Gaz and Shinazz: Magic Round Eve (14/5/26)

[00:00:01] The Royal Motor Yacht Club Port Hacking is a hidden gem of the Shire, situated on the banks of the beautiful Port Hacking. It's a great place to catch up with friends, celebrate your birthday or any special occasion, and they always show the NRL live on the big screens. The RMYC Port Hacking, proud sponsors of this podcast and big supporters of the Cronulla Sutherland Sharks. Check out their website rmycph.com.au

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[00:01:05] Hey there, welcome to SharkCast, part of a podcast dedicated to the greatest sporting club in the history of the world, the mighty Cronulla Sutherland Sharks. My name is Sam Shinazzi, OG 2015, and we are on the eve of Magic Round 2026. This episode is brought to you by Dyson Logistics, the Royal Motor Yacht Club and Port Hacking, Jason Hawes at Cripps and Cripps Real Estate. And we get our coffee from Mr. Paisley's. Now if you want to jump on board and help SharkCast become even more regular for our listeners and viewers, jump on.

[00:01:35] We can help spread your brand or your business. Get in touch. But that's not what we're here to talk about. We're here to talk about the big clash at Suncorp Stadium Friday, 6 o'clock. Do not miss this game. It's the early game. And we are joined by our semi-regular co-host. He's a shark through and through. And this is the return of the Gaz and Shinaz show. Gaz has been on a boat for about four weeks. Gaz, welcome back my friend. Gary Dover, how are you?

[00:02:05] Thank you so much. It's good to be back. I thought you were going to replace me with all these absences, but unfortunately our scheduling just hasn't aligned lately. But it's good to be back. I'm glad to be back and big game coming up tomorrow night up in Brisbane. Well, it's good to have the big dog back. That's for sure. And a bit of an in-joke there. Two very desperate football teams. And I would suggest the dogs are slightly more desperate as far as needing to win. But gee, the Sharks are almost there as well.

[00:02:35] Both teams out of form, coming off some bad losses. So it's going to be who wants it more. And we hope to goodness that it's our team that wants it more. Sharks have had good recent history against the Bulldogs. We won that game at the end of the regular season last year at homebush 24 to 6. We've won 13 of the past 17. It's a pretty good record. Getting a few more stats and figures as we go through the show. We do have our video off because Gary is actually driving to Suncorp Stadium now.

[00:03:04] He's on his way in the car, representing his workplace. And they haven't been able to get him onto a flight because everyone's so busy. Everyone, every man, dog, woman, child. If you listen to Kieran Fraser, alien is on their way to Suncorp Stadium magic round. And so Gary's driving. It's what, about a nine, 10 hour drive? Something like that. Yeah, I'm not looking forward to it. But you know, strap in. It could be a long one. You'll do it. I'm actually flying up tomorrow. So it'll be a lot quicker than that.

[00:03:32] And yeah, it'd be good to get to watch some football in the flesh once again. Yes. It's going to be a good one. Gary, tell me about where you see the Sharkies at the moment. They're obviously very inconsistent. Win a couple of games, lose, win, lose. Rack up a big scoreline. Have a big scoreline racked up against them. What do you make of it? What's going on? Yeah, it's very, very inconsistent. That's definitely the word. And it's obviously something as fans we don't like to see.

[00:04:00] You just don't know what you're going to get each week. And I think if you sit back as the two fan bases of each of these clubs, you're probably not really looking forward to this game. But if you're a neutral, you're probably thinking this could have a bit of finals intensity. It's almost a must win for both clubs where they sit on the ladder at this point in the season. So from the outside looking in, it should be a good game and I'm looking forward to it. But as a fan, I just don't know what I'm going to get. And that concerns me.

[00:04:29] I think the way that we lost against South, we'll see a response. So I'm not as concerned as I probably make out. But at the same time, like there's a part of me that says, I have absolutely no idea what's about to happen on Friday night for either of these teams. Yeah, there's no guarantee. Like you're right. I also personally feel like there'll be a response from Cronulla. I know that the players and coaches are filthy at the way it went down.

[00:04:58] And especially some of the other losses this year, it's not so much the losing. It's how we're losing, how we're conceding. So I'm with you. I think there will be a turnaround, but unfortunately, you can't actually guarantee it until they start doing it on a regular basis. So you never know when the turnaround is going to come. I do feel like it'll be this week. But as we said, the dogs aren't traveling that well either. In fact, they're traveling a little bit worse. They've got to turn it around at some point too. So as a neutral, you're right. It could be a classic game.

[00:05:24] I mean, if the dogs do what they do best, it could be a defense orientated game because at our core, I know people are going to scream me down, but at our core, we have a good defense. The Bulldogs attack isn't usually amazing. They can score points this year. They have, but it's not consistent as well. However, the Sharks can score points. It's hard to get a read on this game in any kind of way of looking at it.

[00:05:49] But I do think Gary that both teams will, I imagine defensively, at least for a while, turn up. I think if you look at the ladder right now and where both teams sit, the Sharks are really only two points above the Bulldogs. Like, yeah, the Bulldogs have been traveling terribly, like let's be honest. But if they can jag this game, they're going to get a bit of confidence out of that. They're going to keep those guys who are a couple of points above them within arm's reach. So it's a huge game for them.

[00:06:16] But at the same time, if the Sharks can win this one, that's a four point turnaround on the week. They head into the bye in a nice position and they're slowly building it to the season, which we need them to do, where they can find that consistency and they can roll on with it. But I don't think we can underestimate the out that is Blake Braley. I think that's a huge one for us. And it's just like the way that he steered us around for 139 odd games in a row. There might be, I don't want to say like anything's going to be disjointed or anything like that,

[00:06:45] but I just don't know how it's going to gel as seamlessly as if Brails was there. Well, I think defensively, catch and pass wise, it's not going to differ too much. Now, obviously Blake, he's elated both of those things, but Jaden Braley can pass the ball. He can make a tackle. So I'm not worried about that. It's the running from dummy half. And I guess some of the attacking options where it will differ. Maybe Beryl comes into the game with just the emphasis on catch, pass, tackle.

[00:07:13] And then if something comes up, go for it, but maybe don't worry too much about that. And you need the other three guys in the spine to really lift their attacking mojo. So I completely agree. Like it's a massive out. This guy is going to play origin. He's been our best player consistently for three or four years. It's a massive out, but it doesn't mean it has to all fall apart at the same time. Yeah, that's right. And I'm not like, I have full faith in Bez to do the job that he's there to do. That's why they've resigned him.

[00:07:43] That's why they've kept him on the books for so long. I think it's just more for me. They need to simplify his game and he doesn't need to be Blake Braley out there. He just needs to be Jaden Beryl. We've seen what Bez can do when he gets the opportunity and he's going to be excited. It's his first time starting in the number nine jersey for the Sharks. So yeah, I think he'll do a job and I think he'll do it well, but I just don't want them to kind of force him to go. I don't want them to overplay his hand and people to think, oh, well, he's got to do the things that Blake Braley does. Because I don't think that will happen.

[00:08:12] Now you say first time to start, you mean this year or do you mean all time? Has he started before? No, he's played before. He's come off the bench though, hasn't he? Has he actually started in the run on site before? I wanted to think that he has, but maybe he hasn't. Maybe that's a good point. I'll be off to check on that one. Let's talk about the cloud hanging over us. And that is the penalty situation. We're receiving the fewest and we're conceding the most. And that's not very good.

[00:08:37] How do you rectify that, Gary, aside from, you know, obviously you can sort of tone down the head highs. You can tone down the tackled in air kind of penalties, be a bit more cautious. But how do we turn that around? Yeah, it's just like the thing for me is the whole ruck infringement is the opposite. It's like, what's going on there? So I think it's interesting because the Bulldogs tend to give away, you know, a lot of ruck infringements. And I feel like they get on the back foot.

[00:09:04] And if a team like ours can get a bit of forward momentum, we'll score a fair few points against them. And I don't see the Bulldogs scoring a lot of points. But yeah, we've got to be better. We've got to be more disciplined in the areas off the ball and make sure that we're not giving away those cheap, silly penalties that just give teams a leg up. And, you know, because once the Bulldogs score a few points, they get a bit of confidence and they can put a number on you. And they're getting some guys back.

[00:09:31] And I just think, yeah, we need to be better in what we're doing. We need to realize the gravity of the situation of where we sit in the season as it is right now. And in the grand scheme of things that this team, as our good friend Dave Riccio wrote, they're not together for, you know, after this year, that's it. So take the opportunity while it's there. And yeah, we just need to be better. A large part of the problem is the trust and the connection as far as the penalties go.

[00:09:58] Because when you see some of the, I think they're referred to as blocking or, you know, when the kick goes up and we're defending a kick and a center takes out the opposition so we can get a clean grab of it. Like we don't need that stuff anymore. Like, okay, if it's a big attacking kick and maybe it goes to a winger, you might want to help a little bit. But some of them are so just not necessary. And I think they need to trust themselves and each other a bit more in those moments. Yeah, that's a good point to make.

[00:10:28] And obviously I think Ronnie back makes a huge difference in those sort of kicking situations that you're talking about. Like there was one penalty that Tricky gave away for an escort. I don't know if it was last week or the week before. He just completely changes direction and there's absolutely no need for it. And yeah, I think, as you said, that trust that their guy or their mate is going to do the job that they're there to do needs to be there. And if they can get that right, I think we'll be fine. So Sharks this year away from home, not so good.

[00:10:56] We've won just the one game out of five. That was at Canberra and a pretty good one as well. But I want to go to the Bulldogs and their record at Suncorp is not good. So they've, since 2016, they have the worst win record at Suncorp. Two wins from 18 games. Now I know they had a pretty bad patch as a club for a while, so it makes some sense. But it is a bit surprising. They've got a big fan base, Australia wide.

[00:11:25] They've won two of 18 games there. And in Magic Round, they have one win from six games at Magic Round. Sharks have three from six. So Dogs are a little bit lost at Suncorp, Gaz. Yeah, it seems that way, especially when you're reading out those stats, right? It doesn't look good on paper. But I think the desperation that they'll have and the pressure that they're under, I think you can all think that Blood's going to be hungry and they're going to need

[00:11:55] and want to win. You know, they've got Critters 150th, Birdo's 100th. They're celebrating a few milestones for their teammates. And, you know, they're in a situation where it's desperation right now for them. They need to get out of this and they're going to go out there and do that. So I think those stats, you can't read too much into them. Obviously, as a Sharks fan, you love reading that. But at the same time, I just think the situation that we're in and the time of the season that we're in, it's all desperation from the Dogs this week. So I wouldn't read too much into that.

[00:12:25] So Steven Crichton, 150. Also, his 50th game for Canterbury. Matt Burton, 100th game for Canterbury. Bronson Sherry, Jamin Salmon, 50th game for the Bulldogs each. There's a lot going on there. You know that at Cronulla, they take milestones, both for and against very seriously. So everyone's aware of that. We were going to have Cam McKinnis' 100th game for the Sharks, but unfortunately he's out for a week. The coach has confirmed it's only a week.

[00:12:52] He'll be back after the buy, which is good news for all concerned. Yeah, that's great. That's what's going on there as far as your milestones go. Now, Sharky's, as far as scoring tries, they really rely on the left-hand edge. They have the second highest amount of tries down that edge. They are more or less avoiding the right-hand side. They have the lowest amount of tries on the right edge. Now, that could change this week.

[00:13:22] We'll see what happens there because Ramien will be back on the right edge. Correct? Yes. So it'll be good to have Jesse back. Obviously he's missed what, the last four games, I'm going to say. So, you know, having him back out there. I feel like, no disrespect to Siffer, but Jesse in the centers is, yeah, something I'd prefer to say. I think Siffer off the bench, the impact that he brings is just, we need that at the moment. We need to get a role on and, yeah, defensively,

[00:13:51] we just need someone a little bit quicker in some of the situations that we've been faced with over the last couple of weeks. So, looking forward to having Jesse back, looking forward to having Ronnie back. But, yeah, at the same time, the Bulldogs, you know, they're welcoming back Max King, Burton, Kurt Mann. So they're getting a number of people back that they sort of trust and rely on as well. It's going to be a tough battle. I'm actually really looking forward to watching the game and it's going to be really weird taking photos of the opposite team. But, yeah, to see the boys in person at Magic Ground, I can't wait.

[00:14:21] No one's going to hold it against you if you take a few of, you know, the Sharks as well. Yeah. The finger might slip here and there, but we'll see what happens. So, as far as defense goes, we've conceded 17 down the left touch, which is the most of the NRL. But the right side, it hasn't been much better. A bunch down there, the second most. So, both edges for the Sharks defensively are really not good. If we go down to the Bulldogs attack to match it,

[00:14:47] they have their strongest channel on the field is the left touch. So, 50% of their tries are scored specifically on the left touch side. Our right edge is going to have to really be wary of that. Now, having said that, Bulldogs defensively concede their most tries on either side of the field as well. So, you might see a lot of attack down, well, down both avenues of the sidelines this week, Gary, for both teams. Yeah, for sure.

[00:15:16] And that's probably where they need to focus on. Like, obviously, they have great forward packs, both teams. And going through the middle might not work for either of them, but it's going to be a battle up front. Obviously, you know, there's guys who want to impress ahead of state of origin selection and all that sort of stuff. So, in the middle of the field, it's going to be a real tight contest and a real hard fought battle. But I think, yeah, we'll see a lot of points come down both sides of the field, hopefully for one team more than the other. But, yeah, they're a bit leaky both sides when they want to be.

[00:15:46] It's, you know, you look at it as a fan and you kind of get a little bit concerned. But at the same time, you know when the Sharks are on, like, there's nothing and no one that can beat them. So, I'm just hoping that they really turn up with that mentality that I know they've got in them. And I think we'll be all right. Yeah, and they have to hold on to it. It's no use doing that for 30 minutes. You've got to do it for the majority, if not the whole game. And you'll be fine.

[00:16:11] And the Dogs, yeah, the Dogs had an amazing win against Penrith some time ago now. But it was one of the performances of the year. And they were great on both sides of the ball. So, they have it in them. And at some point, it's going to click. Now, we hope it's not against us. If it is against us, it's fine. We just have to click with it. It's going to be a good one. What are your expectations of Magic Round itself, Gary? Should it be a big event? Yeah, I was up there a couple of years ago. It's always a pretty big event. And the NRL do it really well.

[00:16:40] As a fan going up there, it's a spectacle and it's good fun. Obviously, everyone's up there for a good time. Everyone's in their footy kit. Everyone's chatting footy. So, you know, it's a good atmosphere to be around. And the players feel it when they get there. So, you know, I know the Sharks are flying up today. The Bulldogs flew up yesterday. They'll get in and around it and enjoy the spectacle that it is. But, you know, tomorrow night's a huge game for both clubs. So, they need to get in and around each other, fight for each other, and get this job done.

[00:17:07] Because I don't want to be sitting here next week on a preview show with you talking about how we lost another one that we shouldn't have. Now, what's your personal plan? Are you taking any black, white, and blue up with you? Or is it strictly business? Strictly business for me. I've got a meeting with the NRL throughout the day. And then I will be heading off to Suncorp Stadium to shoot the game for the Bulldogs for work.

[00:17:32] So, yeah, I won't be unfortunately able to wear my Sharks kit, but I will be there watching them play, which will be nice. Post game, are you going to take a change of gear maybe so you can walk around a bit more free? Or do you have to stay in uniform? No, absolutely. I'll be able to take some casual kit up there and get around and meet some people that I haven't seen for a little while from, you know, the club. And... Shark Cast Universe? Shark Cast Universe. If you see me, come say hi. Yeah, it'll be good. I love it up there.

[00:18:02] It's a good spectacle. It's almost like a mini Las Vegas game. So, you know, I just hope, you know, as a club we walk out of there happy and with the two points because that's all that really matters at the end of the day. And are you working out how to get lost to Las Vegas for a third straight year seeing as some of the teams have been rumored today? Look, I'm just waiting to see who's confirmed and I'll make a decision based on that. I'm not club hopping, Shinazi. I'm not club hopping. So, there you go. We have a game Friday night, 6 o'clock.

[00:18:32] It's going to be a beauty. If you can't be there, you can watch it on the KO or the Fox. You might be able to listen on ABC or one of the radio stations as well or whatever, wherever you are, you can work it out. But it's going to be a cracker. It's a must win for both teams, which makes it kind of cool. And we just better hope that our team wants it more. Gary Dover, thanks for joining us. Really appreciate your time. I know you're a busy lad. Thanks for having me. Your car's about to blow up or something. I'm just reversing. Sorry.

[00:19:02] All good. All good. All right. Thanks a lot. We'll talk to you soon, Gary. And SharkCast Universe, we will talk to you soon too. Up, up. Let's go, guys. Up, up. Let's go. SharkCast is supported by the best and most honest real estate agent in the Sutherland Shire, Jason Hawes from Crips & Crips Real Estate. He's an expert in the Caring Bar region and has his eye all across the Shire.

[00:19:25] Lifelong Sharks fan and supporter of this podcast, if you're looking to buy or sell in the region, the person you need to be talking to is Jason Hawes from Crips & Crips Real Estate. Call him on 0410 417 450. That's 0410 417 450. Jason Hawes, Crips & Crips Real Estate. SharkCast! SharkCast! SharkCast!

[00:19:49] Back in the Shire. Turn your porch lights off because we're coming home with a trophy. Fee!