The 15th-placed Titans hold off a fast-finishing Sharks to secure another win against a top 8 side.
The Cronulla Sharks took their home game to C.ex Coffs International Stadium, facing off against the Gold Coast Titans. Both teams made some pre-kickoff changes, with Royce Hunt starting for the Sharks and Tanah Boyd returning from injury in the halves for the Titans, replacing AJ Brimson. Beau Fermour shifted to the centres, Jacob Alick-Wiencke moved from the extended bench to the second row to partner David Fifita, and Jaylan De Groot made his NRL debut from the bench.
The Titans dominated the opening minutes, with veteran half Kieran Foran scoring in the 7th minute and Tanah Boyd converting. The Sharks faced an early setback when Royce Hunt lost the ball just short of the try line in the 11th minute. Two minutes later, Siosifa Talakai was sent to the sin bin for a high shot on Sam Verrills.
With the Sharks down to 12 men, the Titans capitalised on their advantage. A short ball from Foran to Chris Randall resulted in a try directly under the posts, with Boyd adding the extras to push the score to 12-0 after 15 minutes. The Titans continued their relentless attack, forcing multiple drop-outs from the Sharks.
A brief respite came when Keano Kini picked up a fast-moving grubber from Braydon Trindall, but the Sharks were penalised for the Titans being offside. However, their luck stayed the same as Nicho Hynes turned the ball inside to Jesse Ramien, only for the pass to be called forward. The Sharks were denied again in the 28th minute when Will Kennedy's try was sent upstairs as no try.
The Titans earned another forced drop-out before halftime, but the Sharks managed to regain possession by kicking deeper. Despite their efforts, the Sharks went into the sheds down 12-0.
At halftime, the Titans had 64% possession with 22 sets to the Sharks' 10, completing 85% of them compared to the Sharks' 59%. This possession disparity led to the Sharks making nearly 100 more tackles.
The Titans opened the second half scoring with a successful penalty goal from Tanah Boyd. Less than five minutes later, Braydon Trindall finally scored the first points for the Sharks, but Hynes failed to convert, leaving the score at 14-4. The Sharks' momentum was short-lived as they failed to make the 10 meters on yet another forced dropout, handing possession to the Titans. A quick play-the-ball from Beau Fermor and a strong run by Keenan Palasia saw the Titans extend their lead, with Boyd successfully converting again.
The Sharks tested the Titans' defence repeatedly, finally breaking through when winger Daniel Atkinson crossed the line after a beautiful rainbow pass from Trindall. Hynes added the extras, narrowing the gap. With four minutes to go, the Sharks scored back-to-back tries, spreading it to the left for Hynes to find the try line and convert, reducing the deficit to 4 points.
In the closing minutes, both sides attacked and defended well. The decider came when young Sharks winger Daniel Atkinson attempted to tap back a Hynes cross-field kick, but it went over the sideline. The Titans ran down the last 41 seconds, with David Fifita going to ground with the ball as the siren sounded, securing the win.
The result sees the third-placed Sharks lose their third game in a row, falling to the 15th-placed Gold Coast Titans in front of a sold-out crowd in Coffs Harbour.