think saying that what plays into our favor is that no one else, and I say this with full love and respect, no one else would probably want him to play fullback. Except if he keeps playing a man of the match performances and he's top of the Daly M's, someone will go, ah, maybe we'll get you for 450. Sure.

[00:37:23] I guess what my point is that everyone, I look across the NRL and everyone has set in stone fullbacks, right? Sure, sure, sure. So no, I couldn't see anyone coming and going, we'll give you extra than what you're on to displace the fullback we already have. So I think that works in our favor to keep him maybe cheaper as well, or the same price. And then we, you know, then we're able to maybe have some wiggle room somewhere else later by having the cheaper fullbacks.

[00:37:50] Yeah, and that's perfectly fine and probably what is going to happen. I haven't looked at every other fullbacks contract situation, you know what I mean? So I understand that they have fullbacks in place. Paul says, Last Saturday, given the circumstances, had the vibe of a trial match, but they were still playing for points and the Sharks were never in danger of leaving town empty-handed. Considering everything that was going on, it was about as good an outcome as you could have hoped for.

[00:38:19] Special mention to Will Kennedy for the Tri Saver in the corner. Reminded me of John Morris in the dying seconds of the 2013 semifinal against the same opponent. I can't help but feel the season really starts this Saturday. I'm sure the coaching players don't see it that way. I wouldn't want them to, but it's their first opportunity to have a normal week of prep. Excited to see how it plays out. Hope you're well. See you at a game or a gig in the near future. That's from Paul. Thanks, Paul. Appreciate it. Wade says,

[00:38:46] Great win on Saturday night, considering the travel and the sickness we had to overcome. On a side note, being in Queensland, I never get to see how the Jets or Flake perform, but wanted to know an update on Riley Pollard. So I think this week, Wade, the Jets might be on Fox and KO. Just check your guides, but I think that game might be televised. Riley Pollard's going pretty good for a young fella who's playing above his age.

[00:39:14] We don't want to get too crazy and tell you what he's going to be, but he's got a lot of potential. He's handling every challenge that comes to him. And I really like his style. I've said it before. He looks like one of those classic halfbacks in the, I'm really hesitant to say this, but in the cronk mold in at least in the sense of like, you know, catch, pass, kick and creativity. So it's not just the mechanical stuff. He's also got a football brain, great hands.

[00:39:44] He can kick goals and he's an all rounder. That's what I mean by the classic halfback. So I would watch this space, same body shape. I'd watch this space, give him a year or two. They're not going to rush it. That's for sure. I can guarantee you that I'm going to rush it, but he signed on for a bit.

[00:40:04] And I would imagine if he's not our next in line long-term, then he'll be someone else's given the way he's going. But it's early days, but so far so good. Alex says, great recap last week with the episodes as always. So thank you, Alex. Fraser says, read the Will Kennedy situation. I'm not his biggest fan, but I'm also a realist.

[00:40:30] There's no doubt we could have a better fullback to give us a better shot, but we can definitely still win it with him there. If everyone plays their full potential, I have confidence that is the case. He then says, look at 2016. We had Chad at halfback, another vital position to win a competition. Most would say he isn't a premiership winning standard halfback, but that's the reality of a salary cap. The key players were stacked elsewhere and Chad played the role he was asked. In my eyes, this is no different.

[00:41:00] And it's the reality of salary cap in sport. If we recruited a gun fullback instead of AFB, the talk would be we can't win a comp without a gun front rower. This Fraser fellow knows what he's talking about. A really good summation, actually. It's better than I could have said it. But you've just got to pick your battles. You've got to like Chad at the time was probably like a 7 out of 10 kind of place. And it's very similar to the Wade situation.

[00:41:27] Unless you're Melbourne or Pemrith, you don't have 1, 6, 7, 9 that are all guns. But when you've got an 8, a 9, and a 7, it's still pretty good in terms of rating. And he's exactly right. If we didn't have AFB and we upgraded the fullback, we'd be saying that we can't get forward. So we can't give these guys a chance to create and to score tries. So it's robbing Peter to pay Paul a little bit.

[00:41:55] You can't have it everywhere. And I think we have the most balanced side in the competition. I think like 1 to 17, you would struggle to find a side more balanced with the skill set to go with it. And the depth, I would argue, as well. So Fraser says, great to meet you in Vegas. How good was the Tilted Kilt? Great to hang out. So Fraser, if you remember Josh, which you probably won't, given the day you had.

[00:42:22] Scottish-born Fraser, real estate guru in the, I don't know how to describe it, in the Hurstville kind of area maybe. I've got that wrong, but not in the Sutherland Shire. It's out of the Sutherland Shire. And it was interesting, Josh. I don't think, again, you realize. But we had three of the great real estate agents in the southern part of the world in the one establishment at our Shark Cast party. We had our own Jason Hawes. We had Fraser.

[00:42:47] And we had the infamous Justin Ressler, who's a known real estate guy around the area. And my former Caring Bar North Redbacks soccer teammate, I might add. Three of them, they could have bought that pub and redone it and sold it again in the space of half an hour. But great to meet you, Fraser. Thanks to your wise words and thanks for your support. Really appreciate it. Michael says... Fraser's on Instagram. He made him trade likes and comments every now and then. I don't remember meeting him. If I did, I don't remember much.

[00:43:17] Oh, you met him, yeah. On the public record, I don't remember much of that day. But I know it was fun. I believe you were standing on the bar at that point and leaning down and shaking his hand going, nice to meet you. Michael says, great content from Vegas. I agree with you with Willie Kay. As far as you know, I'm a big fan of his from his junior days. I don't get the constant bagging of him. He's definitely not the perfect player, but generally safe under a high ball. He's worked hard in his defense.

[00:43:45] It's not like he's on 750K a year and underperforming. He also mentions about the attack changing this year and how he's outside either Tricky or Hines. And obviously, the Slingshot movie's not happening as well. So things have changed a little bit for Will in the attack, but it doesn't mean he's not an important part.

[00:44:10] And Michael is the president, the chairman and original member of the Will Kennedy fan club from before even debut time in NRL. So Michael's a big fan, but he's also a realistic one. Andrew says, welcome to season 25. My first message of the season. He wrote this at halftime of the Cowboys game. And he said, I was thinking during the first half, Kennedy wasn't having the best attacking game.

[00:44:39] But then he was involved in the Stone Street try and then had a try saving tackle on the winger. And he said, so here's my thoughts. There's 16 other teams with fullbacks in the comp. I'd guess at least 10 are better than him, but all 10 are on more money. Kennedy is stable, great under the high ball and constantly trying. He's no Billy Slater, but who is? Hopefully the haters drop off and he has a great season. Up Up Cronulla, thanks heaps for the ongoing pods. Love them. So that's from Andrew.

[00:45:06] I genuinely did not know there'd be this much Will later on, Josh. So I'm glad we didn't spend too much time earlier on it. But I don't know if there's haters, as Andrew says. I think people are just having their say and they're critical. I respect that. Josh says some halftime thoughts. This is our friend Josh from Vegas, by the way, who we hung out with. Okay. Okay. You, Josh? Good man. So many Joshes. Our entire listener base is based on Joshes and Steves.

[00:45:34] And I've just offended everyone else who's not called Joshes. And real estate agents. And real estate agents. Josh has good half of footy, so he wrote at halftime as well. Looks like tough conditions. The forwards were good. Back five was solid. He said close to the worst half of footy I've seen Trindle play. Okay. Braley is so important out of dummy half. And in defense, looks sharp. Nikko looked good. Special mention to Kennedy playing well. He says Stone Street is still a bit of a defensive liability on the wing. Keep it simple. Be patient. The second half, we win this.

[00:46:04] So he's right. We did win this. Stone Street defensive liability in this game from memory. I didn't really have a problem with that. I think that he's still learning the ropes. He's under 10 games. So happy to keep learning. You had an issue with the fact that he didn't put the foot down and score those two tries. I had a few issues. I wasn't sure if I should get into it or anything because, yeah, for people that don't know me and Dan, had a little disagreement on Twitter. Nothing personal. I love Dan.

[00:46:34] If he's listening, I love you. And I respect your opinion as always. I just disagree on where he's at at the moment. I think it's all well and good to say what he will be and how good he potentially could be. I will hear that. But that's not right now. And I'm concerned about right now and the way we play and the way he's playing. And I said that the stats look really good. If you just read them or if you didn't see the game, you go, wow, like 200 meters, two tries, blah, blah, blah.

[00:47:02] You know, he got outlept or dropped the ball once, outlept once. That one led to a try. And I know that was a little bit of a funky one because it came off, bounced off people or whatever. Like, I still think you should have caught it. The other one, he got right up, dropped it, put us under pressure again, got run down twice. Fine. I get it. But like, you know, we've all been told our fast years and we've seen our fast years and got run down twice. He got his bacon saved by Will.

[00:47:27] That was the try that Will saved was when he just jammed in on nobody or on the center that Jesse had covered. Gotcha. Okay. There's just those, it's just those little things. I'll defend him a little bit here. I'll say that we saw him in the trial drop that easy pass, right? And we all kind of laughed and went, oh, it's a trial. We haven't seen him do that since. So he learned from that. The two tries where he was chased down, we know he's quicker than that. And it didn't affect the game. I'm kind of okay with that.

[00:47:56] And especially if he can learn from that, how to run a different angle, how to run better, like whatever. Like I have faith that he can, I have faith he's the fastest guy in the 17. Oh, for sure. On the catching of the ball, I'll be a little bit more harsh. And I get very, very nervous and anxious when he jumps up with the two hands above his head. I don't care for that. I'm old school in a lot of ways. And I'm definitely old school in how you catch a ball.

[00:48:22] Now, I'm not suggesting I know how to catch a ball better than an NRL first grader. In all seriousness, I'm not suggesting that. But I would suggest that when you go up like that, there are a lot of things that can go wrong. And I've seen him catch some beauties doing that. Yeah. I've seen him drop some as well. And I'm assuming it's related to that style. I could be completely wrong. And maybe they would all laugh at me and say, get the hell out of here. Don't ever watch us play again.

[00:48:51] So I think there's improvement there with kick defense. I really do. He's really tall. So he should be out leaping guys. I just have a little bit of an issue with that awkwardness there. And the jamming in, I think he can learn from that. I think that a lot of guys early on do that. Doesn't make it right. Doesn't make it good. But I feel like he can learn from that. But I hear you, Josh. And you're allowed to say anything you want. Like, as is Dan. I mean, Dan is the president of that fan club. And he lives by that.

[00:49:20] And when he has games like that where it's two tries and 200 meters, like, why not? Also early days, Josh. Like, it's nine or ten games in. I don't want it to be misconstrued that I hate the guy. There's like a perception that I hate him or whatever. That's not the case whatsoever. Like, if he becomes better than Sione Katoa, hell yeah. Like, let's do it because he'd be a hell of a player if he's better than Sione. And he's young. I think the obvious thing is we hope he is, right? Because we hope everyone is better than the next guy. Exactly.

[00:49:48] And I think he has a lot of the things you want in a winger. And like the talent and the pace and the leap and all that stuff. It's just like, I'm just trying not to get too far ahead of myself. Because I'm seeing things in his game that I don't like. And I just, I'm trying to be wary of, you know, building him up to be more than he is or any of that sort of thing. And again, it's just the hit ups. It's like, he's still, and the thing I guess was on the weekend, I think teams are starting to notice that if they hit and stick, they're pulling him back.

[00:50:18] And I think on the weekend, there's a few times where he did lose meters and got dragged a few times. That's the, and I think he's running too upright. I think he just needs to get down lower. Yeah, well, that's all, that's all coachable. Of course. Of course. And that's, I just, that's what I'm seeing. And that's what I'm hoping. And I'm sure they're working on it. Because if, if some idiot like me can see it, then the coaching staff and NRL players know way more than I ever will. So it's just, they're just little things. And hopefully with another, if he's going to get another 20 games before Sione's back,

[00:50:47] very, very hopeful and optimistic that he will improve that. Roscoe says, I hope the team does not get complacent after one win. One of the things I didn't like in the Cowboys game was watching Nico watch Drinkwater dance around before his try after the kickoff. It looked like someone else's job mentality. That won't get us a premiership. I'm hoping to see Hines and Trindle take the ball to the line a bit more as time goes by as well.

[00:51:15] So I can sort of visualize what he's talking about. I don't think it's going to be a problem. I respect what you're saying. It was a moment. They scored their second try late in the game. We were pretty high on what was going on. So these things happen, but I completely hear what you're saying. And as for Nico and Trindle going to the line a bit more, I think you'll see Nico do it a bit more. I'm not sure about Trindle, but maybe. I thought they ran the ball a fair bit on the weekend. Yeah. I think he wants more though. He wants more. Yeah.

[00:51:45] Fair enough. And finally, we have Steve. Steve says, Steve says, The Cowboys game was hot and cold. Good win, but still a bit to fix up like our goal line attack. A few times we should have cut them to pieces, but instead we did the one up hit ups near the line. So he wants to see a bit of variety there. I can understand that. On another note, BHU needs some time in the lower grades. He's just not doing it right now. Now he's only a shell of what we know.

[00:52:13] Tukes should be in the 17 each week. Calhoun will be a great bench player when he returns. Toby should also have a bit of time in the jets till he gets some match fitness, not to rush him back straight away, which I think is, that's all reasonable. I don't disagree with any of that, Steve. And he said, why is there still so much hate for Nico? He went okay. Kennedy again impressed me. He's put on a bit of speed, but he does say he'd feel more confident winning a premiership with a game breaking

[00:52:43] X factor number one, but that's not going to happen this year, Steve. So we've got to deal with what we've got. We should put a few points on the bunnies this week, given that they only just beat the dragons last week. Let's go get a big home win up, up. That's from Steve. Thanks, Steve. Appreciate you. Yeah. I mean, I think all signs lead to defeating South this week, but Wayne Bennett, man, it's going to be tough. Like they've got Jai Gray at fullbacks, just absolutely killing it. And yeah, I don't want to be kicking to him.

[00:53:12] And the halfback, Jamie Humphries is very solid. I'm not suggesting he's more than that at this stage, but obviously he's not scared of the big stage. My favorite player who is at Jack Whiten's back, the man that I love to criticize so much. So who look out for a match winning try from Jack Whiten, but they have, they have strike power. I think given it's a Wayne Bennett team, you kind of know what you're going to get. You're going to get a grinding affair. They're not going to give in. And there's always that danger of a one point win or a close win.

[00:53:41] So I think the sharks will definitely need to be on top of the game. I feel like it's going to be a very physical game. Hopefully we're refreshed and ready to go. So Josh, we won't get into the Souths game too much here because there is a plan, a loose plan at the moment to do at least one more preview show later in the week. So I won't waste your time doing that, my man. But how do you, how do you think in, in the short words, how do you think the game's going to go? I think we should win. I think back at first game, back at home, coming off a good win. Hopefully the boys have all refreshed and gotten over their illnesses and any,

[00:54:17] Saturday, Saturday, Saturday, Saturday, sorry, Saturday and get two more points and start climbing that ladder. Yeah. Yeah. It's just, it's one week at a time, isn't it? You just want to just win that next game. And we all know how, how the world reacts, whether it's our world or the media world, how that reacts to a loss. So we want to minimize those this year, but I think it'd be fine. I do think that we'll be in better health this week from what I've seen down in the club. And that can only be a positive. So they're definitely not getting ahead of themselves. We're one on one.

[00:54:47] It sort of feels like, Oh, I shouldn't speak for everyone, but I, I feel like it, I almost feel like it went to an O cause I thought, yeah, pretty good against the Panthers. We kind of, I mean, we lost, but it doesn't really count. It's in Vegas, but we're one on one. So no one's getting ahead of themselves. But I think the vibe is that it's been a good start competitive, you know, minimal handling errors, minimal miss tackles, that kind of thing. So that's all positive. And yeah, it's been a disruption.

[00:55:15] We've had Tom out for a couple of weeks. We lost Sione, but there are some guys to come back. So it's going to plan. We just got to, yeah, it's such a long road. Like we, we, we say it, we say it a lot, but it's, it's such a long road. We're two games into a long cycle. So having fun, loving doing the pod. And thanks to everyone who's been in touch with your feedback and communication. Keep it up. We love hearing from you. You'll be hearing from us. This is shark cast pod. Josh, thanks for your time, my man.

[00:55:45] We'll see you down at the game on a Saturday to make sure it's Saturday, Josh, not Sunday, Saturday, Saturday, Saturday. And until we speak to you next, which hopefully will be soon, we're going to sign off and we will play the song because we won last week. So up, up Cronulla and let's go.

[00:56:15] Boys in the black, white and blue. Sharks, sharks forever. It's the time to see the sharks. Oh,